Judges are looking at economy, community and the environment

Its future - and that of those who live and work in it - is looking brighter and to encourage and foster badly-needed new initiatives, Bulmers, the Hereford cider maker, has launched a special competition, the winners of which will be announced at the Three Counties Countryside Show at Malvern from June 14-16.

A £1,000 prize is waiting to be won by an enterprising individual or group putting forward an outstanding project.

Submissions have been made from different ventures, including farming, tourism, business and leisure.

The Bulmers award for Sustainable Innovation in the Countryside is being staged in conjunction with the Three Counties Show and whatever the projects might be, the judges will be looking at how they contribute to sustainability's three criteria of the economy, the environment and the community.

While the winner will receive a trophy and a £1,000 cash contribution for the further development of the project, each of the other two finalists will receive £500.

The entries - from within the three counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire - are being displayed in an exhibition at the show.

Bulmers decided to make the award because their own success depends on healthy relationships between itself, the farming community, and the land.

The award aims to promote countryside initiatives which embody the ethos of sustainable development - that economics, communities, and the environment, should be nurtured together for the mutual and long-term benefit of all.

BSE and foot and mouth are obvious examples of an ongoing decline in the rural sector.

This double whammy created devastation in an already fragile rural economy in the country areas.

It was the final straw for many people. Bulmers believe the way forward is to get to the nub of the issue, to see what's wrong, and change it.

Bulmers sees sustainability as a way forward since consumers and legislators are shifting their support towards farming that cares for the environment.

There is an opportunity for the region to establish itself as a leader in this field. Bulmers is working to improve its own environmental performance, and together with members of the Bulmer family, has set up a sustainable development charity called the Bulmer Foundation.

An important development is Bulmers and the Bulmer Foundation teaming up with the regional development agency, Advantage West Midlands, and with the Pershore Group of Colleges, to develop Project Carrot.

Project Carrot will involve the establishment of Europe's leading centre for sustainable agriculture and land management at Holme Lacy College, near Hereford.

the project is

well underway

The college will work with the community to bring about rural regeneration. The project is well underway.

The Hereford cider maker, which uses the apples from thousands of acres of orchards across the region, including extensive orcharding at Llantilio Crossenny, just over the Welsh border, says that the media coverage of the finalists of the competition will be very valuable.

And all the entries will no doubt be of considerable importance to the individual businesses concerned in the competition.

The entries will be displayed in an exhibition at the Malvern show and will be viewed by tens of thousands of people, therefore giving each project entered plenty of publicity.

An independent panel of judges will have the task of selecting a finalist from each of the three counties and a final judgment will be made during the Countryside Show. Entrants have to write a description of their project in no more than 500 words.

They have to outline the concept and how it is carried out. And it is also necessary for them to explain what makes their own project unique, and how it is successful.

Publicity material, such as photographs, leaflets or other material may be submitted by the entrants to illustrate their projects.

Entries will have closed by the time this article appears but for more infomation on the competition, readers are asked to contact George Thomas at Bulmers, Hereford, telephone 01432 345417.

The number of the Three Counties Agricultural Society is 01684 584900 www.threecounties.co.uk