County firm praised

Geoffrey Davies OBE, managing director of Ludlow firm McConnel and its parent company Alamo Group Europe, welcomed the Princess Royal to officially open the new HQ of the Agricultural Engineers' Association, the representative organisation of which he is president.

Mr Davies escorted the Princess around a display of machinery made by AEA member companies and gave her a guided tour of the 132-year-old organisation's new offices in Peterborough.

The Princess revealed that she has two McConnel hedgecutters on her landholdings and said Alamo companies proved an exception to the rule by continuing to manufacture their machinery in Britain.

Mr Davies told the Princess that AEA members, including McConnel, were proud to provide the machinery that enabled British farming to do what it does best - efficient volume food production in a manner that is as friendly to the overall environment as possible.

"Many of our members - McConnel included - are companies with worldwide markets which invest many millions of pounds into technology. This allows us to produce machinery that is, indeed, the best in the world. Without that investment, AEA members would certainly be unable to supply what British agriculture needs," Mr Davies told the Princess Royal and guests at the opening ceremony.

After the Princess unveiled a plaque at the new offices, Mr Davies presented her with a cheque from the AEA for her charities. The Princess visited McConnel's Ludlow factory two years ago when the company won a Queen's Award for Exports.