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The following history of Lady Eve Balfour and the Soil Association has been written by, and is reproduced by kind permission of Oliver C Fox. For more information visit Oliver's Oxerfield web-site which describes the birthplace of organic gardening.

Lady Eve Balfour began farming from New Bells Farm, Haughley Green, Suffolk, England (then known as Young Bells Farm) in 1920. In the following years, the adjoining Walnut Tree Farm failed and Lady Eve took over the farming of their lands; at the same time Walnut Tree Manor came into her possession and was let to Alice Debenham. Alice Debenham renovated the Manor and subsequently purchased it.

In 1926, almost unremarked, Sir Robert McCarrison published the results of research on the relationship between food and health, in the Journal of Medical Research XIV. It was not until 1938 when Dr.G.T.Wrench published 'Wheels of Health' that the significance of the McCarrison research was fully realized. In his book Dr.Wrench related this research to that of Sir Albert Howard's' work on plant and animal nutrition.   It was also in 1938 that Lord Lymington (known later as Lord Portsmouth) published "Famine in England"; it was this work that caught the interest of Lady Eve Balfour.

Lady Eve met Sir Albert Howard who introduced her to Sir Robert McCarrison; Dr.Wrench and Dr.L.J.Picton. The late Sir Albert Howard C.I.E., M.A. had just published "Agricultural Testament", which showed how only healthy soil, produces the right food to help man's health.

Lady Eve spent 1939 discussing with her friend and neighbour the findings of these authors and the two agreed the need to establish a long-term scientific experiment. Miss Debenham founded the Haughley Research Trust, with East Suffolk County Council as Trustee. The Manor and farms were given to the Trust and it was agreed that, when money had been gathered to commence the experiment, New Bells Farm would be added to the Trust, but war Intervened and in the following year Miss Alice Debenham died.

Nevertheless she survived long enough to see the start of the Haughley Experiment in 1940. Haughley Research & Farms Ltd. carried out the work, and both New Bells Farm and Walnut Tree Farm were leased to this company.

By 1943 sufficient work had been accomplished for results to be published in the book "The Living Soil" written by Lady Eve Balfour. The same year saw the publication of the results of 'The Peckham Experiment' which had been researching the relationship between food and the health of man.

In 1945 finance was offered by Francis Scott; accommodation was offered by the Peckham Pioneer Health Centre and 60 prominent persons met at the invitation of Lady Eve and others to discuss the need for a body to correlate the information that was coming from all parts of the world. The Founders Committee was formed to what was to become 'The Soil Association', and its first meeting took place on June 12^th 1945.

On May 30^th the following year the inaugural meeting of the Association took place at Denison House, Hyde Park, London. The Association was clearly based on the work of the late Sir Albert Howard C.I.E, M. A; Major General Sir Robert McCarrison, C.I.E, M.D., D.Sc.,F.R.C.P; Dr's.Willamson and Pearse of the Peckham Experiment and Dr.Lionel Picton of the Cheshire Medical Panel.

Before the Association was a year old, the Haughley Research Trust (which had been founded by Miss Alice Debenham) failed for want of money; despite its infancy the Association agreed to take over the Trust in order to continue its work. At the September 1947 Council Meeting, it was agreed that Walnut Tree Farm and the Manor (owned by the Haughley Research Trust) should be purchased by the Soil Association; the money being returned to the Association as a research grant.

Lady Eve and her sister agreed to transfer New Bells Farm to the Association by Deed of Gift.  Lady Eve became the Organizing Secretary and Headquarters was moved from London to Haughley, where temporary buildings had been erected.

With Lady Eve travelling and lecturing all over the world, this was a period of great activity. By the winter of 1948 the Association had 2,000 members worldwide. They joined from thirty-two countries, in seven continents. From thirteen different states in the U.S.A.; from eighty-seven different counties in Britain, came these members.

There were Soil Associations formed in America; in France; Africa; Australia and in New Zealand. The 200-acre research farm at Haughley had its counterpart in France and another in Holland.

J.I.Rodale, a founding member, set up a Press and produced a monthly magazine "Organic Gardening" which to this day is published in America.

Dr.Schumacher, of the United Nations, gave support and today we have the Schumacher Society, as we have the McCarrison Society. Many offshoot organizations were formed which still function, and which concentrate upon individual facets of the Soil Association's work.

Again and again one finds so much time taken up in discussing how to raise funds, until finally in August 1951, the need of funds could be ignored no longer. A crisis came which had to be faced. An end was in sight.

Sadly it was admitted that the farms, the Manor, all would have to be sold to meet debts; there was no alternative. Instructions were given to sell all the properties at Haughley, by auction. Spurlings & Hempson of Ipswich, Auctioneers, drew up the maps and printed the auction details. The Manor, given by Alice Debenham was Lot 1; the Cottage occupied by Lady Eve was omitted, but even the garden was Lot 7 it was a very sad day. And then on the eve of the sale, a telephone call from the Earl of Strafford came. He was prepared to take over the debts of the Association and fund its further activities. This generosity was almost beyond belief. But, it saved all. Further than that his generous approach meant that work could be expanded. The much needed laboratory work could increase and in July 1952 we find plans to establish an Ecological Research Foundation on an international basis.

So great now is the awareness of the problem, there is established in Switzerland, the International Federation of Organic Movements; IFOAN.

But sadly Lord Strafford died; the old spectre of money problems arose; in 1966 the London Office was closed, staff was cut. In 1969 the Manor was set up as the Headquarters Office but by 1971 the financial crisis was as bad as ever.

This time rescue came from Mr.Pye, a member in Cambridge. The Pye Charitable Trust owned the entire Farmland and buildings; it was subsidizing the Association, the Farms, and a Small Feeding Experiment to the tune of £38,000 per annum. Even so, thanks to the kind and generous treatment of Mr.Pye, the Association shared the Manor with the Pye Research Trust which was set up to continue the work started so long ago by the Haughley Research Trust.

The Association still functioned as a focus point for the organic movement. It had founded a system of certification whereby those producing genuine organic food could display a registered symbol; this continued.

The Haughley Experiment was written up by Lady Eve Balfour and published by Faber & Faber in 1975.

Groups had been established in many counties of Britain and in other countries; these became autonomous and took on a life of their own. The work of the Association continued, but at last in the early 1980's Mr.Pye died.

The Association had to leave the Manor and on October 1^st 1985 moved to offices in Bristol, which are shared with an offspring "0rganic Farmers & Growers". Its rnembership fights on; it survives as a pressure group for organic food.

Under his son, Mr.Graham Pye, the farms lost their organic basis. The special herds of cows were sold off and finally in 1987, the farms were sold and reverted to commercial use. The Haughley Experiment had ended.

Yet as this is written, from the Cottage (so long the home of Lady Eve), there lies upon the desk such publications as 'Nature et Progres' (from France) ;'Star & Furrow', the Journal of the Bio Dynamic Agricultural Association; 'Oasis' the Magazine of Wildlife Gardening & Conservation; The Journal of the Soil Science of the Philippines; Soil & Health, the journal of the Soil Association of New Zealand; "Soil Sense", the journal of the Soil-Association of South Africa; the 'Newsletter' from Israel.

Can anyone deny that, here in Haughley, in rural Suffolk, a movement was born that will not end ever?

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