Mills & Reeve adds further upspin to agribusiness team

She is one of a small number of specialist agribusiness practitioners nationally, bringing extensive experience in complex transactional and advisory work for farms and landed estates.

Her expertise spans agricultural tenancies and the emerging opportunities to advise on natural capital, biodiversity, landscape recovery projects and renewable energy.

Danks' arrival will build on the team’s strong national reputation and further strengthen the firm’s network across the food and agribusiness and private wealth sectors, bolstering support for the firm’s landed estates clients.

Catherine Scott, partner at Mills & Reeve, commented: “We’re delighted to welcome Katharine Danks to the Mills & Reeve agribusiness team. Katharine brings exceptional expertise, deep sector insight and a real passion for supporting clients in this rapidly evolving industry. Her arrival strengthens our commitment to delivering market leading advice to agribusinesses across the UK, and we’re thrilled to have her on board as we continue to grow our offering.”

Mills & Reeve has worked alongside farming families and rural businesses in the Eastern region for over 175 years, helping them navigate the challenges and opportunities on their land.

It continues to support estate, farming and rural enterprises in growing and diversifying by combining deep sector knowledge with practical legal and commercial advice. The team works closely with clients to build and protect value across all stages of their business lifecycle from buying and selling land to managing risk.

Its agribusiness advisory services span land development, renewable energy projects, tax structuring and rural planning, enabling clients to unlock new revenue streams while preserving core assets.

Mills & Reeve advises on complex issues such as biodiversity net gain, infrastructure planning, and diversification into energy production, ensuring compliance and maximising opportunities.

Alongside this, the firm’s private client specialists provide tailored advice on wills, succession planning, private tax and family law advice for the owners of farms, estates and rural businesses, helping families navigate change with confidence.

Some stand-out deals have included advising:-

▪ Canada’s largest agribusiness, Richardson International Limited, on the acquisition of European Oat Millers and Anglia Maltings.

▪ One of the UK's oldest and best-known diversified farming businesses, Strutt & Parker (Farms) Limited (S&P), on its sale to Robigus.

▪ Shareholders on the sale of significant agribusinesses, Bowes and then East Anglian Pigs, to Cranswick.

▪ Albanwise Ltd on four offshore wind farm cable easements and two leases of 2GW substations

▪ Oxford University Endowment Fund on its £50+m acquisition of the Exning Estate near Newmarket

▪ Trinity College on its restructuring of its rural investment portfolio.