Jersey Royals are set for a royal audience next month as a senior member of the Royal Family returns to the Island for a two-day visit focused on farming, fishing and sustainability.
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, will visit the Island for two days next month, with a programme focused heavily on sustainable farming, fishing and food education.
Her Royal Highness previously visited Jersey with her husband as the Earl and Countess of Wessex in 2010, before returning for Liberation Day celebrations in both 2015 and 2022.
It will be the Duchess’s first to Jersey since she assumed her current title in 2023.
What’s on the agenda?
During the visit on 23 and 24 June, Her Royal Highness will meet representatives from Jersey’s dairy, potato and seafood industries to learn more about the Island’s environmental and sustainability initiatives.
The visit reflects The Duchess’s role as Honorary President of LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming), an organisation promoting more sustainable food production.
Among the organisations due to feature in the visit are Jersey Dairy – the first dairy in the world to carry the LEAF Marque on its milk packaging – and the Jersey Royal Company, which has operated as a LEAF Demonstration Farm since 2020.
The Duchess will also meet members of Jersey’s fishing and seafood sector to hear about efforts to sustainably manage the Island’s waters.
As part of the visit, Her Royal Highness will attend a reception at Government House in support of the NSPCC, of which she has been patron since 2016.
The royal trip will conclude with a visit to EYECAN as the charity celebrates its 140th anniversary year.
The charity’s work supporting Islanders with sight impairments aligns with The Duchess’s long-standing support for organisations focused on preventing avoidable blindness and tackling sight loss around the world.
Royal visits in recent years
Confirmation of the next Royal visit comes just weeks after the Princess Royal was in Jersey to open Jersey Zoo’s new state-of-the-art gorilla house.
Princess Anne unveiled the new house, which is nine times larger than the previous enclosure, during a private visit on 30 April.
In 2024, King Charles and Queen Camilla visited the Island for Liberation Day (gallery here) in what was the first visit of a reigning Sovereign to the island in 19 years.
Like the Duchess of Edinburgh’s upcoming visit, Jersey produce – ranging from Royals to honest and oysters – took centre-stage, with a specially-crafted Jersey Expo held at the Weighbridge.