- Location
- Perthshire (It's a big place!)
Along with diversificationThe future of UK farming will be around strict cost management, better understanding of our customers and getting closer to them imho. Do that and we have a positive future.
Along with diversificationThe future of UK farming will be around strict cost management, better understanding of our customers and getting closer to them imho. Do that and we have a positive future.
and too add the to this it doesnt really matter which party is runnig the country the outcomes are pretty much the same.Unfortunately what the public wants by and large is designer labels the latest electronic gadgets , very large flat screen smart tvs , cheap flights and sun holidays and food appears to be a long way down the list . The main priority with many is that it better be cheap . No easy answers to changing mindsets 60 odd years of encouraging the notion that people have a divine right to cheap food has led to the current situtation where farmers and Agriculture are completely undervalued .
Personally if i was in charge i would revisit Ray Macs origonal plan . Pay a 100 quid acre on the first 300 acres to every separate business . A few quid extra on 5 % that goes into grass strips or other enviro schemes . To claim the support 70 % of income must come from active farming and be supported by cert from the Taxman .Big operators can continue as the please and the wont be costing the public purse any more than the small operator . If the Gov was really serious about carbon reduction then the would tackle the Mick OLearys of the Airline world . The AD operators need a good hard look too whats green about hauling maize 30 miles and generating waste thats going as far in the opposite direction ??
Never happen of course ,the pack of tossers that are in charge would far rather fill Lord Snottys pockets for " rewilding " his estate than implement a genuinely supportive both socially and economically Ag policy .
Along with diversification
That's an interesting one. Is farming the only industry where significant proportions of owners regularly subsidise their loss-making business with other profitable ones?Along with diversification
I feel like this about a lot of farm shops. I wouldn’t want the hassle of having to be a butcher in order to fund my livestock farming habit.That's an interesting one. Is farming the only industry where significant proportions of owners regularly subsidise their loss-making business with other profitable ones?
I feel like this about a lot of farm shops. I wouldn’t want the hassle of having to be a butcher in order to fund my livestock farming habit.
For me it boils down to retiring now and being fairly comfortable cash wise. Or staying in the game one way or another and exposing myself to a lot of unknowns, could make money, could lose a lot. We're not risk takers, we've always been in farming because it's steady but safe, but it feels riskier going forwardsI'd add that renting out nice flats and living in a draughty farmhouse is not doing it for me. There's good demand for farms, and so long as they don't knack entrepreneur relief in April, it's looking s good time to get out.
With the best intentions in the world, the retirement package will only work if farmers want to retire. For many of these “stubborn” types it is a way of life, whether they have seen any profit in the job is immaterial, they would have to be carted out in a box to stop farming.I think its great if it removes stubborn old sods so a younger generation can have a go. The best farmers and the wealthiest farmers will survive from what i can see.
as a tenant farmer buying a btl has its advantages if you can put up with the hassle just got to look at as if putting up a livestock shedI'd add that renting out nice flats and living in a draughty farmhouse is not doing it for me. There's good demand for farms, and so long as they don't knack entrepreneur relief in April, it's looking s good time to get out.
Not just any diversification though - I wound ours up 18mths ago - it didn't make money and spread me so thinly I was doing nothing well.
Sometimes you need to focus on the core business, and do what you do best.
For me it boils down to retiring now and being fairly comfortable cash wise. Or staying in the game one way or another and exposing myself to a lot of unknowns, could make money, could lose a lot. We're not risk takers, we've always been in farming because it's steady but safe, but it feels riskier going forwards
what nobody has mentioned so far is for the older farmer i.e coming upto or just past retirement age the receipt of a pension wether state or/and extra private will mean they will carry on ( living in a draughty house)as the bps falls its been replaced esp as if the bps was propping up profitability so any thoughts of land becoming available for new entrants are misplacedWith the best intentions in the world, the retirement package will only work if farmers want to retire. For many of these “stubborn” types it is a way of life, whether they have seen any profit in the job is immaterial, they would have to be carted out in a box to stop farming.
With the reduction in BPS, I naively thought that once these “old” farmers on AHA tenancies lost the very BPS payment that was propping up their rent money (or for some CC farms covering it ) then it may encourage them to surrender their tenancy if the holding was going to cost them money to farm. From where I’m standing right now in my career, the retirement package offer is a complete poke In the eye to people trying to get on the farming ladder. Any farmer who was thinking of surrendering a tenancy in the next four years will now sit it out, waiting to find out what incentives are thrown their way first??
Semi retire . Still got time for other things to see and do!Your 37?
It's not the only industry that does it. Look how many retail stores have a cafe, DIY stores sell plants, ag merchants sell horse stuff, airports stuffed full of shops selling all sorts etc etc it's all about spreading income base, we do lots of different things but each one has to stand on it's own merit, of course it is easy to spread yourself too thin and doing nothing wellThat's an interesting one. Is farming the only industry where significant proportions of owners regularly subsidise their loss-making business with other profitable ones?
You can have other activities or sidelines that require very little time input. Fishing lakes, camp sites, etc may offer another member of the family a day job or even a part time/summer job yet turn in respectable income for the farm. Play to your strengths and what your farm has to offer.
That seems like madness but doesnt effect me either wayYou can’t claim the retirement pay off then pass the farm to your son. It’s a get out completely payment.