End of the Road for Small Livestock Farms?

hally

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
cumbria
Why? Support should be distributed fairly regarldless of size.
It should be aimed more towards smaller units if you want the family farms to survive, if not then you are right. It always used to be, ewe premium was paid for first 500 ewes then half rate after that.
 

le bon paysan

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Limousin, France
I don't think the NFU caused abandoned headage payments. They and Scot Gov tried to put more onto headage to keep suckler numbers up to a critical mass but could only do it via the beef calf scheme ( and ewe Hogg scheme) but EU rules did not allow more to be transferred from the area based scheme and Englandshire saw it as anti-competitive.
That was my understanding of the situation.

I see subsidy as a way we can compete on world prices and keep people farming. I see it as mainly a social support as it means thousands of jobs supporting farming can survive in rural towns and villages. I have just counted 25 companies which our modest operation pays every year. They are actually surviving on grass as that is the basis for all our income. Without those efficient cash converters -livestock - the grass would support no jobs.
The continent kept headage payments and front loaded the first 50 sucklers , 500 ewes and 50 Hc.
What stopped you doing the same ?
 

Macsky

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Highland
That’s not been my experience,large estates are run in such a way that maximises profit at the expense of everything else. Your smaller units will have far more biodiversity simply because the farmer knows his ground much better and will have a diverse rotation to suit rather than the mono culture in the drive for profit in the large estate.
They call it profit, but they have a very short sighted and shallow understanding of the term.
 
Why should the government subside someones hobby Frank? Can you give them my number and I'll rent it?
But the big issues of the day are the environment and carbon capture. Small farms with permanent pasture should be very important for this so why shouldn't they receive help. Windmills, biomass boilers, ground source heat pumps , solar panels etc. all do
 

toquark

Member
I never understand why folk with good jobs farm on the side as well , must be very awkward , be better just helping another farmer to fore fill farming desire and ditch all hassle .
It’s a total b***ache at times but our system is adapted to be as labour light as reasonably possible. It provides a nice place to live, raise a family and engage in the culture which we both came from without the stress and pressure of relying on it for a living.

Time is always short though.
 

glasshouse

Member
Location
lothians
Why? Agriculture and land use is changing as it has done so many times in the past.
Its only changing because farmers or workers cant afford the houses
Its always been a nonsense that you could sell a farmhouse to a banker or lawyer and then apply for a new house with an ag tie
 

Frank-the-Wool

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
East Sussex
Why should the government subside someones hobby Frank? Can you give them my number and I'll rent it?

I think many of you have misunderstood what and why I started this thread.

@Formatted how much are you going to pay in rent for this land?
How far are you prepared to drive at least once every day and more when calving to check the stock?
How much do you think you will need in capital to buy the stock and have the minimum amount of machinery you will require to run this 50 acres?

The present farmers have kept on a family owned block of land and have I believe had a good balance of producing suckler beef at a small profit up to now. They have kept up the fences and hedges and maintained the land in good order as well as having work outside of the farm which I say good luck to them.
They are not looking for handouts but the reality is that the costs are now so high that when the BPS and small environmental payment disappears then the farm will be making far too great a loss to continue.

However it doesn't really matter if it is 50 acres or 500 acres in a similar type of farming on marginal but important land for the environment, it cannot be made to work unless the price of beef rises significantly (unlikely) or there is another scheme that supports the environmental benefits to give enough income. These small farms do perform an important function to help keep the rural economy working.
 
I think many of you have misunderstood what and why I started this thread.

@Formatted how much are you going to pay in rent for this land?
How far are you prepared to drive at least once every day and more when calving to check the stock?
How much do you think you will need in capital to buy the stock and have the minimum amount of machinery you will require to run this 50 acres?

The present farmers have kept on a family owned block of land and have I believe had a good balance of producing suckler beef at a small profit up to now. They have kept up the fences and hedges and maintained the land in good order as well as having work outside of the farm which I say good luck to them.
They are not looking for handouts but the reality is that the costs are now so high that when the BPS and small environmental payment disappears then the farm will be making far too great a loss to continue.

However it doesn't really matter if it is 50 acres or 500 acres in a similar type of farming on marginal but important land for the environment, it cannot be made to work unless the price of beef rises significantly (unlikely) or there is another scheme that supports the environmental benefits to give enough income. These small farms do perform an important function to help keep the rural economy working.

You last point is very true!
 

BrianV

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Dartmoor
Most of us on here will have started out as dog & stick farmers with a small acreage one tractor & some second hand old machinery, if we allow all our small farms to disappear do you really think any young chap (unless dad owns half the parish) would be able to provide the machinery let alone stock for a 3 or 4 hundred acre farm if he could possibly find one to rent.
Agricultural collages are simply providing staff for large estates who often end up living in tied cottages with little hope of ever farming in their own right.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 77 43.5%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 62 35.0%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 28 15.8%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.7%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.7%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 4 2.3%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,286
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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