Future Farming Resilience Fund - more jobs for consultants?

[Steevo]

Seems like DEFRA are planning to make funds available for consultants to advise farmers (yet again!) on how to survive post direct payments. Am I cynical in thinking it's more like a gravy train for consultants?

Find out about the support available under Defra's Future Farming Resilience Fund

Defra's Farming Resilience Fund was created to help farmers plan their way through the agricultural transition. Here we cover some of the support the fund can provide.

www.nfuonline.com

 

[delilah]

Am I cynical in thinking it's more like a gravy train for consultants?

Probably not. But we are where we are, the money has been committed and will be spent. If anyone wants a consultant, maybe consider using Jyoti from the LWA, more deserving than many on that list of some well paid work after her untiring efforts to promote the common interests between UK ag and the environmental movement.

 

[GeorgeK]

I think I could be an ELMS consultant. "Hello? No it's not a subsidy." "Hello? No it's not exactly the same as BPS but with a different name." "Hello? No you can't pull all your hedges out that's still illegal."

 

[delilah]

For anyone who isn't an NFU member and can't read the full link in the OP, the list of consultants here:

https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2021/07/13/the-future-farming-resilience-fund-providers-named/

One thing screams out for comment.
If there is one sector that needs pulling back from the precipice, it is horticulture.
Yet, of the 19 organisations listed, only one specifies horticulture as a specialism. And their expertise is very much at the smaller scale of operations.

Have Defra written off horticulture ? That is to say, do they accept that a small handful of businesses will supply the cartel, with a token offering of micro scale producers selling to the wicker basket brigade at farmers markets ?

If so, why bother providing support to those remaining producers in the other sectors ? If horticulture is to be a sector of ever fewer, ever bigger, enterprises, then why not livestock and cereals ? What are these consultants supposed to tell producers in those sectors, other than get out ?

 

[Sid]

For anyone who isn't an NFU member and can't read the full link in the OP, the list of consultants here:

https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2021/07/13/the-future-farming-resilience-fund-providers-named/

One thing screams out for comment.
If there is one sector that needs pulling back from the precipice, it is horticulture.
Yet, of the 19 organisations listed, only one specifies horticulture as a specialism. And their expertise is very much at the smaller scale of operations.

Have Defra written off horticulture ? That is to say, do they accept that a small handful of businesses will supply the cartel, with a token offering of micro scale producers selling to the wicker basket brigade at farmers markets ?

If so, why bother providing support to those remaining producers in the other sectors ? If horticulture is to be a sector of ever fewer, ever bigger, enterprises, then why not livestock and cereals ? What are these consultants supposed to tell producers in those sectors, other than get out ?

I see your mates are on the gravy train. The land workers alliance.

And Devon County Council ,they don't even know what they own and what they don't from my experience!

 

[delilah]

I see your mates are on the gravy train. The land workers alliance.

And Devon County Council ,they don't even know what they own and what they don't from my experience!

As per my earlier post, I would say Jyoti is a long way away from boarding the gravy train ( she's too busy milking by hand )

What's your thoughts on the point re hortic/ other sectors ?

 

[Sid]

As per my earlier post, I would say Jyoti is a long way away from boarding the gravy train ( she's too busy milking by hand )

What's your thoughts on the point re hortic/ other sectors ?

Horticulture friend has never had a sub in his life.

Why start now?

 

[Sid]

As per my earlier post, I would say Jyoti is a long way away from boarding the gravy train ( she's too busy milking by hand )

What's your thoughts on the point re hortic/ other sectors ?

Then why apply for be an advisor if you don't want the money?

Strange.

 

[delilah]

Horticulture friend has never had a sub in his life.

The questions had nothing to do with subsidy, but rather the structure of the sector. What are Defra wishing to achieve ? What is their vision ?

Then why apply for be an advisor if you don't want the money?

To help fellow farmers ? Who said anything about not wanting the money ?

Any chance of a constructive discussion ?

 

[Steevo]

And Devon County Council ,they don't even know what they own and what they don't from my experience!

I did wonder quite why they were on the list...!! That alone shouts gravy train rather loud to me.

 

[Phil P]

For anyone who isn't an NFU member and can't read the full link in the OP, the list of consultants here:

https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2021/07/13/the-future-farming-resilience-fund-providers-named/

One thing screams out for comment.
If there is one sector that needs pulling back from the precipice, it is horticulture.
Yet, of the 19 organisations listed, only one specifies horticulture as a specialism. And their expertise is very much at the smaller scale of operations.

Have Defra written off horticulture ? That is to say, do they accept that a small handful of businesses will supply the cartel, with a token offering of micro scale producers selling to the wicker basket brigade at farmers markets ?

If so, why bother providing support to those remaining producers in the other sectors ? If horticulture is to be a sector of ever fewer, ever bigger, enterprises, then why not livestock and cereals ? What are these consultants supposed to tell producers in those sectors, other than get out ?

The Hort sector made it quite clear with the AHDB vote that they don’t want to take advice from anyone.

 

[Phil P]

Seems like DEFRA are planning to make funds available for consultants to advise farmers (yet again!) on how to survive post direct payments. Am I cynical in thinking it's more like a gravy train for consultants?

Find out about the support available under Defra's Future Farming Resilience Fund

Defra's Farming Resilience Fund was created to help farmers plan their way through the agricultural transition. Here we cover some of the support the fund can provide.

www.nfuonline.com

Can we not all just apply to become our own advisors

 

[Steevo]

Can we not all just apply to become our own advisors

I suggest a scheme where every TFF "like" is worth £1000. Monthly claims, paid within 14 days.

Seems a reasonable proposal for a collaborative scheme based on with a group of likeminded farmers joining together to share and exchange knowledge with the ambition to kickstart innovation within their respective businesses with particular emphasis on facilitating production improvements and carbon reduction whilst working toward their long term aims of continued environmental sustainability.

 

[delilah]

The Hort sector made it quite clear with the AHDB vote that they don’t want to take advice from anyone.

If that's the reason Defra aren't interested in supporting the sector, it would seem a bit harsh on anyone looking for advice on how to to expand/ enter. As Tim Lang recently said, of all sectors it is fruit and veg that has been allowed to be exported to the cost of the environment and balance of payments.

 

[delilah]

Seems a reasonable proposal for a collaborative scheme based on with a group of likeminded farmers joining together to share and exchange knowledge with the ambition to kickstart innovation within their respective businesses with particular emphasis on facilitating production improvements and carbon reduction whilst working toward their long term aims of continued environmental sustainability.

Never make a consultant, you missed out blue sky thinking.

 

[Steevo]

Just had another thought on this....... @Grass And Grain is this scheme any use if a group of 10 farmers or such got together and approached one of these consultants with a potential suggested proposal of combining their "Resiliance Fund support" claims into one big joint project aiming to crack the Red Tractor nut?

It strikes me that this would be a great way of achieving the stated aims of the project:

The phasing out of BPS by 2027 will impact every farming business in England. To help farmers through the transition away from Direct Payments, Defra has created the Future Farming Resilience Fund.

The Future Farming Resilience Fund will provide grants to organisations so that they can support farmers to:

• Understand the changes that are happening
• Identify how they may need to adapt their business model to take account of the ending of BPS and the disappearance of the income stream it provides
• Know what they need to do and when they need to do it
• Have access to tailored support including 1-2-1 business advice.

 

[Grass And Grain]

Just had another thought on this....... @Grass And Grain is this scheme any use if a group of 10 farmers or such got together and approached one of these consultants with a potential suggested proposal of combining their "Resiliance Fund support" claims into one big joint project aiming to crack the Red Tractor nut?

It strikes me that this would be a great way of achieving the stated aims of the project:

The phasing out of BPS by 2027 will impact every farming business in England. To help farmers through the transition away from Direct Payments, Defra has created the Future Farming Resilience Fund.

The Future Farming Resilience Fund will provide grants to organisations so that they can support farmers to:

• Understand the changes that are happening
• Identify how they may need to adapt their business model to take account of the ending of BPS and the disappearance of the income stream it provides
• Know what they need to do and when they need to do it
• Have access to tailored support including 1-2-1 business advice.

Unfortunately, I imagine not. Although adapting the business model to compete with imports sort of fits.

Could that adaptation include setting up a new self-declaration scheme. Suppose advisor could only advise (rather than fund/create the scheme).

What were the other grants? Farm efficiency?

I never seem to see the DEFRA ads that advisors can apply to.

On the thread topic, what amazing advice are these highly paid advisers going to give us? Are they just going to say join SFI and the new stewardship schemes equivalents to replace some of the lost BPS. Spread your fixed costs by doing some contracting, renting more land, or use contractors etc.

If it's tailored support, will they do a planning application for us for a barn conversation?

 

[Bill the Bass]

How have AHDB got on that list? Don’t we already pay them to provide us with help and advice? Jeez.

 

[farmerm]

Any one applied or plan to apply to get this "free" advice from this £10.7million fund, money taken out of the BPS budget and paid to £200/hr advisors? It is a sizeable chunk of money yet seems to be a fund with very unclear aims and outcomes other than that of lining the pockets of land agents and advisors? 19 different companies set to share this £10.7million fund each with very different approaches on what they offer.

 

[farmerm]

and the fund is going to be "scaled up" next year which in plain English translates to money cut from BPS payments to food producing farmers will be put into the hands of paperwork generating agents and advisors...