- Location
- somerset
somewhere along the line, we seem to have lost, the monetary house keeping, credit is so readily available, and designed to keep you in the 'trap', Tractor finance, nearly finished, just before it needs changing, buy your stock, spread the cost over 3 yrs, it's all about making profit, for the finance people ! If everything was bought, and paid for, farming could be a serious profitable business.
We have all fallen to the sweet words of banks, consultants etc, even the guv, encourages us to spend, offering 40% grants, for this, or that technology, all that does, is make you find the other 60%, or, if you are cynical like me, it's a 40% handout to the tech companies, with a ready primed, customer base. It's farmers built in desire, to improve, increase, do better, it's that desire, that banks, firms etc, log into, and push.
We are seriously trying to reduce our debts, it's a very enlightening action to look at. Kit, bought on a subsidised % rate, horrifying, if you look at value, of the kit, used, unless you are replacing with new. The worst, definitely the kneenan, good nick, tidy, £1,000, or £7,500 or more, if you trade in for another, ours is bought and paid for, so it will stay, we worked out the hours/cost, of our telescopic, 350 hrs in the last 12 months, depreciating, at slightly more than the finance ! Open mkt value, £13/14,000, not 5 yrs old, luckily, we got double that, not good, but we needed 4 new tyres, and some serious internal problems, like £8,000 plus the tyres, if we did it, machine not worth anymore. We have bought a 2nd, older 2nd hand loader tractor, they hold their value. The best tractors, we have ever used, on our hills and banks, were the 6 cylinder JD's, the 3050/3350's, might not be the most comfortable, but being long, definitely the best.
The brave new world, post brexit, we have no real idea, of what it will be, nor, for that matter, post covid, both are going to really change, how we will live/trade, next year. Change, is a good time, to look at your business, in reality, most of us, have been running faster, each year, to stay in the same place, producing more product, for the same price, to keep paying for those 'bits', we have been told we need. The guvs spin off, by encouraging us to produce more, it keeps food costs down, an essential need, of any guv
Being confined indoors, not by choice, but injury, i am a very avid TFF fan, not only does it help keep me sane, but it is full of ideas, actions, suggestions etc most of which, are very useful. You can ask questions, and get honest answers, can even post some very contentious points, and get either ridiculed (often) or get a suprise. Farmers have got to start working together, a very hard aim to achieve, especially as the locusts, living off our backs, do everything they can, to discourage that. But, working together, is the best way, to survive the next few years, until the UK finds it's place, in the worlds pecking order. Post to long, sorry.
We have all fallen to the sweet words of banks, consultants etc, even the guv, encourages us to spend, offering 40% grants, for this, or that technology, all that does, is make you find the other 60%, or, if you are cynical like me, it's a 40% handout to the tech companies, with a ready primed, customer base. It's farmers built in desire, to improve, increase, do better, it's that desire, that banks, firms etc, log into, and push.
We are seriously trying to reduce our debts, it's a very enlightening action to look at. Kit, bought on a subsidised % rate, horrifying, if you look at value, of the kit, used, unless you are replacing with new. The worst, definitely the kneenan, good nick, tidy, £1,000, or £7,500 or more, if you trade in for another, ours is bought and paid for, so it will stay, we worked out the hours/cost, of our telescopic, 350 hrs in the last 12 months, depreciating, at slightly more than the finance ! Open mkt value, £13/14,000, not 5 yrs old, luckily, we got double that, not good, but we needed 4 new tyres, and some serious internal problems, like £8,000 plus the tyres, if we did it, machine not worth anymore. We have bought a 2nd, older 2nd hand loader tractor, they hold their value. The best tractors, we have ever used, on our hills and banks, were the 6 cylinder JD's, the 3050/3350's, might not be the most comfortable, but being long, definitely the best.
The brave new world, post brexit, we have no real idea, of what it will be, nor, for that matter, post covid, both are going to really change, how we will live/trade, next year. Change, is a good time, to look at your business, in reality, most of us, have been running faster, each year, to stay in the same place, producing more product, for the same price, to keep paying for those 'bits', we have been told we need. The guvs spin off, by encouraging us to produce more, it keeps food costs down, an essential need, of any guv
Being confined indoors, not by choice, but injury, i am a very avid TFF fan, not only does it help keep me sane, but it is full of ideas, actions, suggestions etc most of which, are very useful. You can ask questions, and get honest answers, can even post some very contentious points, and get either ridiculed (often) or get a suprise. Farmers have got to start working together, a very hard aim to achieve, especially as the locusts, living off our backs, do everything they can, to discourage that. But, working together, is the best way, to survive the next few years, until the UK finds it's place, in the worlds pecking order. Post to long, sorry.
