The Forestry Commission in Scotland has made two small farms available for new entrants to farming. What are your views on this step and the broader issue of new entrants to farming? What needs to be done to attract new entrants to our industry?

jon riley:

What needs to be done to attract new entrants to our industry

 

Do we need to with farms getting ever bigger we wont need so many farmers will we?

There is always talk of caps on different things bankers pay, social security sfp claims etc how about a cap on farm size?

The more farms that come up for rent the better the trouble will come makeing enough to move on from there

 

jon riley:

What needs to be done to attract new entrants to our industry?

The industry has spent the best part of the last 25 years telling anyone who would listen how bad it is that they had succeeded in creating a situation where young people don't see a future in farming, nor do the teachers and others who influence careers.

Now however there is finally an uptick in apprenticeships and students coming into the sector, this is not with ringing support of farmers, it is more because youth today can see a bit of a future in farming.

There is a situation now of large business coming into food supply chain and dependantce on owning land to get into farming is not so crucial, thus enabling opportunities.

Most small farms are increasingly letting out their land under contract as the way of industry development. It is now academic who owns the means of production of land, but labour that is a different affair.

The land market is totally dessicated, so enevitably the future will be different. The market will start up again when the inheritance tax laws change, which will happen sooner than most expect.

jon riley, Nothing - and according to my copy of an Oxford dictionary farming is not an industry.

It has always been extremely difficult to get into farming, but no more difficult than any other chosen way of living that needs a large amount of capital to be able to commence. More than 50 years ago I was told by my school careers master "You can't be a farmer. Your father is not one so you can't be one." There is no such word as can't. Those who really want to will.

this is a great initiative started by the scottish tenant farmers assoc.

its quite obvious that private landlords werent going to do it, so the govt was persuaded to release some of their massive land bank.

There is always a need for new entrants, and they must get land, not just any land, but land on decent terms which will do them well, not leave them homeless and bankrupt after 15yrs.

The forestry commision shouldnt be buying farms to plant, especially arable farms, but at least a part of them will still be farmed.

How do we attract new entrants ?    Bigger pay,Cleaner work,Smaller hours.Offer that and we'll get new entrants to farming.The idea that we'll "need" tens of thousands of individual farm businesses in the future is wrong.If governments "want" tens of thousands of small farm businesses the first thing they'll have to do is cap single farm payments.The second thing is to put a limit on the amount of agricultural property tax relief any individual can get so that small family farms can be handed on but big conglomerations of farms are more likely to be split up.

"New entrants" always seems to be a complete misnomer to me.Is a young chap starting an agricultural apprenticeship a new entrant ? Is a tractorman of twenty years experience who decides to start his own contracting business a new entrant ? Is the term "New Entrant used in NZ and if so,what does it mean ? 

bigger pay, smaller hours and cleaner work?

people who want that should stick to the office. remember yhe old saying, where there is muck, there is money.

farming is a dirty business, anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves. there wont always be polish people to do the dirty jobs.

as to pay, well farm workers are better off than they think, secure job, frree house, no travel costs, unlimited overtime,

glasshouse:

bigger pay, smaller hours and cleaner work?

people who want that should stick to the office. remember yhe old saying, where there is muck, there is money.

farming is a dirty business, anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves. there wont always be polish people to do the dirty jobs.

as to pay, well farm workers are better off than they think, secure job, frree house, no travel costs, unlimited overtime,

There definately isnt the pay gap there used to be.I dont think a tractor driver would get a better pay driving lorries these days.By cleaner work,I guess I mean conditions in general.If the tractorman has to wade through a sea of gutters every morning for the want of  investment in a bit of concrete ? 

concrete?

owner occupiers have concrete yards, tenants have mud. its the way it is.

factors dont like going into muddy yards or rough tracks, so keep them rough.!