‘Prospects for young farmers are bright’
It’s impossible to get into farming unless your parents farm, right? Wrong, reckons Matthew Sharp, who highlights a few of the opportunities and the attributes needed to take them
My parents would have never expected, when they saw me as a toddler driving a forage harvester on the carpet, that this would eventually become my career.
Many years on, however, I’m now doing a degree in Agriculture with Farm Business Management at Newcastle University.
It’s surprising that I chose the career path I did, having been told by all and sundry as I grew up that it was a questionable choice.
Like many young people, I often found myself disheartened by the negative comments I heard.
“It’s too much work for too little pay,” people would say. “It’s impossible to break into farming if your parents don’t farm.” Or sometimes: “The only way to get anywhere is to marry a farmer’s daughter.”
Young people themselves aren’t free from blame. Many of us spend too much time complaining about the barriers that are in our way.
Our glasses should be half full, not half empty. We all know land prices are high and tenancies hard to come by. And that’s even before raising enough capital to buy machinery, livestock and inputs. But a blame culture won’t help us any more than complaining will. It’s not good for us or for the wider industry. It’s an exciting time and there are many opportunities out there.
One option is share farming. A farmer goes into a partnership with a young farmer – the former offering machinery and land, the latter offering labour and livestock. This can allow the “farmer” to do less work on farm or pursue other interests, while retaining the business; for the young farmer, it’s a chance to develop their own business with less risk – and without having to borrow so heavily.
Tenancies still represent a chance to get on the ladder. Organisations such as National Trust offer Farm Business Tenancies on smaller acreages. Looking to the uplands may not necessarily be a first choice for new entrants, but it’s an option to get on the ladder. Typically, rents in the uplands are lower and stock is often cheaper, meaning young farmers can start building a business. It doesn’t have to be permanent; it could be just a stepping stone. Returns are likely to be less than the lowlands but building breeding stock up and having trading accounts will prove that you have the ability to go and run a much larger farm.
Whatever route you take, young farmers who are successful have one thing in common – they know production costs to the pound and minimise them wherever possible. The ones I talk to seem to have a simple philosophy – maximise returns (and add value where possible), keep fixed and variable costs down and keep your cashflow positive.
As young entrepreneur James Peck, who started a contracting business after leaving college and runs a lettings, sporting and haulage business alongside it, says: “Cashflow is king.”
A wide skill set and knowledge base are also vital. Farmers need to be able to fulfil many different roles these days – we all need to make sure we can manage people, communicate, look after the environment, market our products, plus deal with organisations such as DEFRA and the RPA. Then there’s the need to balance the short-term goals with longer term considerations such as farming sustainably and looking after the land.
Even if you don’t want to – or are unable to – farm in your own right, what about a career in farm management? Or becoming a herdsman? And then there are all the many and varied ancillary jobs – exciting careers are to be had in such professions as auctioneering, land agency and agronomy.
A can-do, positive attitude is one of the vital things a young person can have. So please, no more moaning. There are opportunities for the those who want to take them and are prepared to take a risk. They will be the successful farmers of tomorrow.
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