Farming help appeal tops £40,000-mark

The Farming Help Appeal has now raised more than £40,000 to help country families experiencing tough times.

The appeal, run by three leading charities and Farmers Weekly, was launched last autumn and called on anyone in agriculture who could spare any cash to make a donation to help their cash-strapped contemporaries.

“Farmers, as always, have been good at supporting their own,” says Helen Bagwell of the Farm Crisis Network, who, along with the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution and the ARC-Addington Fund, are running the initiative.

“Livestock producers are having a particularly hard time, with the bluetongue movement restrictions taking their toll and the after-effects of foot-and-mouth and last year’s flooding are still being felt,” she adds.

“This money will make a big difference to people’s lives.”

The three charities – working together under the Farming Help umbrella – have spent about £1.4m since the flooding and animal disease outbreaks purely in responding to emergency situations.

Contact numbers:

• RABI helpline 01865 727888 (weekdays, office hours)
• FCN helpline 0845 367 9990 (7am-11pm every day)
• ARC-Addington Fund 024 7669 0587 (weekdays, office hours)

Or see the Farming Help website.