£9.8m for Cumbrian farmers

CUMBRIAN FARMING businesses damaged by foot-and-mouth disease are the target of a new £9.8m recovery programme announced by Rural Regeneration Cumbria.

Farming Connect Cumbria hopes to secure the long-term future of the farming industry by providing business, environmental, technical and marketing advice, as well as grant application support to farmers.

The project, which will safeguard 750 jobs and provide almost 1600 businesses with advice, will also focus on young farmers, aiming to assist at least 200 in business start-ups or expansions by 2008.

Cumbria NFU county chairman Alistair Mackintosh said he fully supported the new programme and urged farmers to take advantage of the funding available.