Farmer Focus: A testing time for farm – and farmer – resilience

We’re halfway through spring calving with (so far) zero hiccups, and the wheat looks great in this early spring sunshine.

I was asked at an interview last year about the achievements I was most proud of within my farming business. Quite high on the list came the word “resilience”.

I had built the business to a point where it was no longer reliant on my constant presence.

See also: Tips for better time management on the farm

About the author

Ben Harman

A fourth-generation farmer with 247ha on the Chiltern Hills, Ben Harman owns the UK’s oldest herd of Charolais, as well as Salers and meat brand “Chagyu” (Charolais cross Wagyu). He is chairman of the British Cattle Breeders Club, vice-chairman of the National Beef Association and is a Checs board member. 

Read more articles by Ben Harman

This gave me time to spend immersing myself fully in boards and committees away from the farm.

I have spent about 30 nights away in the past three months, representing primarily the beef industry, but also the cattle industry and farmers in general.

I love the energy I get from this, which I take with me to expend at home.

Resilience here is built on the capability and willingness of those around me, as much as the diverse revenue streams and efficiencies that have been put in place. 

However, recent events at home have tested this resilience. A family member is ill, and this brings a certain focus.

I need to have a long look at how I manage my time, and where my priorities lie.

Spending time caring for those you hold most dear is a privilege, but when schedules are already full, where can that time be found?

The illness of loved ones, and the stresses that naturally come with that, expose fissures that soon become cracks in a status quo that only a few weeks ago seemed strangely permanent.

What if it was me that was incapacitated? How resilient would the business look then?

The answer is as clear as today’s glorious blue sky: it would at best put an intolerable strain on those around me, and at worst it would crumble.

Armed with that knowledge, doing nothing is not an option. In my non-farm work, strategy planning and stress testing are of fundamental importance.

It’s time I paid them more than lip service in my own business.

Meanwhile, in the office, we’re changing banks after a litany of failures from our provider of 40 years.

The timing is inconvenient, as it coincides with a deal being signed which, if all goes well, will be the most significant in the farm’s 130-year history. Keep your fingers crossed for me.