Wanted: New aims
Wanted: New aims
THE West Country farm industry should investigate new directions for farming as it begins to emerge from the shock and heartbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, says Dorset farmer Shirley Preston.
Mrs Preston who chairs the NFUs south west regional board believes it is now time to draw a line under the F&M crisis and is calling on younger farmers to step in if their elders decide to retire.
"Farmers are starting to look ahead and the industry is taking the IT boom on board and stands to benefit from it. We have new crops such as Miscanthus and willow as energy sources that could prove profitable," she adds.
However, Mrs Preston points out that group action will be needed to make the necessary investment in infrastructure for them.
"Getting access to EU and government funds for those new projects is a major hurdle for the region.
"We need a strong voice because we are geographically out on a limb here in the south-west. We want our share of the modulation money. In the past the larger farms in the rest of the country have had more than their fair share of support money per farm."
In her role as chair of the NFU regional board she is aiming to provide farmers with more information and give them more clout in the fight to attract investment.
"We hope to have a conference this autumn on a regional identity for food and drink and a South-West Chamber of Agriculture has recently been set up as a focal point for consultation."