Weather and Brexit weighing on farmers’ minds

The farming calendar – and some poor planning by my parents back in January 1991 – means I have spent nearly all my adult birthdays sitting inside the cab of a tractor or jostling with a grain blockage in my antiquated grain shed.

To add insult to injury, I also popped out on Friday 13th which was, once again, the offending date in 2019 and the tradition of muddling through the tail end of harvest on my birthday was upheld.

Luckily, the last of the barley got combined last weekend and most of it has made its way through the dryer, but we still have the burden of straw lying wet in fields, beans still to harvest, fourth-cut silage, and, of course, winter drilling to be tackled before we can fully shut the door on harvest 2019.

For many associated directly with farming, this inclement weather means days on end watching the rain batter the window panes while we wait for the manic few days the weather does eventually break and we are running around like headless chickens trying to get as much as possible done.

Add to that burden the impact our current political situation is having, causing uncertainty for us all.

None of the aforementioned is great for our mental health and you don’t have to look very far to see the impact it is having on many an individual within our industry.

In the UK, on average, more than one farmer a week is lost to suicide – and suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged between 20 and 34.

It is important that we all do our best to support someone who finds themselves in such a dark place that they feel the only thing left to do is take their own life. When New Zealand Farmer and mental health advocate Doug Avery did his much-applauded tour of Scotland last year, he talked at length how important it is for us to look after our mental health in the same way as we do our physical health.

He also said one of the first things we should all do is sort out our support “V”.

Surprisingly, the V theory comes from one of the biggest enemies of Scottish farmers – geese.

When geese fly overhead (apart from wondering where the birds are going to land next), you’ll hear them honking away to each other in their Vs.

These animals have been flying for long periods of time, often through some of the most difficult weather imaginable and this honking between them is believed to be them encouraging each other to keep going, keep flying and they’ll get there in the end.

Now, more than ever, it is important we discuss mental health within our industry and through the help and support of those around us, as well as the many organisations that can offer care and guidance, tackle the tragedy of suicide in farming.

As for me, I was extremely glad to have my support V around me last Friday, helping me honk out my birthday cake candles after a long day in the tractor!

Honking geese flying in a V are thought to be encouraging one another.