No room for fear of the unknown

No matter what we think of the current political situation we find ourselves in, whether in Scotland, Europe or the United Kingdom, change is coming and we must be ready for it.

Uncertainty and the fear of the unknown are to many a reason to put their head in the sand, but to others there are business opportunities to be seized upon.

What we need in the rural economy is for our political leaders to tell us what is going to happen and we will respond accordingly. However, in the absence of guidance we need to take matters into our own hands – time is not on our side.

On a recent trip to Australia to stay with farming friends, it was refreshing to learn that down under the farming industry responds quickly and with no emotion to situations outwith the control of individual farmers.

If there is rain and plenty of grass they invest in stock, but if there is the threat of severe drought they have no issue with disposing of the majority of their stock.

Compare this with the attitude we are often faced with at home where a farmer, be they tenant or owneroccupier has say 500 ewes and come hell or high water they will always have 500 ewes whether they are profitable or not. Tradition is all very well but I am not convinced it has a place in modern farming economics.

Returning to the UK, I was saddened to read in the press Angus McCall of the STFA having to justify, if he needed to do so, his decision to purchase his farm from the landlord.

All he was doing was reacting to change and took the opportunity to secure his and his family’s future.

I was the agent that negotiated the deal along with two other tenants who also bought their farms. It is sad that critics are quick to criticise without knowing the whole story.

This was the culmination of about 18 months of reviewing the assets of the landlord and it ended with the decision that in light of changing legislation both in the tenanted farm sector and in land ownership in general, the rational thing to do was offer the tenants the chance to purchase their farms.

In short, two parties reviewed their own situations, one scaling down and the other making the most of the opportunity offered in owning their farm. No principles have been compromised, but both parties have reacted to change.

On one hand underperforming assets have been sold and the capital reinvested elsewhere, while on the other hand the farmers who have farmed the land for many years now have the opportunity to invest in their own farm as and how they wish.

Fear of the unknown and uncertainty is no reason to do nothing. We have, we are told, two years to get ready for the UK leaving Europe.

We can either slim down operations or beef then up so to speak, to be ready for the inevitable changes that are coming.

Lawyers, accountants and even land agents are always telling clients to look carefully at their businesses and make changes where necessary.

If an enterprise is not profitable, does it really fit your business or are you just letting tradition get in the way of economic sense?

This advice is probably even more pertinent now than in the past.

Whether a company, partnership or sole trader, now is the time to look at what is making money, what is losing money and what might make money in the future. We all must be leaner and keener to face the future and adapt to and embrace change.

The “fit” well-structured businesses will survive and prosper, but those that insist in doing what they have always done may well not.

Now is the time to have a serious review of all our rural businesses.