Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Succession planning is a must, like it or not
It’s easy to get absorbed in day-to-day management; that’s why getting off farm now and again gives you time to think, says dairy farmer
LAST week I was very privileged to visit that ancient bastion of agricultural education, the RAU, formerly known as the RAC, where the agricultural law firm, Thrings, was holding its annual agricultural seminar, entitled A Climate for Change.
Farmers appeared to be in the minority but there were a plethora of land agents, lawyers and bankers. Going by myself, as husband was too busy farming, it meant that I met a lot of new people which is always stimulating. As the speaker pointed out, you could also get a lot of free advice on the day from the good number of lawyers present!
Many of the talks focused on environmental issues and there was also a talk about succession planning called Keeping it in the Family, laying out why succession planning is so vital. I imagine this is a thorny subject on many farms which is sidestepped and prevaricated due to fear of the unknown, but is something that should be addressed in a positive fashion. You can’t rule from beyond the grave, however hard you try, but ideally you should try to set things up in a fair though not always equal manner.
We have addressed this on our farm, and my husband says it’s like walking to the edge of the cliff, with a beautiful view beyond, but on the final day you have to jump off, hoping for the best and that the parachute works. It’s also nearly always essential to involve an outside professional party.
One of the talks highlighted a recent court case, Guest versus Guest, which involved succession, and, as is often the case, involved a family falling out. One of the family members had left the farm after such a dispute, but then found that the share of the farm he had always been promised, after spending most of his working life on the farm, had disappeared and he found himself written out of his parents’ will.
The case was taken to court; the promise previously made to the son who had left was taken into account, and he was awarded 50% of the dairy business and 40% of the land. The parents appealed, and the case went to the High Court and then on to the Supreme Court. At this stage, Rob James, of Thrings, had acted for the parents, and the court decided that their son could either have less now, or the full settlement when his parents died. From the parents’ viewpoint, they just wanted to stay on the farm until they died, so there was some satisfaction for everyone, as long as the legal fees were affordable. Presumably family relations would never be the same!
Finally, The Wonder of Wadswick showed a video of a very successful farm diversification – Wadswick Saddlery. This is well worth a visit to see what can be done with a farm besides basic agriculture. This expansion works with agriculture on an arable farm, biomass is grown for the digester and there is a field of solar panels for farm energy. Diversity grows and grows; there is not only a very successful restaurant, but an airstrip and a shooting simulator to accompany the large range of guns for sale.
Very poignantly at 11am the proceedings paused for a short service of Remembrance which we attended with the college students. The last post was played by a trumpeter and there was a role call of all those who had died in the First World War and attended the RAC. I looked down at my Collingborn name badge and thought of my husband’s uncle, Francis Collingborn, who had been top student of his year. I was then a little disappointed that they failed to list those who had died in the Second World War since this would have included Francis who had been prominent in founding our Brinkworth herd.
I came away at the end realising how essential it is to get off farm, particularly on these dreary wet winter days and to mix with different people which can provoke an analysis of where you are and where you intend to be. As they say: “If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got.”
It’s so easy to get so absorbed in day-to-day management that you lose sight of the end goal. That’s why getting off farm is so valuable – it gives you time to think.
And, on my way back I visited our local supermarket. I needed to buy eggs and was interested to see a
notice displayed above the eggs: “We are currently experiencing supply issues across our fresh eggs range; we are working hard to resolve these and apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
There has been a lot of disruption due to avian flu but I also know that egg producers, suffering from huge rises in the cost of production, have been pointing out for months that they need at least 30p an egg to survive, so I looked at the prices of the eggs that were displayed on the shelves. The mixed box in my trolley was £1.37 or 13.7 an egg, medium were 19.2p and large 27.5.
I am very sympathetic to the many consumers who are struggling with food bills, but farmers are struggling too. In fact, the retail trade has increased the price consumers pay by 40p a dozen, but only 9p of this has filtered back to the producer. In past times, free range eggs were a rarity and were more expensive. Now that cheaper battery eggs have been phased out, the welfare friendly premium has disappeared.
It’s obvious that egg producers cannot go on producing eggs at such a large loss. Is it in the interest of our country to put our farmers out of business? Cheaper eggs at this current time may be welcomed by the consumer, but they will be less pleased in the future when prices have to rocket due to continual loss of supply, as many of our free-range producers have disappeared. Food shortages will soon be a global issue, and governments will feed their own populations first.
Dairy producers have suffered for many years as all supermarkets have
used milk as a loss leader to entice consumers in. When instore, they go on to do a whole shop. This has disadvantaged the milkman who can’t compete. Now electricity has doubled, fertiliser quadrupled and feed costs nearly doubled. The price of milk to the farmer has gone up to a more sustainable level, but the retail markets are looking for excuses to drop the price we currently receive per litre. Times are hard now for everyone, but traditionally the public had been very supportive, saying they would be happy for prices to increase, as long as the increase went to the farmer. This never happens, sadly.
The NFU, led by Minette Batters, says that British farmers across many sectors will produce less next year, including tomatoes, cucumbers, field vegetables and milk. The war in Ukraine has led to massive increases in the price of gas and this, together with the closure of the Russian market, means that the cost of fertiliser is now prohibitive, and market supply massively disrupted. Some 75% of farmers say they will use less fertiliser next year. Chemical fertiliser is not good for the planet, but without it, yields will be down and with a corresponding shortage of food. In the long run, technology will need to provide the answer, together with a lot more animal manure.
Ro Collingborn is a Wiltshire dairy farmer and has been dairy chairman of the Women’s Food and Farming Union, on the Milk Development Council, the Veterinary Products Committee, the RSPCA Council and a Wiltshire Wildlife Trust Director.