Hill farmers ‘need brave new vision’
RURAL: Farmers in North Yorkshire’s remotest communities have been warned that they need to adopt a brave new vision if they are to survive the challenges which the agricultural industry is facing.
A commission has been collating evidence from farmers as part of the review to help rejuvenate rural communities.
FARMERS IN North Yorkshire’s remotest communities have been warned that they need to adopt a brave new vision if they are to survive the challenges which the agricultural industry is facing.
A commission tasked with tackling rural decline has been collating evidence from farmers as part of the initial stages of the review to help rejuvenate North Yorkshire’s countryside communities.
Dales hill farmer Neil Heseltine, the first person to give evidence to the commission, has issued a stark warning that many of his counterparts face being driven out of business without a radical shift in their approach.
While the agricultural sector is facing huge uncertainty over future trade and subsidies with the UK’s exit from the European Union, hill farmers endure specific challenges with financial pressures from volatile prices and rising costs and rents while also running businesses in often harsh environments.
Mr Heseltine, who is based in Malham in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, called on farmers to “shift our mindset and take responsibility” to diversity their businesses and embrace ecofriendly schemes to become carbon neutral.
He added: “We must shift our emphasis to reflect the benefits from the change that is necessary for farming to play its role in the county’s economy in the future.
“Since the Second World War, food production has risen by nearly 50 per cent but profits have reduced. The financial pressures and hours farmers work take a toll on family life and their mental health.
“Traditional farming is simply not profitable, so we need new business models and to take a new approach.”
The independent panel of experts is looking at a host of economic and social problems in North Yorkshire and its members announced in October that they were to start their work by analysing the role of farming and the environment.
A wide range of other issues will be looked at over the next six months, including transport, digital connectivity, housing, education and training as well as the economy and jobs.
The commission, which is the first of its kind nationally and is being chaired by the Dean of Ripon, John Dobson, held a meeting this week to learn more about the challenges facing the agricultural industry, and listened to calls for farming to become part of the national curriculum.
Dr Carmen Hubbard, a senior lecturer at Newcastle University and an expert in rural economics, also gave evidence, and said: “We need much greater integration of farms into the supply chain and farmers need to think in detail about how they can do this.”
The commission will present a series of recommendations to North Yorkshire County Council and its partners in the summer.
Traditional farming is not profitable, so we need new business models. Yorkshire Dales hill farmer Neil Heseltine.