Getting a foothold in any profession is never easy, but for farmers it’s more difficult than most. Unless you have a spare million – or two – in your back pocket, buying a farm outright is not really on the cards.
This is where county farms have such an important role to play. Owned by local authorities, they offer tenancies which can provide an invaluable foothold for new entrants and ensure land is put to productive use.
For many aspiring farmers, access to land is the single biggest barrier to entering the industry and younger people often struggle to access capital.
County farms help break down that barrier. They provide starter farms – smaller holdings specifically designed to give new entrants a foothold that would otherwise be unaffordable in the open market.
An important role
At a time when food security is climbing the political agenda and rural livelihoods are under intense pressure, the role of county farms has never been more important.
Unfortunately, the price of land means they also represent valuable assets. For local authorities trying to balance the books and looking for ways of getting their hands on some cash, selling – or at least reducing – their county farms estate can be a tempting proposition, especially as there is no statutory obligation for councils to provide farming tenancies.
Most of the local authorities in the South have reviewed their provision of county farms, most recently in Cornwall and Dorset.
Cornwall has 87 holdings covering 10,800 acres and Dorset 60 holdings covering more than 5,000 acres; any loss of these would be a big blow to agriculture in these counties.
In response, the NFU has been busy behind the scenes, making sure councillors know the value county farms represent. They have been invited out onto farm to meet tenants and talk about the issues first hand.
We have given evidence to council committees and lobbied council staff, making some powerful arguments in favour of retaining a thriving farm estate.