No longer a single farming voice

Some interesting reflections by the president of the UK Agricultural Economics Society on recent farmer protests in Europe: 'The response to the grievances has been a mix of grant concessions and delayed policy decisions, reinforcing the argument that the farm lobby has a political importance which vastly outweighs its significance in terms of standard economic indicators.'

'Within the UK, I have found the diversity of reactions to the demonstrations from within the farming community interesting. Increasingly there no longer seems to be a single farming voice. Instead, just as the priorities that the sector is asked to address have widened so too has the range of interest groups with debate intensifying. For example, behind the headlines, positions of the more traditional farm lobby groups have been challenged on social media platforms by farmer-led groups concerned with soil health, food sovereignty, and diversity in the farming community, and through debates on the relative importance of food and environment in agricultural policy and practice.'

'The Oxford Real Farming Conference from 2010 was perhaps an early indication of this trend and the growing success of the Groundswell Agriculture Festival focus on regenerative farming systems. Agricultural economists have long recognised different motivations and styles of farming (see Hill, B. and Bradley, D., Journal of Agricultural Economics, 2024. Goals and values of farmers revisited: Gasson fifty years on). It seems more important than ever that we understand and recognise changes occurring in agriculture’s political economy if we are to fully support the transitions required in the sector to address climate and biodiversity crises.'

The collapse of the green wall

My article is now available on the Political Quarterly website.

The Conservative Party has usually done well in rural areas, but its ‘green wall’ is now under threat from Labour more than the Liberal Democrats. Farmers did not support Brexit any more than the general population, and in income terms they are currently doing well, but fear for the future. In addition, food security issues are more complex than they are portrayed, as are the relations with the devolved governments. In Scotland, the government there is much more popular among Scottish farmers whilst the government in Wales is doing much worse among farming communities.

Why some dairy farms do better than others

Britain has a long-running productivity problem and that includes agriculture.   What is also the case both generally and in agriculture is that there is considerable variability in performance, something confirmed for the dairy sector by farm business consultant Andersons: https://ahdb.org.uk/knowledge-library/characteristics-of-top-performing-farms-2024

The top 25 per cent of dairy farms typically make about £120,000 more a year profit than the bottom 50 per cent.  The top farms obtained an average milk price 1.7p a litre higher than bottom producers.

Top farms were more successful because of factors such as relentless cost control, efficient stocking rates, knowing what the market requires and producing it, and keeping a close eye on detail.