Farming Focus: Heraclitus, the Greek philosopher said, "Change is the only constant in life."
We are an industry laid bare to so many external factors out of our control it can sometimes feel overwhelming to think of the future. Adversity is the key to becoming more resilient and farmers are a resilient bunch, so good, bring on change.
Harvest 2023 is complete. Concerns leading into harvest about crops, both in terms of yield and quality were realised early on.
Spring barley particularly fell afoul of the weather conditions and with price differential between malting barley and feed barley in the region of £80/t, the financial impact has been severe. Weather conditions have been predominately mild and wet across the region, sowing of winter oilseed rape started in mid-August and has continued into September although establishment has been variable following a period of hot and dry weather at the beginning of September. The tail end of the season has been blighted by heavy rainfall creating very wet conditions for drilling in most areas. Many farmers are reporting 50% of their planned area of wheat drilled to date. Wheat markets have been trading sideways for several months now, with the occasional rally offering a good marketing opportunity. The Scottish premium for feed wheat has weakened slightly to around £9/t over May 24
LIFFE futures. The war in Ukraine has played a muted part in the market recently with the large Brazilian crop tempering potential upside. However, official figures show that Ukrainian exports this season includes 5.2 million tons of wheat, 4.9 million tons of corn and almost 750,000 tons of barley. In the previous season Ukraine exported 5.9 million tons of wheat, 8.3 million tons of corn and 1.3 million tons of barley. Listening to traders and farmers' unions the reports are that Ukrainian Black Sea ports and Russian attacks on the country's Danube River ports are the main reasons for lower exports. Historically, Ukraine has traditionally shipped most of its exports through its deep-water Black Sea ports. Ukraine's Government expects a harvest of 79 million tons of grain and oilseeds in 2023, with its 2023/24 exportable surplus totalling about 50 million tons.
However, we should not dwell on the past, rather look forward to the future and focus on the things that we can influence.
These are the things that we can control in our own businesses
- when to buy inputs and when to sell our produce. There is a great saying "plan your trade and trade your plan." Sounds simple but this requires discipline and intrinsic knowledge of your business. Cost of production, cost of inputs, depreciation, valuation, wages, contingency the list is endless, but the list is important to get to grips with.
We recently hosted a group of young farmers from The Scottish Association of Young Farmers Clubs (SAYFC) at The Drum Farm, Edinburgh to talk about regenerative farming and how this can be implemented into current farming systems.
The phrase regenerative farming seems to divide opinion; however, I sometimes feel the phrase is misconstrued. From our point of view regenerative farming is an approach that goes beyond sustaining resources to actively improving them.
It includes practices like cover cropping, reduced tillage, and rotational grazing that enhance soil vitality and farm ecosystems.
Something that many farms across the UK are already doing. The contrast is that conventional farming, where short-term yields have often come at the expense of long-term soil health and environmental sustainability has begun to undermine the financial viability of farms. The UK Agricultural Bill Reform represents a transformative shift in farm policy post-Brexit, focusing on rewarding environmentally friendly farming practices. The shift from the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to a system that pays farmers for environmental services like flood mitigation and habitat creation, which could promote regenerative practices with the latent benefits such as increased organic matter in soil leading to better water retention, higher biodiversity, and improved resilience to climate extremes. This leads into sustainability and moving towards a more holistic approach that includes economic viability, environmental health, and social responsibility. The role of carbon farming and circular economies might be the keystones of future sustainability. As an industry we have long been proponents of technological advancements such as precision farming, soil health monitoring and data analytics all of which are poised to play a significant role in sustainable agriculture.
There is also the small matter of the influence of consumers on sustainability through their purchasing power and the potential for policy to shape sustainable practices, including organic and local food movements, all of which are vital discussion points.
In my opinion, the importance of viewing regenerative agriculture as part of a larger ecological and societal framework and ensuring that farming contributes positively to the environment and community is vital. It is not all about soil health, selling your ploughs and buying the latest direct drill, but more a whole farm business review using the considerable number of tools we have at our disposal. A collective approach where all stakeholders, farmers, consumers, businesses, and policymakers work together to support the transition towards a more fruitful future is surely beneficial for everyone. If that happens to be called regenerative farming - why not.
Sam Scott| Director Cloud Farming Limited
Read More With Rennie Welch Autumn Winter 2023
