The Farm Profit Programme is an ambitious new project delivered by the Farmers Journal and ANM Group with the support of the Scottish Government. The objective of the programme is to improve the technical performance and profitability of livestock farms across the north and northeast of Scotland. This will be achieved through dissemination of best practice, with the vision to lead a livestock revival in the area and to be a source of technical information and innovation, helping livestock producers grow and prosper.

In 2014, ANM Group held a series of discussion groups with its members to understand the challenges facing the future of the livestock industry in Scotland. The main issue repeatedly being discussed was the lack of profitability on farm.

With this in mind, ANM travelled to Ireland to examine the workings of the BETTER farm programme. Led by the Farmers Journal and Teagasc, the programme delivers intensive technical support to livestock farmers through a dedicated team of advisers.

The challenges facing the farmers and the outcomes from changes made to the farm systems are published weekly by the Farmers Journal. With the information available to all farmers, they are free to replicate some of these changes and systems on their own farms.

The decision was then taken by ANM Group and the Farmers Journal to deliver a similar project in Scotland. After a successful application to the Scottish Government and EU for funding, the Farm Profit Programme has been launched.

The programme will deliver key technical messages through two main avenues. Firstly, six focus farms have been selected throughout the north and northeast. An ambitious business plan has been drawn up with these farms. Over the next three years, they will receive one-to-one technical support from the programme advisers Robert Gilchrist and Declan Marren to deliver on this business plan. Weekly updates on the changes and challenges faced by the farmers will be published on the Farmers Journal and ANM Group websites, as well as quarterly bulletins to be published.

Planning

To improve farm profit, the six focus farms have drawn up a three-year plan with the aid of the programme advisers. The plans simply outline the areas on farm that need improving and prioritising when and how these changes will be made.

Over the past two months, the advisers have also worked with Kirsten Williams of SAC Consulting to establish independent baselines for each farm.

Using this data, a series of challenging targets have been set for the focus farms to strive towards over the three years. These targets are outlined in Table 1.

The second method of delivery will be through eight discussion groups located throughout the region. These groups will consist of 10 to 12 like-minded farmers. The focus will be on their farm system, discussing challenges, sharing experiences and implementing advice relevant to their farms. These groups will meet 12 times over the course of the programme. While names have been received for focus groups, some places still remain. If you are interested in being involved in a focus group, or have any queries, email your name, farm enterprise details and contact number to farmprofit@anmgroup.co.uk or call 01467623838.