Half of UK farmers are not making a living solely off farming itself, a report by the Prince’s Countryside Fund has found.
In spite of the challenges involved, when asked which job they would really like to do, 35% of farmers said farming.
Furthermore, if it allowed, one in four farmers would happily give up their day job to farm full time.
Pay
The national median income in the UK is £28,200 (€31,500). Farmers earn £20,000 (€22,300) a year on average – yet more than 60% of respondents to a survey by the Prince’s Countryside Fund for the report, thought they took home more.
Nearly 10% estimated farmers’ salaries to be over £75,000 (€83,800).
Milk prices
Meanwhile, the report also found that three-quarters of people said they would be willing to pay extra for milk if farmers benefited directly.
One in four would be prepared to pay 50p (56c) or more extra for a four-pint carton of semi-skimmed, it found.
In May of 2017, farmers received an average of just 28.13p (31.44c/l) per litre for their milk.
For some, this hasn’t been enough to cover their costs and many have already left the profession, with figures showing that 66% of UK dairy farms have closed since 1995.
Of those that remain, many have been forced to rely on credit.
Young farmers
With an average age of 59, British farmers are on the brink of retirement. Just 3% of young farmers are under the age of 35 in the UK.
While there are great opportunities in agriculture, attracting the next generation is proving to be a real challenge.
Women make up 28% of the agricultural workforce in the UK.
In season food
When the survey of the public asked about the seasons of British foods, the 18-24 age group fared noticeably worse than the 55+ band.
Looking at seven ingredients – apples, blackberries, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, carrots, lettuce and tomatoes – an average of 41% of the younger age band did not know when these are in-season, compared to just 9% of the older group.
This is mirrored by a general lack of awareness about the countryside among younger people.
Some 12% of 18- to 24-year-olds have never seen a cow, 16% have never visited a farm and 17% have not visited the countryside at all.
This compares with 1%, 9% and 3% respectively of the over-55s.
Read more
Beef and sheep farms have highest margin growth – NFS
Number of livestock farmers down by over 4,000 since 2011
Half of UK farmers are not making a living solely off farming itself, a report by the Prince’s Countryside Fund has found.
In spite of the challenges involved, when asked which job they would really like to do, 35% of farmers said farming.
Furthermore, if it allowed, one in four farmers would happily give up their day job to farm full time.
Pay
The national median income in the UK is £28,200 (€31,500). Farmers earn £20,000 (€22,300) a year on average – yet more than 60% of respondents to a survey by the Prince’s Countryside Fund for the report, thought they took home more.
Nearly 10% estimated farmers’ salaries to be over £75,000 (€83,800).
Milk prices
Meanwhile, the report also found that three-quarters of people said they would be willing to pay extra for milk if farmers benefited directly.
One in four would be prepared to pay 50p (56c) or more extra for a four-pint carton of semi-skimmed, it found.
In May of 2017, farmers received an average of just 28.13p (31.44c/l) per litre for their milk.
For some, this hasn’t been enough to cover their costs and many have already left the profession, with figures showing that 66% of UK dairy farms have closed since 1995.
Of those that remain, many have been forced to rely on credit.
Young farmers
With an average age of 59, British farmers are on the brink of retirement. Just 3% of young farmers are under the age of 35 in the UK.
While there are great opportunities in agriculture, attracting the next generation is proving to be a real challenge.
Women make up 28% of the agricultural workforce in the UK.
In season food
When the survey of the public asked about the seasons of British foods, the 18-24 age group fared noticeably worse than the 55+ band.
Looking at seven ingredients – apples, blackberries, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, carrots, lettuce and tomatoes – an average of 41% of the younger age band did not know when these are in-season, compared to just 9% of the older group.
This is mirrored by a general lack of awareness about the countryside among younger people.
Some 12% of 18- to 24-year-olds have never seen a cow, 16% have never visited a farm and 17% have not visited the countryside at all.
This compares with 1%, 9% and 3% respectively of the over-55s.
Read more
Beef and sheep farms have highest margin growth – NFS
Number of livestock farmers down by over 4,000 since 2011
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