Latest farming opinions NEWSOpinion: Multiple factors will affect the value of farmlandWhat is farmland worth? The short answer has always been “whatever someone will pay”. But that is not much use if one is considering a sale, purchase or valuation for… NEWSOpinion: Farmer 'drama kings' out in force over IHTJust imagine if all policy choices made by government were focused on ensuring that younger generations wanted to work in farming. Changing the inheritance tax (IHT) privileges of agricultural landowners… NEWSOpinion: Middlemen set to benefit from BudgetI’d not sat and watched a Budget before, and won’t be making that mistake again. I’d liken it to the world’s most boring horror film. I knew exactly what was… OPINIONEditor's View: What will it take to win IHT reform?With just a few days to go until farmers throng Westminster seeking a Labour U-turn on inheritance tax (IHT), the question must be… will they succeed? The task for the… NEWSOpinion: Eyewatering kit prices should prompt buying reviewWe have some amazing video footage of our farm that my grandmother took on cine film in the 1959-60 season. It is a fascinating and valuable record of the farm… NEWSOpinion: Farming should have an official retirement ageMy grandpa was still farming on the day that he died aged 91 – circumstances that everyone celebrated at the time. Dedicated, devoted and sentimental, this “till death us do… OPINIONEditor's View: Farmers Weekly backs calls for Budget changesAn additional week’s perspective does not make the Budget any more palatable. With each day that passes, it becomes clearer that the Treasury’s assumptions that only a small number of… NEWSOpinion: Budget just puts us on a par with other industriesSitting down to watch All Creatures Great and Small, with Armistice Day just gone, it truly puts the bleating of those with high capital wealth after the Budget into context. … NEWSOpinion: Sheep farming – a platform for sustainabilityFew farmers tackling the challenging conditions of 2024 will question that climate change is upon us. Most would also accept that we have serious problems with water quality in our… NEWSOpinion: New biodiversity app tells me nothing I don't knowIt wasn’t easy at ag college, being a farmer's son and studying environmental management. People swerved me in the corridors, there were shouts of "tree hugger" in the cafeteria, and… OPINIONEditor's View: Chancellor hikes punishment for sudden deathAfter today’s (30 October) Budget, chancellor Rachel Reeves’ message to farmers is “don’t die unexpectedly or it’ll cost you”. If Defra secretary Steve Reed and farming minister Daniel Zeichner were… NEWSOpinion: Holiday highlighted extent of 'non-food farming'We had a splendid few days’ holiday in Devon, thank you for asking. We don’t go away much, but when we do, we go big. There was also the small… NEWSOpinion: Farmers 'brainwashed' into not fighting backAfter four months in office our new government is yet to announce anything that will restore confidence to our farming communities. Agriculture is no higher up the priority list now… OPINIONEditor's View: At last the Budget is here, whatever happensA poor harvest. Anxiety about the farm budget. The impact of inflation. And fear over Labour’s seeming disinterest in food production… Fifty years ago this week saw hard-up Welsh farmers… NEWSOpinion: NFU president – Budget must invest in farmingThe upcoming Budget is the most anticipated I can remember. Business confidence is low, the economy is faltering, and we have a new government. The country will have its eyes… NEWSOpinion: Ergot may prompt a rethinkRegular readers will know that I enjoy growing spring combinables about as much as I enjoy growing Maris Piper – the promise of such lucrative quality on paper, yet the… NEWSOpinion: Dyson's figures show farming defies business logicWhat are we supposed to make of the latest announcement from Britain’s biggest farmer, Dyson Farming Limited, that in the year to 31 December 2023, the company increased its profit… OPINIONEditor's View: Water woes will test looming Land Use StrategyThere’s something in the water in Hampshire, I remarked to a room full of Hampshire farmers last week, as the rain beat on the window and the River Test brimmed… NEWSOpinion: The family farm is at heart of rural BritainThe recent Farmers Weekly Awards offered a fanfare of shrouded optimism to the packed Grosvenor House ballroom on Park Lane. First to the podium, FW editor Andrew Meredith applauded the… More articles
