Finance

An imperfect storm of Brexit and Covid, plus a stronger pound making the EU more attractive for European seasonal labourers, saw casual labour disappear overnight. Suddenly, automation is not just a choice, but a necessity.

Farmers considering planting the carbon negative crop Miscanthus can now benefit from a finance package to cover virtually all upfront costs for crop establishment, as well as new direct, long-term offtake agreements with end-users, with 10–15-year index-linked annual returns.

If you’re a farmer who produces more energy than you use, you’ll have the opportunity to sell your excess power back to the grid as a source of revenue. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) could help you achieve best value by agreeing to sell to a third party, often at a fixed price and for a set period.

Popular machinery company Kuhn is aiming to help farmers purchase their ideal equipment with a new 0% finance deal on its range of balers and baler-wrapper combinations.

Farmers and the wider public are being urged to remain vigilant as credit card scams have been circulating in Pembrokeshire.

With the hire cost of a replacement combine potentially reaching upwards of £70,000 for a high-capacity machine, it is essential to ensure your insurance policy offers adequate cover in case of fire, to avoid a serious hit to your harvest.

Following the end of the Government consultation period into the administration of direct payments and a lump sum exit payment for farmers who may be looking to leave the industry, the NFU has shared its response to the proposals.

Accountancy Saffery Champness is advising farms that provide accommodation services or catering to be aware VAT changes could hit farm businesses from 1st October.
 

For families with more than one child passing assets on to non-farming children may seem complicated but there are options to do so while keeping the farm intact. Financial experts Old Mill give us their advice on the difficult subject.

New analysis by AHDB quantifies how the proposed Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) stacks up against the basic payment scheme (BPS).

Farmers Guide caught up with Sean McCann, chartered financial planner at NFU Mutual, to hear expert financial advice for farmers looking to diversify.

R&D tax consultancy Rocdaymer & Co Ltd spoke to Farmers Guide to offer an in-depth explanation of UK tax credits for the agriculture sector.