THE 2007 harvest of cereals and potatoes was undoubtedly one of the better and more profitable seasons for the arable sector for some years. The prospects for farmers on better land also look encouraging for 2008, but one major issue facing the farming industry at large remains. Who will be there to gather in the crops and tend the livestock?
That thought was very much in the forefront of the comments yesterday from Graham Bruce, the managing director of Ringlink, the UK's largest provider of farm machinery and labour, with a record turnover of £20 million. Machinery rings were originally
perceived on their inception almost 30 years ago as a vehicle through which farmers could hire out or call in equipment at peak times.
However, it is not machinery that is now in short supply: over the past 20 years the rural workforce has declined by 20 per cent. Larger machines compensate for some of that, but Bruce reckons the crunch is approaching.
Speaking to the Ringlink annual general meeting in Inverurie, he said: "We as an industry will require to address this issue [labour and staff]. If we do not, we will be in a sorry mess."
There is no single solution, but Bruce is adamant that farming has an image problem. He added: "We need to get more of the next generation interested in our industry. We need to train more people and retain those we have. I believe we must also consider the wage structure and the hours we ask employees to work."
That contention was supported by Magnus Sinclair, an agricultural contractor from Udny, just north of Aberdeen.
He said: "Earlier this year two of my staff left to work elsewhere, not because of the money they were being paid, but on account of the long hours they are expected to work during the harvest seasons."
Brian Pack, the chief executive of the ANM Group, which is one of the largest farmer-owned businesses in the UK, was his usual radical self in calling on the industry to recruit more young people who are non-UK residents. He said: "Until now many migrant workers have been employed in harvest work, but at the unskilled end of the business. We should be seeing these young people as a long-term resource and getting them trained to take a lead role."
Pack also takes the view that the drift from the land has partly been due to a loss of job satisfaction. Too much thought is given to how many acres can be planted each day and how many tonnes of grain were carted into the barn each night while the older generation of farmers is still reluctant to pass businesses on to sons and daughters.
