Charlie Reeve

More agricultural businesses are entering administration as a challenging economic climate adds to the financial pressures facing the sector. According to an assessment by law firm Shakespeare Martineau, a total of 11 agricultural companies entered administration during the first six months of the year, the highest number since 2010. High input and staffing costs, coupled with volatile prices and inflationary pressures, have continued to weigh on businesses’ bottom lines.

The Scottish malting barley sector has been hit with fresh challenges over the past month as several maltsters look to scale back operations. Despite higher yields and a bumper barley crop of more than 2m tonnes in Scotland this year, quality issues left many growers unable to meet malting specification, due to high nitrogen levels and poor screenings.

The Dairy Roadmap, an industry-wide initiative aimed at reducing the environmental impact of milk production, is calling on UK dairy farmers to share their views on how future sustainability targets should be set. Established in 2008, the roadmap has already helped to drive change within the dairy sector, with the average age at first calving being reduced by more than 30 days since 2018.