Farmers take milk off shelves at large supermarkets Re price of milk

[matelot]

Farmers get other subsidies as well... they don't have to pay any business rates on their farms...

 

how can it possible be right that someone with a small corner shop pays business rates but someone with a £5m farm pays nothing?

[matelot]

Farmers get other subsidies as well.. they don't have to pay business rates...

 

How can it be right that someone with a small shop pays business rates but someone with a £5m farm pays nothing?

[Robbyrasta]

Why compare a small shop and a massive farm/ estate

 

Small shop- small farm

Big shop- big farm

your question would still be same.....

[Woodworks]

matelot

 

We live in a small Dartmoor hill farm. We get some grant funding for the way we manage the land and being in a LFA. We are paid to not use chemicals on the land and to repair old Devon stone faced banks. We had £3250 last year according to Kevin's link combined with the income from our sheep we may break even as long as none of us charge anything for our time Yes there are perks to farming but without them many could not or would not be able to keep going. Whether anyone likes it or not farmers manage most of our countryside and being encouraged to do it in a sustainable way seems to make sense to me. Around here there are many moorland farmers living a subsistence lifestyle to survive. Without them the land would probably be left idle for better or worse.

 

Like any system it gets abused for profit. For another example look no further than the RHI

 

Beau

[matelot]

Why compare a small shop and a massive farm/ estate

 

Small shop- small farm

Big shop- big farm

your question would still be same.....

 

ehhhmmm, the point I was making that most businesses that have property pay business rates to fund essential services like schools/ road repairs etc. But farms pay nothing at all.....

[mendiplogs]

matelot

 

We live in a small Dartmoor hill farm. We get some grant funding for the way we manage the land and being in a LFA. We are paid to not use chemicals on the land and to repair old Devon stone faced banks. We had £3250 last year according to Kevin's link combined with the income from our sheep we may break even as long as none of us charge anything for our time Yes there are perks to farming but without them many could not or would not be able to keep going. Whether anyone likes it or not farmers manage most of our countryside and being encouraged to do it in a sustainable way seems to make sense to me. Around here there are many moorland farmers living a subsistence lifestyle to survive. Without them the land would probably be left idle for better or worse.

 

Like any system it gets abused for profit. For another example look no further than the RHI

 

Beau

 

Hi mate yes and that RHI is being abused by some thanks Jon

[matelot]

Around here there are many moorland farmers living a subsistence lifestyle to survive. Without them the land would probably be left idle for better or worse.

 

 

I live in Scotland, a lot of the hill land here is covered with sheep. tbh, I would prefer if we got rid of the sheep and had more trees etc.

 

I just don't see any economic sense for a hill farmer to have a 1000 sheep and sell 2000 lambs a year at £50 each.

 

like it or not, I think most British people would rather have more wildlife than farms that have been grazed stupid by sheep.

[Woodworks]

I live in Scotland, a lot of the hill land here is covered with sheep. tbh, I would prefer if we got rid of the sheep and had more trees etc.

 

I just don't see any economic sense for a hill farmer to have a 1000 sheep and sell 2000 lambs a year at £50 each.

 

like it or not, I think most British people would rather have more wildlife than farms that have been grazed stupid by sheep.

 

You could be right but aside from food security (which I am surprised your not in favour of) you would lose what I presume is the biggest employer in rural areas.

[matelot]

You could be right but aside from food security (which I am surprised your not in favour of) you would lose what I presume is the biggest employer in rural areas.

 

I've often looked at hill land and wondered how much actuall food the land produces. The vegetation looks poor and the sheep are shivering in a corner. I can't see it producing that much by the time you exclude supplemental and winter feeding.

 

If you plant the land with trees you get more shelter and the deeper tree roots bring up nutrients from the deeper soils. I honestly think there would be an abundance of deer if hill land was planted out. Is venison not worth more than lamb?

[Richard 1234]

ehhhmmm, the point I was making that most businesses that have property pay business rates to fund essential services like schools/ road repairs etc. But farms pay nothing at all.....

 

 

Is providing food not an essential service in itself?