11 May, 2001

John Sheard discusses an important new initiative which, hopefully, will keep Yorkshire Dales hill farmers on the land.

BRITAIN'S upland farmers have always had a rough time. By choice, they tend some of the most inhospitable landscapes in the country, including most of our national parks. Only tough men, tough women, and tough breeds of sheep can wrench a living out of such uncompromising land.

Rarely has hill farming been much more than subsistence form of agriculture. In past centuries and until half way through the 20th, only the lucky ones could make a living by farming full-time. Others would also mine the minerals often found in our hills - lead, tin and sometimes small deposits of coal.

When the mines ran out, they turned to other part-time jobs: dry-stone walling, itinerant hay-making, game keeping or taking part-time jobs on the railways or in textile mills in the days when those were powered by water. It was, in fact, only in the last half of the 20th Century that they could make a full-time job of the farm, thanks to agricultural subsidies.

But those subsidies are now under threat. And so is the uplands way of life.

A year or so ago, I stood with a farmer high up in the Howgills above Sedbergh as he waved his arm around the vast horizon. He was lucky because he had a son who was willing to take over the farm. But there was desperation in his voice as he pointed out, one by one, the tiny farmsteads dotting the hills.

"Out of all those farms," he said, "there are only a couple whose families will continue on the land. All the other sons and daughters have gone off to jobs in the towns and cities. You can't blame them - the income from hill farming is pitiable - but who will look after the hillsides in twenty years time God only knows."

And that was before the present slump brought about by foot and mouth, the high pound, and changes in EU subsidies as Europe expands to take in East European countries and world-wide food prices hit rock bottom.

The fact is that, this week, many hill farmers are earning less than the national minimum wage for the endless hours they work a week. Many of them make less than £1 an hour. They could be much better off cleaning the loos in the hotels and pubs of local tourist spots. Then, at least, they could take the odd holiday.

Now this is a situation that Government and the now notorious MAFF have known about for years. But whilst cereal farmers in the south and east of England often pick up £1 million subsidy cheques, little has been done for their upland colleagues.

However, there are signs that the times they may be a-changing. Someone has noticed the fact that hill-farmers are leaving the land in droves. And, fortunately, this is a Government funded body with quite a lot of clout: English Nature, whose job in to protect our wildlife whether it be birds, mammals, fish or plants.

This week, one of English Nature's top men in Yorkshire called for the setting up of a multi-organisation enquiry to study plans to ensure the survival of the upland farmer and, with it, the landscape he or she conserves for the nation as a whole.

Dr Peter Welsh, deputy manager for English Nature in North Yorkshire, said: "With the hope that the worst of foot and mouth is now behind us, the time is right to debate the future direction of farming in upland areas like the Dales.

"Farmers, other local businesses, government bodies and conservationists need now to sit around the same table to agree foot and mouth recovery plans that will deliver economically, socially and environmentally sustainable farming practices that will benefit everyone. The vision should be for a viable and profitable future for hill farming that includes managing our uplands in a positive way that firstly restores, then maintains a rich mosaic of habitats and wildlife."

Maurice Hall, farmer and manager of Hawes Auction Mart, welcomed the call for a debate and commented: "Foot and mouth is making us all step-back and think again about the future. Hill farmers will need help in a variety of ways to recover and move forward from the foot and mouth crisis.

"With falling levels of government support based on numbers of stock we need to agree other means of assisting a range of types of farm business that are sensitive to the environment. In particular, we must develop better quality, extensively reared meat products, improve our local marketing and link this with payments for managing an attractive countryside rich in wildlife."

In the coming months English Nature will bring together the key players to discuss and debate these issues, to contribute to the foot and mouth recovery plans and develop a new direction for agriculture.

Let's hope they succeed!