BBC Countryfile presenter Adam Henson was left visibly taken aback when he visited a young farmer in the Yorkshire Dales and learnt about his financial circumstances.
Adam's quest for young farmers across Britain brought him to Malham in the latest episode of the programme on Sunday, August 23, where he called on beef and sheep farmer Frank Carr and his father, also named Frank.
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Viewers discovered how the region's distinctive limestone geology and upland peak habitats render it nationally significant for biodiversity, carbon storage and wildlife - which is why over 1000 acres of the farm are designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
"We are instrumental in maintaining this habitat," acknowledged Frank Sr. His son had revealed how the unpredictable conditions have a substantial impact on the flock during winter, and how ambitions to expand the herd have necessitated them taking on considerable debt.
Expansion plans and borrowing
"Although I'm keen to do more with the business and expanding it's not something I'm focusing on," Frank Jr told Adam. He said the path forward was "finding those niche markets, focusing on our unique selling point - the location, the flowers, the environment".
He discussed a slurry storage project they were presently undertaking which contained all the muck from the animals but it meant additional borrowing to fund it. Frank told Adam: "It's 50% grant-funded, predicted to be around £400,000 - there will be some more on top of that by the end of it I would have thought and, with diesel prices always increasing, more still."
'Thrive off pressure'
Adam appeared visibly taken aback as he responded: "Scary isn't it?" To which the young farmer replied: "It is yeah but it puts us in good stead for the future and we can also use it more targeted at different times of year so we will be saving money on other inputs such as fertiliser and we are future proofing the farm."
"It's quite a responsibility isn't it?" admitted Adam as Frank told him: "Oh very much so, yeah." The presenter continued: "And do you mind that? Is that ok?" Frank laughed: "Yeah that's ok. Thrive off pressure."
Adam's own harvest struggles
The episode was aired as Adam, who co-owns Cotswold Farm Park in Gloucestershire, offered an insight into this season's harvest, acknowledging that the results have fallen considerably short of expectations.
Adam revealed that the farm has endured a relentless series of harsh weather conditions and poor crop performance, culminating in a difficult financial situation. In a video recently posted on the Cotswold Farm Park YouTube channel, he took viewers on a tour of the 650-hectare estate as harvesting operations got under way.
"Although I love living on top of the Cotswolds, we're about a thousand foot up here and there's a bit of a breeze and a bit of cloud cover today," Adam said. "But it's been absolutely bone dry for over a month."
Countryfile is on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
