UK Weather Extremes: From Drought to Deluge, Farmers Face Financial and Mental Strain

The Met Office has declared that this winter will be remembered for its relentless rain, with provisional figures indicating many areas of the United Kingdom endured exceptionally wet conditions throughout the season. Extreme weather swings, transitioning from severe drought to persistent rainfall, have left families grappling with flooding while farmers confront another challenging year in the fields.

Record Rainfall and Flood Warnings

Since November 1, the Environment Agency has issued a staggering 814 flood warnings, including three severe alerts, alongside 2,562 flood alerts. This marks a dramatic shift from 2025, which witnessed record dry and warm conditions causing widespread drought, leading to hosepipe bans and significant impacts on agriculture and wildlife. The final regions of England still recovering from drought only moved into recovery status in January due to the wet conditions, though this has resulted in repeated flood warnings for communities in various parts of the country.

Mike Kendon, a senior scientist at the Met Office, noted that while this winter did not break national rainfall records, it will be recalled for its relentless rain as much as its intensity. He explained, "A near-continuous run of Atlantic systems over the past three months has brought persistent rain, damaging storms and few dry spells."

The data reveals a mixed picture across the UK:

England experienced 35% more rain than the long-term average.
Wales saw 14% more rain.
Northern Ireland recorded 25% more rain.
Scotland, however, had levels 16% below average.

Notably, Devon and Cornwall experienced their second wettest winter on record, and southern England had its seventh wettest, while other regions saw less rainfall than usual.

Farmers' Financial and Mental Health Struggles

Farmers report that the weather extremes over the past two years, oscillating between droughts and floods, have severely impacted their incomes and mental health, with crop yields suffering from volatile rain patterns. Rob Addicott, a mixed farmer based south of Bath, described the swing in conditions as "awful for us". He expressed concern over the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, stating, "This year's been okay, but the previous two years we've had to re-establish failed crops because of poor weather conditions in the autumn/winter. It has a financial cost and also has the cost to your mental health every day, when you go out and see fields that are underwater rather than growing something."

Addicott added that the volatility has disrupted proper planning, lamenting, "Gone are the days when you plant a crop in the autumn and just take the winter off." He characterized the last two years as a write-off in terms of agricultural income, noting, "We've just been treading water. Fortunately, we're a diversified business, so we've got other streams of income, but it doesn't change the fact that it is a strain on finances, a strain on mental health."

Mark Humphry, a dairy farmer in Somerset, revealed that his farm has lost approximately 30 acres of grass and will not generate any profit this year. Two fields have yielded nothing since October 2023 due to summer drought delaying seed germination until September, followed by recent flooding preventing proper establishment. He recounted, "(It was a) terrible drought last summer for us," adding they had no growth to feed cattle across summer and winter. With 650 cows now supported by external feed, he estimated £30,000 in extra feed costs last summer.

Humphry warned, "I don't believe that last winter was a one-off. It might become a two-in-five-year occurrence. We're going to have to adapt, aren't we? And that's going to be expensive." He highlighted growing pressures on UK land from agriculture, housing, nature, and infrastructure, suggesting, "In terms of food security for us, we will probably need more acres to grow the same amount of food."

Calls for Government Action and Resilience Building

Tom Bradshaw, president of the National Farmers' Union, emphasized that rapid shifts from one extreme to another are "placing huge pressures on farmers and growers". He asserted, "Farmers and growers want to keep growing food for the nation, but food security must be a national priority. That means government backing the sector to build resilience, including investment in climate adaptation and water infrastructure, more resilient crop varieties and planning reforms that allow us to better capture and store water in times of plenty for use when it's needed."

Martin Lines, chief executive of the Nature Friendly Farming Network, stressed that the vulnerability of the UK's food and farming system to extreme weather events "demands radical thinking about how food is produced". He advocated, "If farms are going to thrive in these volatile and difficult conditions, transitioning to nature-friendly approaches is absolutely vital."

An Environment Department spokesperson responded, "This Government recognises how hard extreme weather can be for farmers and we are helping the sector build greater resilience to climate shocks through our farming schemes and through our work with the National Drought Group and Floods Resilience Taskforce. We are also giving £91 million to internal drainage boards, the public bodies responsible for managing water levels for agricultural and environmental needs in a particular area."