I am lucky enough to be a tenant farmer in the heart of the beautiful Blackmore Vale, where my family have been dairy farmers for over 100 years. My Grandparents saw unbelievable change and adversity during their farming careers. At times, it does seem that the future with all its complexities and uncertainties is a daunting one, but the truth is we are living the life that others were once daunted by. If you take a pessimistic view of the future, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. In the way that they saw change, no doubt there will be similar unfathomable changes in this century. I imagine some we will anticipate, and others will catch us unawares.

I think we should look forward to the challenge of what the future holds. The markets will continue to adjust to modern demand, for example the Climate Change Committee have said that people should be asked to eat 20% less meat and dairy produce by 2030, and 35% less by 2050. We must be prepared and responsive in order to best cope with this. One of the most important skills that we need to cultivate is diplomacy and the ability to communicate with the public who are, after all, our customers. We need to champion what we do. We spend a lot of time and money gathering data, such as locomotion scoring, carbon foot printing and medicine use, which is all incredibly important. This data helps improve on farm practices and efficiencies, but also allows for benchmarking and worldwide comparison. In the future I would like to see this data more widely shared with the public. Reinstating ponds, planting winter bird food, and making sure that all footpaths are clear is another way to show the consumer how much we care for the environment and our animals. There should be a QR code on the side of every milk bottle so that we can promote and refresh our story on a regular basis.

There are many positives in the dairy industry. We are beef farmers that also harvest milk, which is one of the most nutritionally balanced, complete foods on the planet: win, win!We are recycling large amounts of by-products from the human food chain such as brewers’ grain, sugar beet pulp and rape meal to name a few. My cows have not eaten any soya for more than six years now which has dramatically improved my carbon footprint.If we manage our slurries well, farmed livestock has a very important part to play in creating and maintaining biodiversity. When I travelled to Brazil on a scholarship a few years ago, I witnessed that when a dairy unit was placed amid vast, inert monoculture soya fields, the bird, insects, and wildlife were drawn to it like a sponge. It dawned on me how important farmed livestock are in a diverse eco-system.

Emerging markets, in Asia for example, mean that we will need to be leaders in the export market to give us flexibility and opportunity. I believe we will achieve this by ensuring that we are ahead of the game on all fronts, rather than playing catch-up. These fronts will be air and water pollution control, carbon efficiency, animal welfare and medicine usage. I would urge every livestock farmer in the country to sign up to the online register of drug use, Medicine Hub, to help collate UK usage and make our position stronger. By doing this we can demonstrate to the consumer, both in the UK and abroad that we are responsibly using antibiotics. This will be essential to take best advantage of said markets. There are other countries in the world already upping their game: US farmers will shortly only be able to use prescribed antibiotics instead of off the shelf; New Zealand is aiming to be antibiotic-free by 2030, however I question the achievability of this from a welfare perspective. Historically, I told people we used antibiotics by the wheelbarrow load, which, when using dry-cow antibiotic therapy, was true. We adopted the attitude that if our system relied on antibiotics to work, then we needed to change the system. In collaboration with our vets, we have reduced our antibiotic usage by 80%. It is so important to be a pro-active participant rather than an observer when it comes to the moulding and shaping of our future.

Collaboration is vital to strive for improvements in the industry. In my head, collaboration requires symbiotic relationships, with like-minded, trusted people. On our farm traditional collaboration includes specialised arable farmers growing our maize; contractors helping with field work; other local farms taking surplus nutrients alongside vets, nutritionists and, of course, our accountants! It is so important that the advisors we chose truly understand and help us achieve our end goals, there is no room for weakness in any of the latter roles, we need to be challenged. We have many protocols that set out clear objectives for the lives of our animals and we make sure that we meet or can at least understand why we haven’t quite met our objective. Perhaps we should be better at setting protocols for our own lives?

I think in the future we should see those who challenge us to be the ones who perhaps we need to learn to collaborate with. Some might think this is an odd, or even a risky approach. However, if we don’t learn to accept and understand their concerns then why should we expect them to listen to our explanations, as to how we are adapting and improving what we do. We need to avoid the “Green washing tactics” that some industries employ. The way dairy farmers are perceived by some dairy critics upsets me and at times I believe we are used as an easy scape goat. We need to take ownership of some of the issues raised from the criticism. If we continue to do the same things that we are criticised for, we cannot expect to see an improved outcome. Often in disputes, whether they are large or small, two camps battle to win the fight to the detriment of the overall outcome. You can very much see this happening in the various debates surrounding agriculture now. There will always be differing views but, there needs to be joined up thinking, based on reputable science. The only solution is for good people to do the right thing, for the right reasons, at the right time.

Currently 40 % or 2.5 billion tonnes of food are wasted globally each year that’s 32 lanes of articulated lorries nose to tail circumnavigating the globe each year. Before the cost-of-living crisis only 8% of household income in the UK was being spent on food. Is it time to consider a different model of paying more for our food and clearly we have to somehow waste less? The phrase “It’s a way of life” is no longer a valid excuse for cheap food.

I believe there is opportunity in the industry to further explore how we can facilitate new entrants into agriculture. I am always enthused and encouraged by the excitement and passion of young apprentices and students that come to the farm. Currently the industry’s model poses many barriers to entry. It is imperative that we collaborate with these young workers and young family members to enter the industry. If we are aiming for a sustainable future then we need to be more imaginative and explore new ways of making sure there is a viable solution to access the bottom rung of the farming ladder. This should help to overcome the renewal crisis in agriculture with an aging farmer population.

I think there is a secure future for dairy markets in the medium term and we need to capitalise on the short-term positive volatility to reduce business debts and to prepare for the challenges ahead. However, we should consider the possibility that technologies will undoubtedly improve and the capability of growing meat and milk without the animal is a very strong part of our future. Whilst people currently value the taste of traditionally produced animal products, tastes and preferences of future generations will adapt and evolve alongside the growing cultured meat and milk market. It cannot be disputed that the most efficient feed conversion ratios can be achieved by removing the animal from the equation. When the herd moves it moves, so we must continue to strive for improvements, allowing us to slow and positively direct this herd movement to our advantage. Therefore, the sensible approach is to farm for the here and now and ensure that we apply educated, as opposed to blind, optimism for the future.

James Yeatman

Dairy Farmer - Grange Farm, Dorset