From Clarkson's Farm to This Farming Life, there's a growing crop of ideas on TV about how to diversify a farming business and engage with tourists and visitors
Media stories about farming used to be confined to Radio 4’s Farming Today and The Archers; now there are great (and not-so-great) ideas for running a profitable farm on every TV channel.
Love or hate these farm shows, they’re an interesting glimpse into different opportunities for diversification, highlighting an A to (almost) Z of options from alpaca walking to veg boxes.
Agritourism features strongly on these shows – not surprisingly when Scottish Agritourism figures show the number of working farms and crofts offering visitors the chance to enjoy the countryside and experience food and drink direct from the farm has risen from 135 in 2022 to 217 a year later.
Beware the pitfalls
These shows – most notably Clarkson’s Farm – also illustrate the pitfalls of diversification, with the saga of whether his Diddly Squat restaurant would get council planning permission a staple of the tabloid press.
In some respects, Scotland’s farmers enjoy more clarity over planning permission issues relating to diversification since our Permitted Development Rights (PDRs) allow some minor changes to certain buildings without the need to submit a full planning application.
However, even when the PDR conditions are met, farmers looking to diversify must pay close attention to a wide variety of requirements from environmental health issues for cafes and shops to licensing requirements for premises selling alcohol and the new licence arrangements for short-term lets.
Help is at hand
Firms with specialist rural teams can support on these issues alongside all the other legal aspects of running a farming business.
And if at any point the paperwork becomes daunting, it’s worth reminding yourself of the many benefits that diversification can offer – from providing opportunities for different generations to work on the farm, to boosting income year-round.
Diversification in action
Just a few of the recent diversification ideas put into practice by our clients:
- Pumpkin patches
- Outdoor adventure park
- Soft play area
- Glamping pods
- Renewable energy projects
To return to the main contents of lindsays life issue 25, please click here.
