24/11/25: Dairy rollercoaster, English farm business incomes, Isle of Man vets
Description
The latest Farm Business Income Survey from DEFRA shows average dairy farm incomes for 2024/25 had doubled year on year. The reality at this moment may feel very different on farms as the milk price rollercoaster is starting to rattle downwards, with some global dairy commodities tumbling. The Chairman of the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers, Robert Craig, tells Charlotte Smith that the industry is becoming used to a cycle of rise and fall in milk prices but that ultimately there will be fewer people left in the industry at the end of this downturn.
We also dig deeper into what that Farm Business Income survey shows for other types of farming in England. Below the encouraging signs on the surface, for most sectors, incomes were buoyed up by diversification and agri-environment schemes in the last financial year.
And farmers on the Isle of Man are anxious about the future of veterinary care, as a major provider prepares to withdraw from farm animal practice on the Island.
Presenter: Charlotte Smith
Producer: Sarah Swadling
United States
