Keeping abreast of trends in markets and demographics is key to running successful rural businesses. Whether it is looking for diversification opportunities, investing in the latest technological advances such as vertical farming or considering environmental change and how rural businesses can contribute positively to society. Our specialist team, called Rural Ambitions, helps businesses convert these trends into valuable knowledge to start or develop successful businesses.
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How could AI change life in the rural sector?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionise the way farms and estates are run, but do we need a society-wide debate about what, ultimately, is wanted from such technology? A decade has passed since machinery manufacturer John Deere released a Farm Forward’ video, offering a vision of how artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning […]
Briefing on AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recently launched its latest report on the climate crisis. The AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023 is significant as it summarises the latest and most important science on climate change, based on five years of reports on global temperature rises, fossil fuel emissions and climate impacts. The report […]
8 key trends driving change in the rural sector in 2022
Land and property specialists Strutt & Parker has highlighted some of the key themes likely to drive change in the rural sector in 2022 and how farmers and landowners might best respond. The rural sector is facing a period of dramatic change and Christmas and New Year is a good time to reflect on future […]
Building resilience within the rural estate
There is an ancient Chinese proverb which says: ‘When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.’ With rural estates and farms on the brink of a period of rapid transformation, how businesses choose to respond to the ‘winds of change’ may prove to be the difference between those that […]
The mosaic of change facing rural estates
Landowners are facing a mosaic of change with a combination of factors coming together with the potential to have a profound influence on how rural estates are managed in the future. The list below highlights ten key drivers of change – which offer both challenges and opportunities for rural estates. Farm policy England has already […]
Demystifying green lending for land managers
Farms and rural estates will increasingly draw on multiple sources of income in the future, given revenues from agriculture are projected to decline as direct support is phased out. There is almost universal agreement on this. Meanwhile, land managers are being asked to impact less on the environment and to do more to protect and […]
Developing an electric car infrastructure in the countryside
The electric car market has expanded rapidly in recent years and while electric vehicles currently account for a relatively small proportion of the cars on the road, this picture is expected to change. There were fewer than 10,000 electric cars on the ground at the start of 2010, but that figure is now closer to 250,000, […]
Environment Land Management System (ELMS) – is it on track?
The Environment Land Management System (ELMS) will form the basis of agricultural policy in England, replacing direct payments made through the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) with an environmental scheme paying public money for public goods. Work on the design of ELMS is well under way, and involves a process of Pioneers, tests and trials and […]
Pumpkin enterprise taps into consumer demand for Halloween experiences
Halloween has become big business in the UK. In terms of consumer spending, this seasonal event has become one of the biggest dates in the calendar, only eclipsed by Christmas and Easter. There is nothing more synonymous with Halloween than a pumpkin and there are now an estimated 15m pumpkins grown in the UK each […]
Strutt & Parker in natural capital account collaboration with eftec
Strutt & Parker is delighted to announce a collaboration with leading environmental economists Economics for the Environment Consultancy (eftec) to help rural landowners enhance and unlock the potential of their natural capital assets. Strutt & Parker worked with eftec last year to produce one of the first natural capital accounts of its kind for a […]
Q&A with Henry Dimbleby, lead of the National Food Strategy
What is the National Food Strategy? It’s the first major review of the nation’s food system in 75 years and will shape a government White Paper, setting the ‘field-to-fork’ agenda for the coming decades. How much of an issue is the disconnect between our largely urban society and those who produce food? The differences between urban and […]
Strutt & Parker support for new National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise
Strutt & Parker is delighted to announce that it will be one of the founding business service partners of the new National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise (NICRE). The Centre plans to undertake research and knowledge exchange to support resilience and innovation among rural firms, unlocking the untapped potential of rural economies across the UK. […]
The restoration of Scottish peatland
Work on peatland restoration projects may have stopped across the UK but the clear long-term commitment to peatland restoration by both the UK and Scottish governments is a welcome boost. The UK Peatland Strategy, published in 2018, aims to deliver 2m hectares of peatland in good condition, under restoration or being sustainably managed by 2040. […]
Six ways to make environmental improvements on a farm
For almost 30 years, the Allerton Project has been exploring how to combine productive agriculture with wildlife and environmental improvements. With farming at a crossroads, what lessons can it offer about the route to sustainable intensification? Farmers are under more pressure than ever to raise their environmental performance and deliver public goods to access government […]
13 key points from Defra’s update on the future of farm policy – February 2020
Defra has published a progress update on the implementation of its new farming policy for farmers in England and a discussion document outlining its latest thinking on the rollout of the Environmental Land Management System (ELMS). The key points from Defra’s update for farmers and landowners are as follows: 1. Confirmation that direct payments will […]
Six consumer trends which offer rural estates diversification opportunities
Understanding shifting demographics and consumer behaviour has never been more important, as rural estates look to diversification opportunities to generate new income and reduce risk. Strutt & Parker experts identify six themes and the opportunities they could bring. The experience matters Consumers are seeking ‘experiences’, so estate owners and retailers are understanding they need to […]
Measuring the value of the natural capital on a Yorkshire estate
How best to measure, enhance and monetise natural capital is a challenge facing many rural estates. We highlight how Strutt & Parker is working with Clifton Castle Estate to provide some answers. ‘Shining a spotlight,’ is how Nick Downshire describes a new research report that focuses on his family estate’s natural capital. The document, a […]
What the low-carbon farming agenda means for farms and rural estates
Climate change and agriculture are inextricably linked, so how will landowners meet the challenge of low-carbon, environmentally-friendly farming and still thrive? Farmers and land managers are on the front line in more ways than one when it comes to dealing with climate change. In tandem with the challenges that extreme weather events, such as heatwaves […]
CLA Rural Business Conference – Unlocking tomorrow’s markets
Strutt & Parker was delighted to sponsor the 2019 CLA Rural Business Conference, which examined the opportunities for rural landowners to grow their businesses by seeking out new markets. The conference was a fantastic opportunity to learn from, and be inspired by, landowners who have embraced change and successfully identified a range of new market […]
Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS) – a progress update (Nov 2019)
Farmers have been told over the past two years they must to prepare for a new Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS) as the government phases out direct payments. But how close is it to becoming reality? The government is pushing ahead with plans to introduce a new system of farm support based on rewarding farmers […]
Land Business Insights: The estate of the future
Rhodri Thomas
Land Business – Spring / Summer 2020
Rhodri Thomas
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