26 November 2020
Need help with a business plan, advice about adding value to your business by looking at your livestock, land or diversifying opportunities, or guidance to identify any issues which might be preventing your business from operating as efficiently and profitably as possible?
Are you a farmer or forester anxiously waiting to see how your business will be affected at the end of the transition period? Or are you taking control of your destiny, taking steps to prepare your business for whatever lies ahead?
Farming Connect is urging all farm and forestry business to apply for specialist advice that will help them increase efficiency and boost profits. An additional £1.875 million has been provided securing the continuation of the Advisory Service for eligible businesses registered with Farming Connect.
Eirwen Williams, director of rural programmes with Menter a Busnes, which alongside Lantra Wales, delivers Farming Connect on behalf of the Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, said the recent announcement of additional funding means that eligible businesses can apply for confidential advice, tailored to their needs, to help them operate at peak performance across all areas of working.
“Our industry is facing a time of unprecedented change and with all land-based businesses encouraged to reduce their carbon footprint, the way these businesses operate is inevitably going to be different.
Eight leading rural consultancies are approved to deliver the Advisory Service. One-to-one advice is funded by up to 80%, while group advice, available for between three and eight individuals, will be fully funded up to a maximum of €1,500 (euros) per application.
Business planning is one of a number of categories available through the Advisory Service, providing successful applicants with the opportunity to seek confidential, independent advice which will help them appraise their business and safeguard its future. Others include infrastructure improvements; soil, grassland and crop management, livestock management and performance, agri-environment issues and woodland management.
“Whatever sector you are involved in, identifying areas for improvement and finding solutions to challenges will be critical for businesses needing to compete in the new global marketplace,” said Mrs Williams.
For more detailed information on the Advisory Service, click here. Alternatively, call the Farming Connect Service Centre on 08456000 813 or contact your local development officer.
Farming Connect, which is delivered by Menter a Busnes and Lantra, has received funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities - Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.