New Pilot Scheme Focuses On Farm Succession Planning

Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs Minister Andrew Muir MLA has announced the launch of a new pilot scheme aimed at helping farm families with succession planning.

The Farming for the Generations pilot scheme is part of the DAERA's transformational Farm Support and Development Programme. It seeks to raise awareness of the importance of succession planning for the long-term sustainability of farm businesses.

Minister Muir emphasised the significance of having a succession plan in place, stating that its absence can introduce significant uncertainty for the business. The pilot scheme will provide valuable resources and support to farm families as they navigate this crucial process.

The Minister said: "The scheme will support farm families through planning for succession, developing the successor, and supporting the lead generation within the farm family. The new Planning for Succession element of the pilot will target 60 farm families and will include support for the farm business to develop a succession plan, a farm business review and a Personal Development Plan for the successor. The pilot scheme will also link farmers without a family successor to consider opportunities to partner with new entrants and other farm businesses to provide access to land and other resources." The Minister continued: "I am delighted to announce that Rural Support will be delivering this pilot scheme on behalf of DAERA. Rural Support have a great depth of experience on this issue and are well respected across our farming community."

Commenting on the launch of the Farming for the Generations pilot scheme, Kevin Doherty, CEO of Rural Support said: "Rural Support, the Farm Support Charity for Northern Ireland are delighted to have won this contract. A key focus of this programme is succession planning, as establishing a plan for the farm succession will ensure effective transfer of responsibilities and assets to the next generation; whilst ensuring the protection of both the farm business and farm family. Registration for a number of awareness sessions will open soon via social media and our website and these sessions will inform our farming community of what this programme includes, how it will affect their farm business and how they can get involved."

According to 2018 DAERA equality indicators statistics, the mean age of farmers in Northern Ireland is 59, 36% of managers of a family farm in Northern Ireland are over the age of 65 and only 8% are under the age of 40. Helping farmers and their families with a range of issues related to the farm business and their wellbeing is an important issue for the DAERA Minister.

Minister Muir concluded: "This pilot scheme will commence with a range of awareness sessions across Northern Ireland in the coming months and I would encourage all farm businesses to consider the opportunity that is provided by this pilot programme."