There's never been a better time to invest

A vet from my practice out home was in the yard a few weeks ago and I had forgotten how last year she was recovering from a broken leg.

The accident happened while completing a caesarean section on a cow without a proper calving gate, the result being? She was out of action for several weeks in the peak busy period. I also noted of late that the average age of livestock farmers sits between 59-60 – no spring chickens.

We’ve never experienced a year like this for beef farmers; tax bills where there was never a tax bill before.

While dairy farmers are funnelling away any spare cash to counteract milk price drops for 2026, beef farmers are looking to spend it, and there are few better ways to spend it than to create better handling facilities on farm.

Do we really want to put people who are providing a service on our farm, such as vets, to be exposed to danger?

While you may have a vet visit your yard a handful of times a year, you’re in it every day yourself, so a safe working environment for yourself is the Christmas treat that you deserve.

Infrastructure

Forgo the shiny metal of a new tractor or jeep (unless one of these is a safety risk in itself!) and spend some of that much-deserved money on improving infrastructure on farm.

We are too used to living on a shoestring budget on the drystock side after many lean years profit wise.

Not only does it make the farm a safer place right now, but it also leaves a much more appetising prospect for your potential successor.

Who would want to face into a farm where a large spend on infrastructure is required before they even begin? Remember the phrase ‘build and they shall come’?

A more suitable agricultural phrase may be ‘build it and they shall come home to farm’.