Farmers turn to DIY liveries

An increasing number of farmers are converting their facilities to take on DIY liveries in the wake of the FMD crisis

There’s growing interest among farmers to find ways to attract liveries to their farms, a conference organised by the Royal Bath and West of England society was told.

Spokeswoman for the society, Rachel Taylor, said: “There’s definitely a market for it in this area, but farmers need to beaware of certain factors which could make the difference between success and failure.

“They need to do research to make sure their farms have access to bridleways, for example.

“And they need to be aware that opening a livery yard could mean they will need to grant liveries’ friends and family access to their farms.”

Consultant for Britishhorse, a company which specialises in advising farmers on moving into the equestrian market, Roger Aldwinckle, said: “One of the common pitfalls is that some farmers go into it blindly without knowledge or advice.

“Most farmers take a while to adapt but would not go back to only farming once they have experience the increased income.”

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