In the turbulent times of Brexit, as well as falling food prices and increasing energy costs, 62% of UK farmers are looking for ways to diversify in order remain sustainable and grow their assets and income. Next month, we will be exhibiting at the Farm Business Innovation 2018 show at Birmingham’s NEC and it’s got us thinking about how we can help you to diversify and boost your income.
Here’s our 5 top tips on how to do this:
1. Make unusable land usable again
Is some of your land not used because it is water-logged or badly drained? With land values now commanding an average of £9,000 per acre*, you want to make sure you get the maximum output from all of your land.
Land drainage can bring that land back into action. It can help improve the structure of the soil and increase your yields by up to 150%, therefore resulting in profitability for you and your business. With some simple solutions from us here at Cotterill Civils, we can help make your land usable again and making you money again. We supply a wide range of land drainage products and all at competitive prices.
2. Glamping
Glamping; luxury camping, is becoming more and more popular for those people who enjoy the outdoors but don’t want to deal with the hassle of putting up a tent and roughing it. Whether it’s a log cabin or a treehouse in a forest, Brits love it.
With the number of UK glamping and camping trips expected to rise to 21 million in 2020 and set to be worth an estimated £3.2 billion, there’s no escaping the fact that glamping is a great business opportunity. And who better to offer this service than people who already own rural land? Just like you farmers.
Here at Cotterill Civils we supply and install all the things needed for the luxury camping life, such as sewage treatment solutions for toilets and showers, and can turn your unused land into the perfect spot for a romantic getaway or a weekend of family fun.
3. Fish Rearing Tanks
Aquaculture is predominantly the farming of fish for human consumption or decorative purposes. Using rearing tanks to farm fish has become a lot more popular in recent years, as you no longer need to be by the sea to farm fish and can take advantage of unused land whilst doing so. In the UK, tanks are predominantly used for the farming of Salmon, but can also be used for harvesting shellfish and algae.
Aquaculture tanks are simple to use and have very low maintenance cost and have a life expectancy of around 30 years. At Cotterill Civils we provide these tanks and installation services, as well as expert advice on how best to maintain these tanks for marine life.
4. Wedding Venues
In 2015, just 1 in 3 people got married in a church and this number is still decreasing, people are choosing picturesque venues over churches, outdoor weddings at farms are becoming increasingly popular.
If you have land with amazing views and places to build or convert on, you could be in the ideal spot to host weddings.
At Cotterill Civils, we provide sewage treatment installation, as well as building conversion services, which could transform your farm into the perfect wedding and event venue. At Packington Moor Farm, which is a 700 acre farm set within a rural location in the Midlands, we installed a sewage treatment plant, to help cope with an increase in sewage and wastewater due to increased business from weddings. To read more about this and see how we can transform your land to a venue which can hold many people click here.
5. Office buildings/holiday homes
Do you have buildings that need some TLC or land that isn’t being used that would be perfect for a building? How about converting these spots into usable buildings for offices or holiday homes?
The building of office buildings on farm sites has increased dramatically in recent years. This is due to availability of land as well as the appeal of not working in a busy city, with the idea that a countryside environment is better for the mind.
Holidays homes on farm sites have also become increasingly popular due to rural landscapes being desirable, as well as the ease of booking places for a weekend break on sites such as airbnb.
If you think your land has the possibility of being utilised this way? Give us a call at Cotterill Civils we will be happy to help, and click here to read all about the experienced farm building construction we do here.
If you’d like to discuss any of these ideas with us, please come and visit stand 3802 at The Farm Business Innovation Show on 7th and 8th November at Birmingham’s NEC. Alternatively, for help and advice, call us on 0121 351 3230
Alternatively, fill out our enquiry form:
