Why does farming matter?

Small, upland farms are a crucial part of the landscape, culture and communities of Cumbria and we want to see them prosper. Across the whole of the county the beautiful landscapes we have today are largely a result of the work of our farmers - this countryside gives benefits for us all such as recreation and access, health, and well-being, wildlife and flowers, heritage and culture. We want farmers to be properly rewarded for providing us with these benefits and we campaign to try and ensure this happens. Incomes of farmers have dropped to low levels and unless they can earn a reasonable living, they will leave the land. In some places, this could result in a loss of the quality of our countryside and culture.

The average age of farmers is increasing. We want to encourage more young people into agriculture (and the supporting rural skills) and so for several years we supported the Farm Assistants Scheme which trains young people in these traditional skills so that they can farm or otherwise earn a living through them.



We hold annual walling and hedging competitions (link to relevant pages) to ensure these traditional skills continue, and also train our volunteers in these skills so they can be used to help maintain our land and elsewhere.

We encourage people to buy and use local products, many of which are produced by Cumbrian farmers. We supported Herdwick Direct, a scheme which encouraged the public to buy herdwick lamb by mail order.

For several years we have run a number of farm walks to help the public understand the links between farming and food production and, through these walks, many farmers have offered local products for sale for people to enjoy.

We own land primarily to have direct experience of land management and the issues involved. We can then use this experience not only to enhance the quality of our own land, but also to feed into our policy work and to make informed responses to government consultations.