Objectives
Foresight Farm is a benchmarking project, focus on identifying quality in farm data holdings to demonstrate the economic benefits of using data to drive business decisions. Project Aims:
•To benchmark data holdings across a variety of Scottish farm businesses, related to the cost of combinable crops and potato production.
•To assess the value of the data to the participating farm businesses.
•To produce fixed costs for each participating business for comparison and analysis.
•To benchmark the data skills of the farm business employees and secondary support (e.g. of agronomists).
•To produce recommendations for quality data management collection, analysis and use, including data sharing.
Objectives
Foresight Farm is a benchmarking project, focus on identifying quality in farm data holdings to demonstrate the economic benefits of using data to drive business decisions. Project Aims:
•To benchmark data holdings across a variety of Scottish farm businesses, related to the cost of combinable crops and potato production.
•To assess the value of the data to the participating farm businesses.
•To produce fixed costs for each participating business for comparison and analysis.
•To benchmark the data skills of the farm business employees and secondary support (e.g. of agronomists).
•To produce recommendations for quality data management collection, analysis and use, including data sharing.
Activities
The project will create two supported and facilitated farmer groups to investigate and benchmark how farm data across several Scottish farm businesses are collected, analysed and presented and how the results are used to improve profitable and sustainable business decisions. The project will explore the use of tractor and machinery data to assess farm efficiency based upon Lean business principles.
Activities
The project will create two supported and facilitated farmer groups to investigate and benchmark how farm data across several Scottish farm businesses are collected, analysed and presented and how the results are used to improve profitable and sustainable business decisions. The project will explore the use of tractor and machinery data to assess farm efficiency based upon Lean business principles.
Kontext
As UK agriculture faces another period of significant change, there has never been a better time to scrutinise production costs, using the new opportunities available through farm data recording to allow more informed decision making in crop choice, rotation and management strategy.
Scottish Agronomy figures show that up to 40% of Scottish wheat-growing land may not yield enough to cover actual production costs. For other combinable and potato crops this can be up to 60%. There will be reasons why farms have a higher cost structure than others or will use productive areas to subsidise others, but in the absence of data it is often unclear to the business where money is lost. The situation is unsustainable and will be exacerbated in times of increasing market volatility, uncertainty about future farm support, tighter legislation and shifting pest and disease threats.
A large and increasing quantity of data sits in machinery, on phones, tablets and on PCs, currently inaccessible or unusable. Farm crop history, yields and other data are subsequently and permanently lost with machinery and PC upgrades; to the cloud when licences expire; or when businesses change software suppliers. The participants in this project recognise their need to understand, with expert help including from their peers, what data they hold and own, what value it is to their business, the issues of data security and legislation and the skill set required to make best use of these for driving profitability in the business. The partners identify major issues with ownership of farm data, where can be unclear or owned elsewhere. The project will highlight the need to ensure that data ownership and control resides with the farmer, key to ensuring that the data value resides on-farm.
Project details
- Main funding source
- Rural development 2014-2020 for Operational Groups
- Rural Development Programme
- 2014UK06RDRP003 United Kingdom - Rural Development Programme (Regional) - Scotland
Ort
- Main geographical location
- Angus and Dundee City
- Other geographical location
- Clackmannanshire and Fife, Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire
€ 107658
Total budget
Total contributions from EAFRD, national co-financing, additional national financing and other financing.
Contacts
Project coordinator
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Scottish Agronomy
Project coordinator
Project partners
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EQ Accountants LLP
Project partner
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Jane Craigie Marketing
Project partner
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SAOS
Project partner
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Urban Foresight
Project partner