LAST month, the South of Scotland and Borders Valuers Association held their agm.

Around 30 attended - of these, five were farmers.

When I started as an apprentice valuer 40 years ago, the split between farmers and those associated - estate staff, land agents etc - would be around 50/50.

Tom Oates and Rob Forrest spoke about the new method of determining rent based on the productive capacity of the farm. They showed budgets for three tenanted farms of different type and how the rents would be calculated from them.

Questions came thick and fast. They had a common theme. How could the landlord extract more rent from the farm?

One questioner suggested that, if the tenant of the hill farm used as an example, which carried 750 ewes, put up a shed, he could carry more stock so the landlord would be entitled to more rent.

Another, a man of great experience, suggested that the hypothetical tenant to whose practices and rent could be compared, instead of being as, at present, 'an efficient and experienced farmer of adequate resources who will make best use of the land using the fixed equipment provided by the landlord' should be the local high flier.

All the questions slanted one way, despite the fact that the budgets showed that nothing had been allowed for the tenants' investment - and the allowance for his labour, in two of the three farms, was below the minimum wage.

If the imbalance between farmers and those associated with the industry throughout Scotland generally is represented in the same proportion as it at our local meeting, should there be concern?

In the interest of an alternative point of view, should the Scottish agricultural Arbiters and Valuers Association and farmers, whether tenant of owner occupier, take heed and act now to encourage bona fide farmers to take up valuation and arbitration?

When I started valuation work in the 1970s, with the permission of those parties involved in the valuation, rent review or dispute, I accompanied an experienced valuer to learn how the job should be done.

As I gained experience, work came my way. Like many farmer valuers, I had no formal qualification, however I had access to legal advice and benefited greatly from mentoring by senior valuers in the Borders area.

If a case required specialist knowledge, I was entitled to enlist the help of what the law called 'a man of skill'.

It was generally felt that the Scottish system, where both working farmers and those with formal qualifications shared valuation work, was superior to that in England where it was done exclusively by land agents or auctioneers.

As the work was usually, but not always, by invitation, farmers usually preferred a farmer valuer and landowners someone employed in estate management or a land agent; although this is a generality.

The work associated with land ownership, compensation claims and tenancy issues was immensely varied and interesting. Most of the work I had to do involved crop and livestock valuation and rent resolution.

In the 1970s, many of the sheep valuations were governed by various statutes, particularly the Hill Farming Act. These were based on flockmasters selling the greater part of their draft ewes at the autumn sales.

In later years, as selling practices changed, adaptations had to be made which required a higher level of practical experience in a valuer.

A basic knowledge of the law as it related to each individual case was essential, with legal advice on hand to clarify any issues out of the ordinary.

I found the work stimulating and enjoyable. I never made a fortune at it but then I never particularly sought work. Without doubt, for those who wish to specialise, a good income can be had.

By coincidence, later in the same week at a meeting of our local grazing group, the man I sat beside introduced himself. I replied that I already knew who he was. I had met him in May, 1986.

He was astounded at the accuracy of my recollection, however, in truth, it required no great feat of memory. May, 1986, was, in my entire career, the lowest point. It was for many farmers the end of the road.

The summer of 1985 compared with the still to come summer of 2012 as far and away the worst one of my life. There was one significant difference. We had no big bale silage then, so decent fodder was non-existent.

The winter of 1986 was cold with prolonged snow. My inbye ewes were wintered on barley straw and grass nuts, the only fodder available.

They liked neither.

Over April 15, 16 and 17, four and half inches of rain fell. This was in the form of snow driven by a howling northerly into deep drifts.

Lambings everywhere were badly affected. Interest rates were around 17%.

Mrs Thatcher's free market policy was sink or swim. Here, and in North America, where her friend the genial and ultra-right wing Ronald Reagan presided, farmers went bust in greater numbers that at any time since the 1930s. That's how May, 1986, was etched into my memory.

My new acquaintance, a local land agent, was official valuer in a mock valuation organised by our farm management association of Nether Howden, near Lauder.

We all inspected the backward crops and weather beaten stock and our valuations reflected our despair. Not so, our man said. These things are only temporary. It's all about the quality of the farmhouse. How near was it to a main road end and Edinburgh? How long did it take to get to the airport?

The dire state of farming was almost irrelevant. We thought he was mad. He was right and we were all wrong!