Well-known first-generation farming couple, Craig and Katreen Malone, have achieved their dream of converting a 10-year tenancy into the security of full farm ownership at Pitcairn in Fife.
Approaching the end of their 10-year starter tenancy on the 290-acre unit that they rented from Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), the couple first negotiated a three-year extension from FLS and then approached FLS with a request to buy Pitcairn.
Craig and Katreen Malone’s existing bank declined to provide a loan to buy the farm they were renting but Virgin Money stepped in to make it possible.
Craig said: “I am grateful for FLS firstly for giving us the opportunity to get us started with the tenancy of Pitcairn then giving us the option to buy the farm. But then when we approached our existing bank for help, they turned us down. So, we were very relieved when Virgin Money stepped in and gave us the support we needed to finally buy our own farm.”
According to Virgin Money agricultural business manager Rona Jordan, the Malones did not meet the bank’s normal criteria for a loan of this size. However, Craig and Katreen were exactly the kind of dedicated, hardworking, next generation farmers that the bank is committed to supporting.
“This is a progressive young couple who have invested their heart and soul during their tenancy into building a successful, viable farming enterprise. They had a wonderful track record of achieving such a lot in a relatively short time and having farmed Pitcairn for many years, they knew it inside out and were already operating a financially viable enterprise."
Growing up in Stirling, Craig has always wanted to be a farmer, but he knew the dream of farming his own land would be incredibly difficult to realise. After leaving Auchincruive Agricultural College he began his journey in farming working as a stockman, and then took the plunge into self-employment, taking on annual grass lets, renting buildings to house stock in the winter, and building up a herd of some 50 head of cattle.
In 2012, Craig took on the tenancy of Pitcairn near Cardenden, a 10-year Young Person’s tenancy from FLS that Craig and his wife Katreen worked tirelessly to transform into a successful livestock family farming business. By the end of their starter tenancy they had raised two daughters and established a noted flock of sheep and a herd of 180 cattle at Pitcairn, but where their future in farming would take them they had no idea.
Virgin Money has provided a loan of in excess of £1m to enable the purchase of Pitcairn, and a small overdraft facility for operational finance. Throughout negotiations, and continuing to do so, Virgin Money have supported the Malones with advice as well as financial support, working alongside agri-business management consultant Colin MacPhail:
“What the Malones have achieved through sheer hard work and a commercial approach to their cattle and sheep enterprises is exceptional. They have proved that with a good business plan and the required financial skills to make informed business decisions it’s possible to achieve the impossible, starting out with very little and being able to purchase the farm within 10 years.
With the security of ownership, Craig and Katreen are pushing ahead with the business model they have established at Pitcairn. They are already renowned for producing superior quality commercial breeding cattle and regularly produce the top priced lots at the two Stirling markets, Thainstone and Carlisle.
Most years, they buy in predominantly Limousin cross and British Blue cross beef heifers, bull them, calve them and sell them with calves at foot, to a growing number of regular buyers, which in the past have seen prices peak at £7800 and £7500 for individual outfits.
The Pitcairn sheep enterprise now consists of 800 mainly Blackface ewes, crossed to a Bluefaced Leicester to produce Scottish Mule ewe lambs that are sold at Stirling while the wedders are cashed deadweight. A further 1500 store lambs are also purchased for finishing.
Of all the benefits of ownership, Craig Malone says that the biggest by far is security. “Starting off with nothing and renting land gives you very little security. You have all the financial and operational stress of running a farm, but we always knew that after 10 years we would have to leave. Now, we own our family farm, and we couldn’t be more excited about the future.”
Both Craig and Katreen work the farm together as they have always done, with part time, self-employed help at busy times. They are still finding their feet in the new landscape of ownership, but their advice to other aspiring farm owners is… go for it.
“My advice to anyone looking at a life in farming is to get started as early as you can, put your heart into it, be prepared to work hard and be ambitious. If and when you find the right opportunity to buy your own farm, don’t be afraid to take risks, and find the right support! When we discovered that we might be able to buy Pitcairn, the bank we were with at the time wouldn’t help us. Then we were put in touch with Virgin Money, and the difference was like night and day.
“Virgin Money made it happen for us. They gave us all the advice and support we needed, and above all they understand farming. They understood how important buying our farm has been to our family, and they were prepared to invest in us. I have always dreamt of owning my own farm and Virgin Money has made it possible.”
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