HRH Prince Charles, Duke of Rothesay, hosted a reception yesterday (Thursday, September 8) at Dumfries House to celebrate the fourth year of the Prince’s Dairy Initiative.

Established in 2012, this Prince’s Countryside Fund initiative aims to strengthen the UK's dairy supply chain, help ensure a diverse and resilient sector and support farmers in adapting to the uncertainty and volatility of farm gate prices.

Managed in partnership with AHDB Dairy, 27 farm businesses from Cumnock and Campbeltown participated in the programme this year, which included benchmarking of their farm production costs as well as taking part in a series of free practical workshops on topics such as herd health and financial management.

Ayrshire, which has traditionally been seen as the heartland of dairying in Scotland, has faced uncertainty in recent years. Whilst the climate is well-suited to grazing and dairy farming, the high levels of rainfall across these regions means that cows have to be housed indoors for a higher proportion of the year than in other areas of the UK, therefore increasing the costs of milk production.

Bryce Cunningham is a farming tenant with 63 Ayrshire cows in Mauchline, who joined the Prince’s Dairy Initiative. He said: “I was really worried about the collapse of the dairy industry in Scotland and I, like other dairy producers in Ayrshire, was looking at ways to seek alternate income.

"The Prince’s Dairy Initiative helped me look at my business differently and I began diversifying the way we worked. We introduced new things such as rotational cattle grazing, opened up a new farm shop to sell milk directly to the public and provided milk to the cook school at Dumfries House. Our next step is to look at becoming a fully organic accredited farm to continue progressing.”

Sandy Pirie, who manages a small intensive dairy farm in Campbeltown, said: “Things were getting pretty desperate, we needed guidance, something the project was able to provide, especially around financial planning. Sitting with someone going through your accounts really makes you sit up and take notice of what you are spending. The whole package made me realise that I needed to get more out of our grass, get it to work harder to help us cut costs on farm.

“I am a huge believer in sharing information, warts and all, it’s the only way to learn," added Mr Pirie. "I think the industry will see more of these peaks and troughs in the future and farmers need to learn how best to manage when times are tough.”

AHDB Knowledge Exchange Officer for Dairy, Sharon Lauder, added: “The Prince’s Dairy Initiative was really useful to farmers. It allowed them to compare and contrast systems from the same geographical area and work out together what changes might benefit their farm. With independent consultant support, the group looked at a number of areas of their business including herd health, feeding and financial management. Sharing financial information through benchmarking is particularly helpful as they can see where others are making savings and look at whether they could do so too. It’s great to look back over the course of the programme and see farmers who have made a real difference to their business.”

PCF director Claire Saunders said: “By offering this programme of tailored support to dairy farmers in Scotland, we have been able to help the families involved implement practical improvements on farm. This will help ensure a viable and robust future. By bringing together similar sized businesses we have been able to create networks of support and a lasting legacy to help ensure the future of dairying in Scotland.”

Hoping to build on the success of the Prince’s Dairy Initiative is the newly launched Prince’s Farm Resilience Programme, which begins recruiting this September. Through a programme of free workshops and one-to-one guidance, the £1.5 million, five-year scheme will give farm businesses the tools to evaluate their viability and long-term sustainability, enabling them to make informed business decisions on their future direction.

Workshops will run between January and May 2017 in locations across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. To find out more visit www.princescountrysidefund.org.uk or email madeleine.fitzgerald@bitc.org.uk.