Cornish farmer highlights issues of mental health and retirement in the farming community.
Gareth Hutchings talks to Pirate FM about mental health, coronavirus and retirement issues within the farming industry.
A young farmer from Cornwall has shone a light on the impact modern day farming and the pressures of retirement have on mental wellbeing.
Gareth Hutchings is a 29-year-old second-generation farmer from Launceston. He farms sheep and cattle with his wife Jess, across four small holdings. His father Mervyn began farming when Gareth was a young boy and by the age of 12, Gareth had taken on a few of his own sheep, inspired partly by his father.
As the current chair of Devon’s Young Farmers club, Gareth said he had noticed that mental health is becoming a topic which is coming to the forefront of people’s minds which, he believes, has been a long time coming;
“It’s far more talked about than it ever used to be and it’s a lot more prominent than people ever probably thought it was. Farming is such an isolated job.
“For me it's one of the best jobs you could ever have in the world. Where we live is such a great part of the country and it's so nice to be out in it every day but at certain times you are going to feel really isolated when things aren't going well and no one’s there to help. It is quite a lonely place but also it's a great place to be.”
Gareth Hutchings, Farmer
In more recent times, more charities are being set up for struggling farmers to help with issues from mental health to financial problems. Gareth says as the chair of his local Young Farmers Club, they work very closely with the Farming Community Network (FCN);
“They're a great charity in that they are great at supporting farmers and are always at the other end of the phone to talk to. There's a lot of other charities and support out there for farmers but that's just one of many.”
Gareth Hutchings
Working long hours, along with climate change and the uncertainty surrounding Brexit to contend with also takes its toll.
Surprisingly, Gareth says Covid hasn’t had much of an impact, and if anything, the positive support from the public in these testing times has been more than welcome;
“I do feel people probably appreciate where stuff comes from more than they used to and how hard we work to get it because we can't just take a day off if we're not feeling well. If you are the farmer those animals need looking after.
“A lot of people have bought more local during the coronavirus pandemic and I think they need to carry on supporting farm shops and local shops and buy British food.”
Gareth Hutchings
Gareth’s family currently farm across a number of sites in and around Launceston. Next year, Gareth and his brother will split the entire operation to take things on when their father semi-retires at the age of 55. It’s a plan the family have put in place together.
Following a study by the University of Exeter in collaborations with NFU Mutual, less than a fifth of farmers plan on fully retiring and many do not discuss their later life plans with loves ones.
Handing down the farm can often be an extremely emotional time for those farmers who have worked hard on the land or with livestock their whole lives, with many clinging on to ownership and “the way of life" long after traditional retirement age, the study found.
Children often find it hard to approach the subject of taking over, and many are not given the keys until they themselves are middle aged or older;
“My situation is quite unusual really as my dad has always had quite a fixed idea on what he wants for the future. A lot of farmers simply don’t. We never sat down formally as such to discuss it; it kind of fell into place as dad knew he wanted to pass the reins over to us.
“He wants to be able to see us develop and grow so it’s a great opportunity that he has given us. It’s a fantastic platform. I think he will enjoy having the choice of dipping in to do some work, or not if he doesn’t want to.”
Gareth Hutchings
Gareth says he would recommend every farming family considers putting a succession plan in place;
“I think it’s very important. People should consider it before they need to and sit down and have that discussion. There’s nothing worse than that decision being forced upon you when someone has passed in the family and there is no plan in place.”
Gareth Hutchings