Beginner’s Guide on Starting a Smallholding Business in the United Kingdom

Starting a Smallholding Business in the United KingdomSmallholding businesses can be more productive per acre than larger farms because they have many uses for the same patch of land. Starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom is a way of improving your financial income. It means raising and growing some farm crops or animals on your small farm. You can as well have a farm shop where you are selling food from your farm produce. You can check out this guide on starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom.

 

Industry Practice

A smallholding business is under the broader agricultural sector and is affected by price fluctuations and legislation changes. Farming remains one of the most significant sectors in the United Kingdom. For much of the new millennium, the sector has had a hard hit emanating from several reasons. In return, the prices went down in certain instances, reducing the demand. The idea behind a smallholding is primarily to be self-sufficient and produce a small surplus to sell through the local outlets.

 

Organic Production

Some traditional farmers started exploring opportunities presented by full or partial conversion to organic farming at the beginning of the millennium. As a result, a speedily growing number of businesses were supplying to the same markets that smallholders customarily supply. The demand for organic produce has ever since led to several farmers converting back to organic farming.

While you think of starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom, begin by looking at the demand for the activities within your particular locality. Now, a smallholding business is where you grow crops or rear animals in a piece of land of fewer than 50 acres. As a smallholder, you have the freedom to decide what you want to do on your farm.

 

Business Registration Process

Starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom is one venture that is possible if you have a piece of land. And if you’re new to smallholding, you can begin learning from others and save a massive amount of time, energy, and money.

 

Things You Should Know Before Starting a Smallholding Business in the United Kingdom

Create a Realistic Business Plan

While thinking of which niche market you should arrange on developing a solid business plan for your venture. It means creating a document that explains your goals and objectives, your mission statement, and your vision. Your business plan should include your financial, operational, and marketing strategies clearly articulated. You’ll explain how you’ll handle the challenges within your business and what makes you different from your competitors.

Research on Your Target Market

It takes research to understand the market in terms of the demand and what are the prevailing prices. Through research, you’ll be able to estimate the type and number of customers that may buy your products. You’ll establish when you’re likely to get more people buying directly from you if:

  • Existence of a holiday accommodation like a camping or caravan site nearby. This is because holidaymakers tend to buy fresh produce.
  • The local area has inadequate shops to serve customers
  • When farmers’ markets are held in your area

Researching the market goes as far as knowing your competitors and how they operate. The kind of farming activities they undertake, whether they have a farm shop or not, and even their prices.

Registering Your Business

If you’re looking for success in your smallholding business, registering is the way to go. This will give your business an upper hand when negotiating better deals with companies and organizations. However, before you register your business, you must have a name that will reflect the nature of the service you do. We have different legal entities in the United Kingdom that you can opt for from limited partnership, sole proprietorship, and limited companies. Once you have your name ready, you can go to the Companies of House and register. The process of United Kingdom company incorporation can only be easier if you have all the necessary statutory documents ready.

Promoting your Smallholding Business

One way or the other, you must let people know about the existence of your business by promoting it. There are several ways that you might look at when advertising your smallholding business. You can start within your local area using word of mouth. Again, you can create flyers or business cards and share them in forums where you think your potential clients might be found. Other ways may include directories, newspapers, magazines, TV, and Radio.

Decide on a Specific Niche

To earn a reputation and have much success, you must go for a specific niche market. From your market research, you’ll know where the demand is concentrated and focus on that niche that will get you more clientele. If you decide you’re joining for animal farming or crop farming, well and good. The bottom line is to have an area where you think you have more added advantage and room to succeed.

Have a Price Policy

Starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom gives you a chance to supply fresh produce to target customers. And for you to keep customers coming back to your business, you must have competitive prices. By checking on what your competitors are charging and the prevailing prices, you can set the correct prices for your business. You must take into consideration the demand and supply aspects while doing so.

 

Licenses, Permits, and Regulations

We have key legislation that affects smallholding businesses in the United Kingdom that one needs to understand before venturing into this business.

The law stipulates that if you plan to prepare, store and sell food (for value addition), you must register with your local environmental health department. The inspector will inspect your premises and help you comply with the Food Safety Act and Food Hygiene Regulations requirements. For you to register in good time, you have to contact your local authority in advance.

The following are some of the actions you need to take if you’re undertaking the following activities:

  • If you target to sell wool and possess more than four adult sheep, you must register with the British Wool Marketing Board.
  • If you keep sheep, pigs, or goats, you must register with the relevant agriculture department. This could be the Department for the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Before registration, you must first get a County Parish Holding (CPH) number from the Rural Payments Agency (RPA).
  • If you’re in milk production, you must register with the Food Standards Agency in the United Kingdom.
  • If you have three hectares or more of potatoes in a year, you must register with AHDB Potatoes and pay an annual levy.
  • If you’re operating a sizable poultry farm, you must register with the Animal & Plant Health Agency. You’ll also require a CPH number. Alongside with other regulations, you can always check the guide to company registration in the United Kingdom.

Examples of Starting a Smallholding Businesses in the United Kingdom

Eggs

When starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom and thinking of selling eggs on a large scale and using an egg packer, you must comply with the Egg Marketing regulations. Additionally, if you have an establishment with more than 350 laying hens, the laying hens must be registered and all Class A eggs sold at the retail level. They must bear a stamp with a code that identifies the establishment, the country of origin, and the production method. In a situation where you’re selling ungraded eggs at local public markets, you need to mark them with a code that identifies the method of production and your establishment. It applies to all flocks, regardless of size. Moreover, when you have over 50 birds, you must register with the GB Poultry Register under the Avian Influenza Regulations.

Cattle and Pigs

When rearing cattle or pigs, you must register them with the Animal and Plant Health Agency. Cattle must have a passport which is available from the Cattle Tracing System.

Animal Movements

When moving cattle, sheep, pigs, and goats, they must be moved under the terms of general movement licenses, and all movements must be recorded and reported to the concerned authority. You can always download the general movement license from the government website. Again, you can seek assistance from a corporate service provider in the United Kingdom like 3E Accounting.

 

Food Safety

When it comes to selling food from your farm shop, you must comply with strict food safety legislation. Again, you must register your business with the local authority’s environmental health department. Get more guidance and advice from your local environmental health officer about what you should install on your premises.

Starting a Smallholding Business in the United Kingdom

If you need assistance starting a smallholding business in the United Kingdom, you can contact 3E Accounting.