Farmer Diaries

The first company I was ever asked to look at was Hanson Trust, it was a strange hybrid company with listings in New York and London, it had been founded by James Hanson and Gordon White, and it was effectively a private equity firm (founded in the early 1960s) that sought to acquire undervalued companies.  It sounds good but what they were famous for in the early 1990s was acquisition and breakup.  There were few if any regulations at the time, insider trading was not known as insider trading it was known as trading.  It was only after deregulation of the city that trading in the UK (and it was the exception in Europe) became more open and largely fair market.  Hanson Trust had begun using convertible bonds to acquire companies, which allowed them to increase yield for their shareholders and reduce the risk of dilution.  In effect, if an acquisition went very very well the bondholder got a tiny equity kicker while the returns to Hanson Trust were "out of this world".  I was

 It's funny.  I wrote a factual account of our personal actions following the Brexit vote and I got massive pushback as if my wife and I were responsible for the mess because we took advantage of the situation.  I don't really understand their point of view.   In a market economy (which is still the case in the UK), allocating resources (e.g. our money) to a sector of the economy that will stand at an advantage from a politically popular position is a reasonable and economically efficient use of our limited resources. In fact, our actions supported the British economy.  We priced our goods reasonably and we would make a reasonable economic return if the government had taken reasonable actions to prevent dislocation.  It is really not our fault (and we didn't vote Tory in the last two elections) if they did everything they could to screw up the process (and Europe watched in horror). We were projecting a specific economic return, but because of the crass incompetence of the

You would think that renting out a cottage on your land for weekenders via AirBnB would be a good idea...turns out that many of those who rent are urban idiots, ever heard of cow tipping? Turns out it's a thing for city dwellers when they come to the countryside, and it seems that in our area it's become a thing for Airbnb renters to go out at night and tip cows.  It's all fun and game since they are mostly drunk idiots, but for the farmers is something else!  Cattle get spooked and running cows at night leads to cattle injuries, either potholes or worse, crashing into fences.  Our farm has not been directly affected by this, because we don't have cottages to rent, and our farm is large enough that getting to our cattle (which is located mostly in the center of the property) is hard work, no one wants to walk 200 meters in a field to get to a cow. It has been a problem for years, but it has been exacerbated by Airbnb, previously the owner would have some type of relatio

  I was a young boy when BSE (e.g. Mad Cow disease) was a thing in the UK.  From what Wikipedia wrote more than four million heads of cattle were slaughtered.  The disease took hold of British herds in the early 1980s and is still present today.  The Ministry of Agriculture knew about the outbreak, its scientists were concerned but at the time no one knew about prions.  For several years the government took no action despite its own scientists saying that this was a serious problem (it came out in a later investigation).  Until very recently, if you tried to give blood outside the UK and admitted to live in the UK between 1979 and 1990 you would be rejected as a blood donor because of BSE. When the government reacted it overreacted.  First, destroying the herds that were affected was necessary but the trouble lasted for decades.  Until 2006, UK farmers were forbidden from exporting meat on the bone to Europe (there is also BSE in Europe...).  It took a very long time for herds to recov

It is truly amazing to realize the amount of data produced in farming, from real-time health monitoring of our milking cows to herd positioning to keeping track of the meat we produce (and its specific origin).  Everything produces data, even our field where we grow about 80% of our cattle feed, either in the form of corn silage or hay, produces specific productivity data in amazing details, so that we can calibrate soil use (we only use organic fertilizers -- so there's a real limit as to how we can tailor or fields' character).   It would be nice for everything to be 100% "natural" but grasses sometimes do not provide enough calories to our herd.  It has something to do with the type of grasses in each field, we provide additional salt and minerals that cattle need and have aggressive (natural) fly control systems.  In addition, we don't finish our cattle with grains and minerals near butchering, we only provide them with balanced feed in winter, about five mont

Even the rabid Tory working in the city knew that Brexit would have a dramatic and long-lasting effect on the country (it didn't help that Johnson's government was incompetent).  So last week we had our third or fourth dinner with Adam (my son) his girlfriend and her parents.  My son works in the entertainment industry in London and has a flat in Notting Hill.  So my wife and I got an Airbnb for the weekend (Adam's current flat is too small for guests...and we like our privacy).  We took the train down and really enjoyed the whole gettingaway adventure.  In fact, my wife warned me this was "the big weekend" where my son and his girlfriend would announce two things, first they are getting married and secondly they are expecting a child.  Our son was far too excited over the past few weeks for his mother to not figure out what was going on, especially when she saw the plans for the flat and an unredacted note about a nursery...  It's not so much that I am pro-Br

On a cold Friday morning in February 2011, my 15-year-old son announced at breakfast that "Bitcoin was the future".  I had no idea what he was talking about but then my son is a bit of a geek (sorry Adam!), and like all fifteen-year-old boys loved computers and the internet.  He was like many of his contemporaries very attracted to the Dark Web, which made promises -- of cannabis and other drugs, but more importantly pirated music.  One of my jobs at work was to look at new (and old) financial products and the risks and opportunities they presented we started with the first derivative greeks (risk of volatility, interest rate, time risks), the hedging potential, and also transaction costs.  Basic stuff for our brokers and traders.  It gave a benchmark to everyone about the products our brokers and traders needed to buy for our clients.   My son was basically challenging me on a "new" financial product, and as such I had to inform myself.  In 2011 very little informa

 Every year my wife and I take a two-week holiday away from the pressures of the farm and the daily grind.  Our team is fully aware of this and is incredibly supportive.  It is literally never a problem.  Our two managers take over where they are needed.   This year we went to Turkey, we wanted a bit of heat after a rather cold UK summer, and Turkey was just the ticket.  We rented a house near the beach and it was fully staffed, we even had a driver.  We did that because we often go out for dinner and don't drink and drive, plus the roads in the area we rented are rather dark at night. Everything was great, both of us made an effort and learned a dozen sentences each so that we could speak to Turkish people and show a minimum of courtesy.  When we added Google Translate on our phone we could get everything done, and be respectful. One evening our driver dropped us off about a kilometer from our restaurant because the roads were closed between 7 and 9 pm, but he would be able to pic

 Ok, so this weekend all the children were home for Sunday dinner, a rather unusual situation considering that they are either in London (two) or at University (Cambridge and Oxford).  Clearly, our daughter who is entering her third year at Cambridge is the least inconvenienced since it's only about an hour away, still all for children, and two of their "friends" were there for the weekend. Needless to say in university circles the Israeli/Hamas war is in full swing with a great deal of self-righteousness from both sides.  Our children have long learned their lessons, but their "friends" are new to our household.  I am certain that my two youngest warned their friends that both my wife and I would force them to fully explain any opinions they voiced, afterall if you feel confident to voice an opinion, you understand the issues.   Obviously, our children grossly exaggerated my wife and my debating with our children when they were younger.  Still, it makes for a g

Two years ago the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs raised issues with our farming techniques, especially with some of our growing techniques for specialized lettuce and other leafy greens. We were using full hydroponic systems using special lights to promote growth, but we were the first to employ this technology in the UK and we were basically stealing the high-end business with our leafy green products, we were biological with no additive or pesticides in any of the growing media.   Last week, we got the final ruling on our process, which, by the way, is used in more than 30 countries.   Nutrionally most leafy greens are neutral, they provide fiber and few calories, but that was not the issue.  The issue was that we were declaring our production bio but we didn't conform with the then applicable rules and regulations.  In fact, there are no regulations for what we are doing.  Our leafy greens are grown entirely in a closed environment. This weekend, I added up al

For nearly a quarter of a century, I was an investment manager in London.  One of those overpaid bankers but I was on the "buy side" when it was almost impossible to make a mistake, bond yields were falling, and stock prices were rising.  We looked like genius when in reality it was the tide that was raising us all.  I was very very lucky, I worked for a dedicated group of overachievers.  We even outperformed the market.  Compensation was out of this world, but 7 years ago I decided after a health scare that I would do something else with my life. Four kids who were grown, and a few grandchildren on the way, and my wife and I decided to go home.  We are both from Norfolk and the price of arable land had been dropping for years.  I had for the past few years become very concerned about real assets, as opposed to shares and bonds, I guess it was the return to our home county was driven by a desire for a change, and so in 2017 I decided to purchase family-owned farmland...with n

 Two weeks ago, Nick died.  It was a stupid death, but so it happens. Call me Nick2, for that is my name too.  We met in London all these years ago.  I sent me his access details a month ago.   I always wanted a blog... So here goes P.S. I had not spoken to Nick for over a year.  I received the access code to this page a month ago.  I only opened the email recently.  And No I don't know how he died...I only had his email address these last few years, and all my messages remain unanswered