The Farm Profitability Review unwrapped: What farmers need to know

Addressing long-term economic stability

Jack Pierce describes the review and its eye-watering 57 recommendations as “the clearest and most comprehensive statement and review in years that shows the current farming model is not economically sustainable in its current state.”

Around 30% of farms were loss-making in 2024, with many relying heavily on support payments rather than profits from production. Crucially, Jack points out the review reframes farming as a critical national infrastructure. 

It underpins food security, public health and a wider agri-food economy worth over £150 billion and supports millions of jobs. Rather than offering a ‘silver bullet’, the report highlights systemic issues across the entire farm-to-fork supply chain.

In the report, Baroness Batters identifies three strategic options following the UK’s exit from the EU: prioritising environmental regulation while importing cheaper food; pursuing global competitiveness through reduced regulation and subsidies; or adopting a balanced middle path via a long-term strategy to improve profitability while maintaining standards. 

It’s believed the report strongly favours the third approach, forming the basis of an anticipated 25-year farming roadmap.

Collaboration a central theme

A recurring theme in the report for Wendy Nicholas is the need for collaboration, not only among farmers and advisors but also with government, supply chains and the public. 

For more on collaborating with the public, listen to our previous podcast episodes with Anna Jones and Kendra Hall (series 1, episode 5) and Tom Martin (series 5, episode 9). 

Wendy also highlights workforce challenges, the unsustainable culture of excessive working hours and the need to attract and retain younger generations. 

“I would suggest my generation […..] wear our badges of working 80 hours a week, like some sort of badge of pride. And I do think we need to get away from that. We can't expect the next generation to be doing that number of hours.”

Turning to exports, she questions the tension between rising exports and the UK’s relatively low food self-sufficiency, calling for clearer labelling, fairer trade and an end to the ‘cheap food at all costs’ approach.

“Agriculture cannot be used as a sacrificial lamb in trade deals moving forward. We've got the highest quality, we know that. We have the highest welfare, and that's got to be better for the environment and the consumer. Why are we not increasing our own self-sufficiency first?”

Volatility threatens profitability

As an agribusiness consultant with an eye for figures, Jack identifies volatility, not inefficiency, as the core threat to profitability.

“One of the clearest messages in the review [is] the problem cannot simply be pinned on poor management or lack of efficiency.”

He goes on to explain even well-run farms are destabilised by factors beyond their control, including market fluctuations, weather extremes and policy uncertainty. Only a small minority of farms perform well over time consistently, demonstrating the fragility of success. As a result, he stresses structural uncertainty cannot be eliminated through better management alone.

Cautious optimism

Both Jack and Wendy see the review as a once-in-a-generation opportunity for meaningful change, urging farmers to engage openly, understand their finances, collaborate, embrace technology and involve the public. 

If adopted, they believe the report could help build a more resilient, profitable, and confident agricultural sector for future generations.

“It's about having a competitive industry with great products, making sure we've got the confidence to plan. That in turn will support the communities we're a part of and we need to make sure we're giving space to the next generation and embracing technology for the future,” Wendy concludes.

Jack and Wendy’s takeaway messages from the report

1.     Embed food and farming in the national STEM curriculum, including everything from food, nature, environment, all the way through to health.

2.     Focus on financial profitability as opposed to yield.

3.     Collaboration is not optional. There needs to be meaningful partnerships between farmers, government and the delivery bodies, which focuses on outcome, not process.

4.     This is a dynamic, exciting time and there will be opportunities: challenge, change, opportunity

5.     The report itself proves there is a willingness to support the industry; we must be optimistic.

Listen to the full main episode and bonus below - also available via Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Farming Profitability Review 2025 is available on the Defra website as an executive summary or the full report.

About our guests

Jack Pierce is an agribusiness consultant with Terrafarmer focusing on building environmental production and economic resilience on farm. He is also the consultancy’s Head of Commercial.

Wendy Nicholas farms with her family near Land’s End in Cornwall, running a beef suckler herd, small flock of sheep and a campsite. She joined Farm Cornwall recently and was named Farming Champion in the 2025 Cornwall Farm Business Awards.