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Farm diversification is when a farm branches out from traditional farming by adding new money-making activities. This can be an expansion of agricultural activities into new innovations or moving into non-agricultural business types. 

Diversifying your farm can involve anything, from adding pastured poultry and organic beef production to starting a bed and breakfast in the barn or setting up a local tourist attraction.

Types of farm diversification

When considering farm diversification, many farmers find it helpful to consider:

• Under used resources - many farms have unused buildings and farm resources. Farms that successfully diversify are often able to put their existing farm assets to use. Making a list of your existing farm under utilised resources is a useful first step in working out potential ideas.
• Unfilled local demand - being able to meet local demand for a product or service that is not currently being met may offer an opportunity to broaden your farms horizons into new business areas.
• Existing skills and expertise - playing to your existing farming experience and knowledge increases your likelihood of success. It also makes it easier to make the transition from traditional farm to rural enterprise.
• Area of interest - make a note of any business ideas that interest you. Following up on these means that you're more likely to put in the extra hours and effort required to make your rural enterprise a success.

For further information see advantages of farm diversification.

If you diversify your farm into a broader rural enterprise you're likely to grasp a range of benefits which you don't often find in a traditional farm.

Top advantages of farm diversification

Some of the main benefits of diversifying your farm business include:

• Increased revenue - by taking on new activities you and your family are likely to enjoy an increased farm income and a better quality of life.
• Adaptability - branching out encourages you to be willing to change and look out for other opportunities. Adding a new activity will teach you what works for you and your farm. It will help you make further changes and respond to new opportunities.
• Security - by moving into new activities farms can provide you and your family members with a long-term future and greater stability. By branching out, you will increase the number of revenue sources for your farm. This will make you less reliant on any one income source.
• Tradition - diversifying can provide you and your family with a means of carrying on your farming tradition. While the focus of diversifying may be on increasing income and securing a future it can provide the means of subsidising and continuing the traditional activities that are valued and enjoyed.
• Develop new skills - running a new venture will provide the opportunity to increase your skills and expand your network of business contacts. From management to marketing and finance to customer service diversifying will develop your business flair.

Realistic budgeting

It's important to be realistic when budgeting. A common mistake is overestimating income and underestimating the costs of running a diversified business. To avoid this, be conservative in your estimates of potential earnings.

Farm diversification offers many ways to generate extra income from your farm. Farmers can use tourism opportunities, manufacture products or branch out from traditional crops.

How to boost farm income

Are you looking to boost your farm's income? Consider these diversified farming examples. These ideas can help increase revenue and sustainability on your farm.

Alternative crops and renewable energy

Farms can also move beyond traditional farming by exploring non-food crops and renewable energy:

• Non-food crops - grow non-food crops such as industrial hemp or ornamental plants to get an alternative income through niche markets or specialised industries.
• Renewable energy - solar panels, wind turbines or biomass systems on your land can 91香蕉黄色视频 sustainable farming and generate extra income through energy production or government incentives.

Events and hospitality

Exploring leisure and hospitality on your farm can create new income and improve visitor experiences:

• Experience days - run pick your own events for people to forage fruits or host arts and crafts workshops for the local community.
• Adventure outings - organise adventure days where you can take a group of people on outdoor pursuits/survival days to boost their skills.
• Provide tourist accommodation - if you have unused land, consider using it for camping. You could also provide glamping facilities, like teepees, treehouses, or huts.
• Become an open farm/petting zoo - family farm day experiences are very popular, eg you can provide an opportunity for children to interact with animals and ride a tractor.
• Use seasonal opportunities to open your farm to the public - piggy-back on seasonal opportunities throughout the year, eg Halloween pumpkin patch, Christmas wonderland, sunflower season and summer events.
• Venue hire - revamp barns and hire them out as a wedding venue/party venue.
• Leisure attractions - use scrubland, woodland or open country to create venues for activities such as paint balling, rope courses, mazes, off road driving or mountain biking.
• Festivals - farmland can be great venues for one-off music festivals, country fairs or other themed gatherings.

Farm production and direct sales

If you prefer a more conventional approach, you may want to consider direct sales:

• Open a farm shop - sell produce from your farm and the local area, consider including a tearoom for visitors with home cooked food/baked goods from your farm.
• Livestock products - invest in goats, cows, or chickens for your farm so you can produce and sell milk, cheese and eggs.
• Crop products - consider growing and selling speciality flowers or vegetables that will attract the local community.

You can use our tool to find inspiration for diversifying your farm business by searching for detailed business profiles for 600 small business ideas.

Careful planning is essential to diversifying a traditional farm successfully. Write down your ideas and build your plan gradually. It will take time to develop your plan and it may need to be revised a number of times before you are satisfied with it.

How to make a plan to diversify your farm business

The key steps involved in farm diversification are:

• Identifying an idea that will work for you. You will need to research your local market and ensure that your idea is viable. Invest Northern Ireland's can provide market information on your potential idea.
• Shaping a suitable business plan. Planning is essential to your success and will be critical to obtaining financial 91香蕉黄色视频 - see how to write a business plan: step-by-step.
• Working out how much is required to finance the idea and how to ensure it is secured - see business financing options - an overview.
• Working out what is involved in producing and delivering the new product or service from your rural enterprise.
• Working out how you will market and sell your product/service - see how to create your marketing strategy.
• Ensuring you meet any legal requirements.
• Get training to build up your understanding of what is involved in running your own rural business.

There are several practical things you can do. It is worth spending time talking through your idea with friends and family and also with your local business adviser, your accountant and your local Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) rural adviser.

Gathering as much feedback as possible can help to shape your plan and test how feasible your initial idea is.

You will find it helpful to get as much advice as possible as you develop your plans to diversify your farm. Specialist advice on diversifying is available in Northern Ireland from farming experts.

Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA)

The Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA) advisers can offer advice on your rural business idea, sources of finance and how to manage the transition from traditional farm to rural enterprise. DAERA's organic experts can also advise on all aspects of .

Rural Support

Rural Support can offer independent 91香蕉黄色视频 from a business mentor to help farming families tackle farm business issues such as finance/debt and business decisions regarding the future - .

The Ulster Farmers' Union

The Ulster Farmers' Union has 11,500 local members and represents the wide range of interests of farmers - .

Training opportunities for farmers

You might need to supplement your existing skills with some additional training:

• The College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) offers a wide range of full time and part time agricultural, horticultural, environmental conservation, equine and food courses - .
• DAERA offers local farmers advice on a range of farming systems, technologies and techniques - find .
• The Prince's Countryside Fund runs the Farm Resilience Programme which offers free business skills training to family farmers in Northern Ireland - .

Northern Ireland Business 91香蕉黄色视频 finder

Advice and 91香蕉黄色视频 towards setting up your business can be found from a number of organisations. The Northern Ireland business 91香蕉黄色视频 finder is a searchable database that can help you find publicly-funded and not-for-profit sources of business assistance you may be eligible to apply for. Support may be available in a number of forms, including financial assistance and free or subsidised advice services.

Enterprise Northern Ireland

Enterprise Northern Ireland has a network of local Enterprise Agencies. These 91香蕉黄色视频 small business and community enterprises. They provide:

• information on government help for small business
• professional advisers
• low-cost loans, grant aid and other finance
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Find out more about  and .

You may also need specialist advice, such as help with legal issues or managing finances - find a solicitor for your business.