A VETERAN farmer says his decision to plant a 100-acre woodland on his farm in the midst of Hadrian’s Wall Country represents changing times for agriculture.

Norman Kyle believes that the rising cost of equipment and machinery, coupled with falling prices for meat, has forced him into diversification.

Last December, Mr Kyle and his son, Iain, were given the go-ahead to create a conifer woodland at Wallshield Farm, near Haltwhistle, despite opposition from the Northumberland National Park Authority.

Now, with planting work under way, the 77-year-old says it’s the only way of securing a future for the farm.

“Things have changed such a lot over the past 40 years,” he said: “There was a time when you could buy a tractor for the price of 20 lambs, but now you‘re talking about tens of thousands of pounds. Fertiliser was once £10 per tonne, and now it is £300 per tonne.

“In terms of lamb prices, in the late 1970s and 1980s you would be talking about £120 or £130 per spring lamb, but that’s gone down considerably.

“One of the reasons the prices are so bad at the moment, is that you could buy a leg of lamb at the supermarket for half price at Easter – that should be the best time of year for sheep farmers.”

Mr Kyle, who for many years ran a butcher’s shop alongside the farm at Wallshield, believes lessons can be learned from the way markets have evolved.

He explained: “When the supermarkets first came to prominence, farmers thought they were doing the right thing by supplying them.

“Previously, there was a good understanding with local traders, and nothing else got in the way. Now we see New Zealand lamb, for example, and everything has gone international.”

Despite the changes at Wallshield, Mr Kyle says it will be business as usual for the foreseeable future.

He said: “We are doing what the Government wants us to do, which is to meet the growing need for timber.

“It might be 20 years before we start to harvest that timber, but we have to look to the future for the farm.

“If the income from traditional farming had been sufficient, we would have continued in exactly the same way.“

Mr Kyle‘s family have been based at Wallshield since the 17th century, where 300-acres have been occupied by sheep and cattle.

Ian, who works both on the farm and as a forestry and fencing contractor, said they would retain livestock because ”that’s what we‘ve always done.“

This is not the first time the Kyles have diversified. Back in 1996, trees were planted to provide shelter on the farm and the Kyles have been selling Christmas trees ever since.

The national park’s objection to the scheme was based on the possible impact on ground nesting birds and also that the plantation would be visible from the Pennine Way, Hadrian’s Wall Trail, Pennine Cycleway and local rights of way.

The Kyles agreed to reduce the acreage from an initial 200, to 106, following negotiations with the national park and other bodies, and the revised scheme was given the go-ahead by the Forestry Commission’s England National Committee.

Mr Kyle said he will continue to explore the possibility of planting the originally planned 200 acres.

At present, 77 acres of the 106 are conifer, with the remainder broad-leaf species.

The first tree was planted by North-East MEP Paul Brannen in February, who said it was important to ensure sufficient woodland cover for the future.