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Attending a farmer improvement group has paid dividends for AFMP member Bob Payne when he realised that he could save himself £10,000 on his electricity bill.
A farmer improvement group organised by Arla Foods brought farmers in the Derbyshire region together to compare and contrast utility bills. This led Bob Payne to discover that his electricity contract was incorrect and because he had not renewed it at the most suitable time he was paying far more than he should have.
Bob, who farms 90 cows at West Hallam, was certainly pleased that he attended the meeting: "I was relieved more than anything. Otherwise, I would have just kept paying Otherwise I would have just kept on paying at the normal rate by direct debit and thought nothing more about it. I've got a bit to come back and although I'm on the contract until 2008, I will now pay substantially less."
Alan Radbourne, Arla Foods partnership support manager who is working with the Milk Development Council (MDC) to establish the group warns other farmers: "If you don't know the ins and outs of your electricity contract it could be costing you thousands of pounds in charges."
Tony Jackson, an extension officer with the MDC, who is working with AFMP on the scheme said: "The Derby group's results are typical of what we're finding nationally, where farmers are coming up with some stark increases in electricity prices. The meetings are giving them a chance to see what others are signing up for and ask whether they could get a better deal or not."
Bob's electricity charges will drop from 9.13p/kWh to 6.28/kWh during the day, 8.02/kWh to 3.02/kWh in the evenings and weekends, and 5.5p/kWh to 2.16p/kWh at night. His single daily charge also drops from 45p to 17p, which Bob estimates will save him £10,000 over three years.
The compare and contrast session is part of the MDC's Foresight programme which encourages farmers to discuss the hot topics of electricity and water bills and the best ways to reduce them.
"The MDC has been working with direct buyers to establish informal groups of about 10-12 farmers to meet four to six times a year. We want them to compare information and look for business improvement comparisons that will eventually allow us to reach industry benchmarking," added Tony.
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