Since launching in September 2024, our open-ended question has gathered over 1000 candid, unfiltered responses from farmers across the UK. This evolving dataset offers a powerful window into the realities of farming today, in the farmers' own words.
Use the filters to explore by gender, region, farm size, farming system, enterprise type, and more. Whether you're seeking insight into new entrants’ concerns or the challenges facing decision-makers on larger farms, this tool brings you closer to the heartbeat of UK agriculture.
This data set below is designed to offer a human connection - not a statistical analysis - but a sense of what matters most, right now, to those working the land. For deeper analysis by date range, theme, or sentiment across these filters and more, or to discuss custom insights, get in touch at hello@groundedresearch.co.uk.
Want to understand what really matters to farmers?
Start below.
Want to add your voice?
Find your farms
Find your farmers
What farmers want you to know keeps them awake at night
Government policy on TB, and environmental schemes
Lack of security of tenure
Land being taken from farmers for solar panels
At present, bluetongue and the unknowns that come with that. We are fortunate that we have barns here that we have converted into storage units so have a secondary income, however that doesn't take away the worry about our livestock as we are very passionate about their care - it is our priority
The instability of the industry. Milk price fluctuations etc means it is difficult to plan and have confidence in the future
Government plans
Lack of funding
Food security and the pressures on our farmers
Recently came out of commercial pig farming
Lack of funding to help smaller farms
The future of small medium sized family farms. We are a young farming family, both 5th generation with the 6th generation potentially watching us. It feels like farming is an unwanted industry to the public and government but realistically, they can't be without us. Can we stick out the fight?
Money and cash flow on all aspects of the business including diversification (holiday lets)
Legislation and red tape
The furure
The current movement against farming in general
Unfair pricing of the produce farmers supply, where is the fair trade for our farmers
Cost of production vs price we receive.
The future of agriculture
The downward spiral of income and the need to do more and more just to standstill
Supermarket profits over fair prices
Agriculture is being ignored by previous and present government
Ethics Note
This data set is restricted to showing 20 responses as a maximum for each filter. From this interface, you cannot assess the time of the response, keywords or themes in order to protect the integrity of the data set for its intended purpose - to serve as a human connection into agriculture and not to be used in ways that support any one agenda.
What Keeps Farmers Awake at Night? explores real concerns shared by members of the UK farming community. Some of the content may be emotionally challenging or upsetting, as it reflects the lived experiences and pressures faced by farmers today.
We take the well-being of our participants seriously. Where responses indicated significant distress or raised concerns for personal safety or mental health, our team has acted responsibly by referring these cases to trusted support organisations such as the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) or the Farming Community Network (FCN), with the aim of ensuring individuals can access appropriate help.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised, we encourage you to reach out to these organisations directly:
-
RABI: www.rabi.org.uk | Helpline: 0800 188 4444
-
FCN: www.fcn.org.uk | Helpline: 03000 111 999
Consent and Copyright Notice
All responses have been collected with the full, informed consent of participants. The content shared on this platform remains the intellectual property of Grounded Research. Reproduction, distribution, or use of any part of this dataset is not permitted without prior written permission. To request permission or discuss data use, please contact hello@groundedresearch.co.uk.