Farm Manager (crops)

Overview

A farm manager oversees the planning and production of crops to the highest standard to help make sure the farm is as profitable as possible.

Arable and horticulture crops include cereals like oats, barley, wheat, and maize, as well as vegetables, salad, or fruit crops. They are produced as food for both humans and animals.

It’s common for farmers in the UK to have a mix of crops depending on soil type, location, market, and crop compatibility. Combining crops in a crop rotation is considered best practice as it helps maintain soil health and reduce the risk of pests and diseases.

As a farm manager, you’ll have a range of responsibilities, including overseeing the planning, production, harvest, and safe storage of crops, overseeing staff health and safety, and managing recruitment, training, and development.

You might also look after the financial aspects of the farm business, such as budgeting, buying supplies and equipment, and negotiating costs.

Farm managers might also need to use farm software and have a good understanding of new farming technology. You might use precision farming strategies to improve soil quality and better predict the amounts of crops it can produce. This type of farming practice has a positive environmental impact and can help reduce waste. For example, you can gather more precise information on soil type and health. This could help you decide on how deep to sow seeds, how to control weeds in a more targeted way, or how to reduce the need for fertiliser and crop protection products.

You’ll work closely with and plan alongside the farm owner or management consultants. You’d also work with different advisers to ensure the farm works efficiently, productively, and to best practice.

You may need to have your own transport to get to work.

Responsibilities

As a farm manager your responsibilities might include:

Managing, protecting, and monitoring the farm’s environmental impact by promoting sustainable practices and biodiversity
Managing and monitoring the risk of pollutants from crop protection products
Following relevant legislation when managing and monitoring soil health and when applying crop protection products
Planning farm operations and setting targets for crop production to maximise profitability
Overseeing the crop performance in line with targets
Overseeing the sales and marketing of crops
Monitoring and overseeing all farm financials, including budgets, cash flow, and costs
Ensuring the farm operates to government regulations and legislation
Ensuring all financial, staff training, environmental, and farm assurance records are accurate and up to date
Recruiting, managing, and developing employees
Overseeing all farm health and safety for employees
Overseeing and maintaining relationships with external contractors, suppliers, and consultants
Ensuring all buildings, equipment, and machinery are in good working order and comply with safety regulations

Personal Qualities

To work as a farm manager, you should be:

A dynamic and inspiring leader
Able to communicate and listen well to others
Skilled in making decisions and solving problems
Able to hand tasks over to others where appropriate
Organised and able to plan ahead
A creative and strategic thinker
Passionate about the farm business
Willing to learn and try different ideas
Resilient and ready to deal with industry demands and changes
Willing to take instruction and ideas from others, for example, from the farm owner or management consultants

Skills & Requirements

Candidates can be appointed based on experience. However, a relevant qualification such as an agriculture or farm business management degree could increase your options (see below).

This role would suit someone self-motivated, enthusiastic, and committed to making a difference to the industry.

As a farm manager, you’ll have the following competencies for managing farm operations and staff for maximum productivity while supporting the environment.

You will:

Develop and manage plans for running the farm
Manage effective crop production, evaluating cropping systems and crop types in preparation for planting
Manage crop production to ensure plant health and maximum productivity
Manage successful harvesting and storage of crops after harvest
Manage crop production for a more sustainable business and look after the environment by managing soil carefully
Manage the recruitment, training, and development of employees so you can attract and keep good team members
Lead employees to achieve goals
Lead employees to ensure health and safety and biosecurity procedures are followed
Use business skills and knowledge to ensure the farm is financially stable
Develop and adapt the farm business so it can withstand pressures like price variations
Attend knowledge exchange and continuing professional development events and training
Manage technical operations to include machinery, equipment, vehicles, and structures
Consider newly developed farm-based technologies to make the business more productive and profitable

Salary

The salary for a crops farm manager is in the region of £30,000 to £70,000 per year.

This figure is for a full-time permanent position depending on level of experience, business type and location.

Within the agriculture and horticulture sectors there are often many associated benefits that are not reflected in the headline salary. These can include accommodation being provided or subsidised, travel pay, profit shares, vehicle use and production/performance bonuses.

Future Career Opportunities

You could progress further by developing your skills and knowledge by managing various farm businesses. Or you could progress to the level of farm director or operations director. There are also opportunities to work as a farm manager on different types of farms.

You could also consider a position as a farm consultant, providing technical support and advice to other farmers, environmental organisations and companies that produce seed, fertilisers, and crop protection products.

If you are interested in moving on to an advisory role, such as a farm consultant, you would need to complete training to develop your knowledge of fertilisers and pesticides.

For more information, go to the BASIS website and FACTS web page.

Qualifactions & Training

Courses which can help you on this career path include:

Level 3 Advanced Technical Certificate in Agriculture

Level 3 Business Studies

BSc in Agriculture with Farm Business Management

FdSc Agriculture and Farm Management

BSc Applied Farm Management

BSc Agriculture

BA Business Studies