Hard-pressed farmers are flocking to drive trucks
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• by David Cralk The National Farmers Union aims to foster greater links with the Road Haulage Association and The Freight Transport Association to help boost the number of farmers taking up HG'.! licences.
Mandy Gloyer, diversification expert at the NFU, says that closer links will help assist farmers affected financially by the recent foot and mouth outbreak, and will also help transport companies hit by the current lack of goods vehicle drivers.
Stephen Howe, editor of Farmers Weekly, says an ever-increasing number of farmers in the North-West and the SouthWest—the regions most affected by foot and mouth—are already gong down the route of applying for HGV licences. "They are looking for alternatives to boost their income," he adds.
Gloyer believes the move into transport makes sense for her members: "Farmers already have a lot of the skills needed to work in the haulage industry," she says.
Commenting on the plans, the FTA's Geoff Dossetter says: "There has always been a close affinity between farmers and hauliers, so this seems logical. The driver shortage is almost at the top of the pile of industry's concerns, so we would welcome this as a positive step."
Road Haulage and Distribution Training Council chief executive la
Hetherington als applauds the initiativ€ "Seasonal work in partict lar provides a very clos fit. Take, for example, th delivery of winter fuel oi this dovetails neatly wit work on arable crops."