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For over 38 years, Hugh Townsend has been the country's "go-to" commentator on farm quotas and intangible assets sold off-farm. Having become the country's leading and most innovative quota agent he was broadcast to 3.8 million listeners on Radio 4's PM programme, interviewed by Eddie Mayer on the 1st April 2015 – the “Dawning of Europe without Milk Quotas”, click here.In 2016, BBC1 interviewed Hugh Townsend on the future of farming following the Referendum, click here. In 2021 he published the first book of its type “the UK Environmental Credits User Guide” , and more recently in 2024 ITV filmed at one of our BNG Habitat Banks which was broadcast on Monday 3rd June (click here) To view the uncut footage of the interview click here
Hugh Townsend developed the most creative arrangements to promote an efficient market in farm quotas, in the early eighties, including leasing milk quota without land, before the Milk Marketing Board introduced leasing for a part of the milk year. He has represented clients in leading court and arbitration cases successfully defending transfers of milk quota, and developed the new system of second TQ1 forms protecting the transfer of quotas with land.
In 1991, Farmers Weekly published the first sale price index from Hugh Townsend, countrywide, and started to publish farm quota sales and leasing graphs, which can be seen on our Milk Quota & Entitlements pages. Prices for intangible assets are still published weekly from this UK leading Brokerage House.
On BBC television, he has defended dairy farmers who have been taken advantage of by unscrupulous individuals in the farm quota market, and was again on television to comment on the "footballers buy milk quota" rumpus.
In 1990, the firm held the first auction of sheep and beef quota making the market in these new intangible assets and is still the leading BPS entitlement broker in the UK regions following England abolishing their scheme in 2023.
The firm also now sells Biodiversity Net Gain and Nutrient Neutrality units, Woodland and Peatland Carbon, in addition to Water Abstraction Licenses, and holds National Sales by tender every six weeks.
2.12.2022 – Farmers Weekly – Biodiversity Net Gain market – how will it all work in practice?
The biodiversity net gain market is becoming more active. Farmers Weekly looks at the detail The law requiring a 10% uplift in biodiversity for any new development is not expected to come into force until at least late 2023. To meet this requirement – which can be either on-site or off-site – the developer must…
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16.11.22 – Western Morning News – A farmer’s guide to operating in Biodiversity Net Gain market
1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 A common misunderstanding about the English Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) market is that units can only be sold in their own Local Planning Authority (LPA) or the adjoining one. This confusion comes from two sources. The number of units sold outside their own LPA will be reduced by the “spatial risk multiplier”…
Read More2.11.2022 Fact Sheet 15 – How is Biodiversity Net Gain Marketed?
The new Biodiversity Net Gain market, contrary to early expectations, is a national market. Why this is and how it works is explained here. TCS Habitat Distinctiveness/”Rarity” and Trading Pyramid 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 One of the most common misunderstandings about the English Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) market is that the marketplace for any particular units…
Read More18.10.22 – THE DEACTIVATED ‘ACTIVE FARMER’ RULE WITH PARTICULAR NOTE TO SCOTLAND
Background One important historic consideration when claiming the BPS, and the SPS before it, is the Active Farmer Rule. As of 2015, the birth year of the Basic Payment Scheme whose departure we are now witnessing, the “Active Farmer Rule” was a negative stipulation for national farming subsidy claims. That is, it gave circumstances in…
Read More11.10.22 The Future of Farm Support in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
As policy on agricultural support is a fully devolved matter, each region of the UK may decide on how best to meet the objectives, needs and priorities of their region as they see fit. England was first to act and has the most developed transitional pathway. They decided that the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) will…
Read More8.8.22 Annual Health & Welfare Review Pilot – open for applications
We are writing to report the latest progress of this scheme. You may already be familiar with the Annual Health and Welfare Review (AHWR). When it comes into force, this scheme will offer a yearly payment for a vet to come to the farm to assess the health of the animals and make recommendations for…
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6.7.22 – Western Morning News – Carbon credits: Is now the time to sell?
We are for the most part unqualified to comment on the implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. There are two aspects of Russian activity which may affect UK domestic policy in a way that in turn affects carbon markets. First is the reduction in Ukrainian agri-food exports. Russia has, in their attempt to choke…
Read More 29.6.22 – Western Morning News – Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme
SUSTAINABLE FARMING INCENTIVE 2022: APPLICATIONS OPEN FROM 30TH JUNE DEFRA have announced the wider roll out of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) which opened for applications from Thursday 30th June. As the Basic Payment Scheme winds down, with the last claims to be put in next year before delinkage payments from 2024, many are wondering…
Read More 22.6.22 – Western Morning News – Signs of progress as new BPS replacement scheme details emerge
The brave new world of post-BPS subsidy is steadily becoming more visible as new information is released by DEFRA. Lump Sum Exit Scheme The claim process for this is now fully understood. Those familiar with claiming New and Young Farmer entitlements from the National Reserve may recognise this process. This is because the RPA does…
Read More 27.4.2022 – Western Morning News – Agricultural Grants – The Latest Developments
The steady drip feed of information about the post-BPS world continues. Here are some of the latest developments. Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) New guidance, stemming in part from the pilot, has been issued on how the general scheme to be released later this year will work. This guidance contains few surprises, but there are some…
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