Bank Advances To Scottish Agriculture 2012

16th August 2012

Scotland's Chief Statistician today published results from the 2012 Survey Of Bank Advances to Scottish Agriculture.

This survey is based on information collected from banks and mortgage companies operating in Scotland, and the results detail the total outstanding balance of advances from banks and mortgage companies to Scottish agriculture on 31st May 2012 - it is not an estimate of new lending.

The Statistical Publication provides data tables along with commentary and graphics on the latest annual changes and trends since 1980.

The main findings show:

At the 31st of May 2012, the total outstanding balance of advances from banks and mortgage companies to Scottish agriculture was £1,670 million. This was £56 million (3.5%) higher than the previous May, which is an increase in real terms of 0.1%.
This is the 3rd consecutive year that the outstanding debt of Scottish agriculture has risen, despite difficult lending conditions in the economy.
Most of the outstanding advances to agriculture were to owner-occupier farmers (89%). The remainder went to tenant farmers (8%); agricultural contractors (2%) and livestock salesmen 1% - this is a similar profile to previous years.
The distribution of advances to owner-occupier farms generally reflects the structure of agriculture in Scotland, where 75% of agricultural area (excluding common grazing) is owner-occupied.
The publication also contains related information from other data sources including:

The 2012 Economic Report on Scottish Agriculture
The 2010/11 Farm Accounts Survey
Bank of England data on the level of UK outstanding loans and advances to selected business sectors.