Family-run farm suffering with ‘all time high’ theft

Farmers are finding themselves having to deal with verbal abuse and robberies

Farmers are finding themselves as victims of verbal abuse and robberies – with one farmer saying rural theft is at an “all-time high”. England has just experienced its driest July on record, resulting in smaller yields and extra money having to be spent on animal feed.

Field fires have also contributed to the finacial burden of the hot weather in Cambridgeshire and across the rest of the country. But despite this, one of the most significant problems hitting farm profits is rural theft.

Judith Jacobs, owner of Moor Farm in Newborough near Peterborough, believes rural theft is at an “all-time high”. She said: “We’ve been robbed and we’ve been verbally abused. We’ve had machinery stolen and nobody wants to do anything about it. The impact on us is stress beyond stress.”

Theft of machinery hits all farms hard, but especially smaller farms who find it even harder to replace kit worth thousands of pounds.

The farm is currently carrying out its harvest, which is a “busy time of year,” said Judith. However with the dry weather causing problems, the farm’s yield is down, which is eating away at the farm’s profit.

Judith added: “We don’t have enough straw and hay. We’re feeding our cattle when we shouldn’t be feeding them [at this time of year] as normally they eat grass. Then we’ve got the added stress that we can’t feed our animals because the machinery is gone.”

Judith said her and other farmers feel “let down” by the police. “It’s quite sad and we are under pressure at the moment. So please, be kind to us when you come to the countryside.”

Fly tipping is also a problem for farmers. “Fly tipping for farmers at the moment in the Peterborough area is horrendous. Every day we have an incident of fly tipping at one of our farms or neighbouring farms. That’s also a fire hazard.”

Sergeant Tom Nuttall from Cambridgeshire Police’s rural crime action team said the force takes rural crime “extremely seriously”.

He added: “Our dedicated Rural Crime Action Team (RCAT) works closely with key partners, including Cambridgeshire Countryside Watch, Local Authorities, and the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), to prevent, deter and investigate offences affecting our rural communities.

“While RCAT is not a 24/7 resource, the team works proactively to build better capability across the force. Over the past year, we have delivered rural crime training alongside farmers to more than 330 police officers and staff, helping frontline colleagues better recognise rural crime trends, understand the impact these offences have on victims, and improve the initial response to incidents.”

Sgt Nuttall added that the force also recognises that rural crime has a “significant impact” on farmers. The police are “committed” to supporting rural communities by preventing crime in the countryside.

Sgt Nuttall said: “There are a number of effective measures that can help reduce the risk of agricultural equipment being stolen, including fitting overt and covert tracking devices, investing in good quality CCTV, over securing equipment wherever possible, marking property with a unique identifier such as a postcode and surname, and retaining an accurate record of makes, models and serial numbers.

“Reducing rural crime is a shared responsibility. Effective outcomes rely not only on thorough police investigations, but also on crimes being reported, victims and witnesses supporting investigations where possible, and the wider criminal justice system being able to consider the evidence and impact presented.

“As with all investigations, we pursue all reasonable lines of enquiry to identify offenders, gather evidence, and present the strongest possible case to the Crown Prosecution Service where appropriate. Where cases proceed to court, decisions on guilt and sentencing are matters for the independent courts.”