As the festive season approaches it is nice to observe a slight improvement in farming fortunes over the past year. But what about next year? Can we expect the recovery to continue? For an answer I visited my 84-year-old Aunt Ivy. Her interpretation of my tea leaves has always provided me with infallible farming guidance. Forget the farming press, it is Aunt Ivy who tells me when to hedge my long put options on rape against a short forward position on wheat. Ignore the NIAB trials, it is Aunt Ivy who predicts which wheat variety will break down to yellow rust next season. Discount the Meteorological Office, it is Aunt Ivy who will accurately forecast that next summer will be too wet to grow a successful crop of marrowfat peas.
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