The farms included are those for which accounts were available for both years, an identical sample of 499 at the time of processing. As in previous years the farm classification depends upon the relative importance of the various crop and livestock enterprises as measured by standard gross margins. So that all farms are on the same basis they have been treated as tenanted with an appropriate rent charged for owner occupied holdings. Net farm income, as defined, is before the deduction of any interest payments. Machinery depreciation is calculated on current values and breeding livestock stock appreciation is excluded from net farm income in accordance with established practice.
Machinery is shown at depreciated current values.
It should be noted that while breeding livestock stock appreciation has been omitted from net farm income it has been included in the calculation of average capital and therefore the two sets of figures are not on the same basis. The opening and closing balance sheet data from the 1997-98 accounts sample are presented in Tables B3 and B4 which show the average results by type of farm for the owner occupied and tenanted categories. These include, respectively, holdings or businesses that are mainly owner occupied or mainly tenanted but exclude the relatively few that are not clearly one or the other. Due to the difficulty of judging these prices, especially in the case of land and buildings, the balance sheet entries should be treated with some reserve in respect of both the absolute level and the year to year trend. This caveat extends to dependent figures such as net worth.