Farm Business Survey
Source: gov.uk (2025-08-21)

Series giving information about the Farm Business Survey for England.

The Farm Business Survey (FBS) provides information on the financial, physical and environmental performance of farm businesses in England to inform and evaluate policy decisions. The FBS is intended to serve the needs of farmers, farming and land management interest groups, government, government partners, and researchers.

Survey results typically give comparisons between groups of businesses, for example between regions or between farm types. The results attracting most attention are on farm incomes, farm rents and productivity. Some of the results are produced and published by the Defra, whilst others have been produced by contractors of the FBS.

The FBS is commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), with the data collection activities contracted out to an external supplier. Until 2022, the contract had been held by Rural Business Research (https://www.ruralbusinessresearch.co.uk). The current contract has been awarded to Promar International (https://promar-international.com/farm-business-survey/). Promar are a leading provider of agricultural consultancy services with a wealth of knowledge and skills in handling data for farmers and using modern farm management software such as Agstute (https://promar-international.com/our-services/agstute/) to securely process complex agricultural data. Promar will use these skills to bring improvements and to modernise the data collection process of the FBS which will increase the value of the data collected and reduce the burden on participating farms.

For further information on the change in contractor see Changes to the Farm Business Survey (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-the-farm-business-survey/changes-to-the-farm-business-survey).

Latest FBS reports

Further FBS analytical tools can be found at Farm Business Survey (http://www.farmbusinesssurvey.co.uk/) website. The website includes Sector reports (https://farmbusinesssurvey.co.uk/resources/fbs-reports/) and the new Farm Business Data Dashboard (https://farmbusinesssurvey.co.uk/farmers-hub/explore-the-data-dashboard/) where users can extract aggregated FBS data for England.

Archived Defra publications

Defra reports published before 2013 are available from the National Archive (https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130403011656/http:/www.defra.gov.uk/statistics/foodfarm/farmmanage/fbs/publications/).

Archived Rural Business Research publications

Historic enterprise reports (2021/22 and earlier) from Rural Business Research can be obtained from the RBR website (https://www.ruralbusinessresearch.co.uk/).

User Engagement

In line with Defra’s User Engagement for Statistics Policy Statement (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/defra-user-engagement-policy-statement/defra-user-engagement-policy-statement) and the Code of Practice for Official Statistics (https://code.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/) we are committed to ensuring that our statistics are of value and meet user needs and we welcome any feedback or suggestions regarding this publication. To provide feedback, you can email us at: xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx) . You can also register as a user (https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=UCQKdycCYkyQx044U38RAr8vX1OIam9PiEhJhpoe3M1UNEQ0VkI5UEZINTlPTzMyNVNPMUg5TDRUUyQlQCN0PWcu) of the FBS statistics publications. Registering as a user means we will be able to contact you regarding any user engagement activities that we may run, such as seeking feedback on proposed changes.

Interested in taking part in the Farm Business Survey?

Defra is extremely grateful to the farmers and growers who already participate in the Farm Business Survey. Their involvement provides essential, anonymised evidence that helps shape agricultural policy and supports a better understanding of farm business performance across England. Each year, additional farms are invited to join the survey. Participation is completely free, confidential, and supported by a local Research Officer.

What you receive by taking part

Farmers who participate in the survey can access a range of free benefits, including:
- A free Standard Xero accounting licence for as long as you remain in the survey
- Reconciled annual management accounts for your business
- A personalised benchmarking report, comparing your farm to similar farms in your sector and region
- Access to anonymised insight and analysis drawn from farm businesses across England
These benefits are designed to support business planning, financial decision-making and long-term resilience.

What taking part involves

Taking part usually requires a few hours once a year. A local Research Officer will work with you directly, either online or in person, to collect the financial and physical information needed for the survey.

All identifiable information is kept strictly confidential and is never shared or published.

Register your interest online

If you would like to take part, you can register your farm directly on the FBS website. The short form takes only a few minutes to complete, and the team will contact you to confirm eligibility.
- Register your farm: www.farmbusinesssurvey.co.uk/register (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.farmbusinesssurvey.co.uk%2Fregister&data=05%7C02%7CJoanna.Hutchinson%40defra.gov.uk%7C01ff3b6b365847cb63d608de2b4f0e93%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638995815743639372%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=2d3n4hfGXmHfeo4jkUVJmqDM%2FAXxi%2FzmsVPme%2B962Cc%3D&reserved=0)
Contact us

If you would prefer to speak to someone first, please contact Promar International (the delivery partner for FBS in England):
- Phone: xx-xxxx-xxxx
- Email: xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx)
Farm Accountancy Data Network

Prior to the UK leaving the European Union, the FBS was subject to the EU legislation governing the Farm Accountancy Data Network. Council Regulation (EC) No 1217/2009 obliges member states to collect the information and imposes confidentiality constraints on the data. Subsequent Commission Regulations lay down detailed rules on implementation. Defra’s final submission to FADN was the 2020/21 FBS data. For more information on FADN and to access the UK’s FADN data see the FADN website (https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/data-and-analysis/farm-structures-and-economics/fadn_en).

Related information

Similar surveys are conducted by all four countries of the United Kingdom, results for which can be obtained from:
- Scotland (https://www.gov.scot/collections/scottish-farm-business-income-fbi-annual-estimates/)
- Northern Ireland (https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/articles/farm-incomes-northern-ireland)
- Wales (https://www.gov.wales/farm-incomes)