It's time companies caught up to a new way of working | Letters

The service industries on which the agricultural sector depends need to get their act together and modernise their range and quality of the services they provide, writes Dr Jessica Cross, while Jason Downes sees strikes as an opportunity to embrace flexibilityAfter nearly three decades of working in the mining industry and financial sector, I traded my stiletto heels for wellies and went sheep farming. It immediately became apparent that the traditional business model of farming was unsustainable; the reliance on EU subsidies, the volatile and seasonal price of lamb subject to the big supermarkets importing cheap meat, and a wool price that barely covered the cost of shearing. So I applied my City of London background to diversifying my business. From my farm, I now ship locally and internationally a range of luxury wool bedding made from the fleeces of much of the UK's Southdown pedigreed flock. I also offer disabled-accessible self-catering accommodation for a working farm experience.The problem with this business model is its dependency on three sectors, whose services I am finding totally inadequate and antiquated, to the point where my entrepreneurial initiative is being undermined. Continue reading...