FARMERS were told they must get used to price volatility in the markets.

Allan Wilkinson, HSBC head of agriculture, said volatility in grain prices had become much more prevalent in the last five to six years with weather being the main cause.

The demand for food was not changing in the west and, elsewhere, it was increased affluence that was having a bigger impact than population changes.

China's increasingly western diet with meat and milk was going to have effects in this country.

Mr Wilkinson said many farms would face losses at some point but they would survive if they concentrate on achieving low production costs there was still a vast difference between the best and the worst performers.

There could be a difference of 15 pence per litre between the production costs of dairy farmers £2 a kg in meat production, and £100a tonne in cereals.

Mr Wilkinson said the business with a low cost of production made more money in the good times and lost the least in the bad times.

Joe Delves East Sussex dairy farmer and Nuffield Scholar followed Mr Willkinson with an inspirational speech in which he urged farmers to always look for the positive - success was all in the mind.

Originally with his own successful building company he had taken on the family dairy farm as a change of life style, thinking it would be good for his young family.

He quickly discovered how hard it could be - one major change was not being able to charge to cover costs, let alone make a profit.

After reaching rock bottom he decided to make changes - both in switching to a simple farming style which also led to more time with his family and improved general lifestyle.

A positive attitude and clear vision for the future has seen him go from making a profit of just £11 per cow on 140 cows to today's £643 profit per cow with 240 cows.

"We know our costs of production and have a very simple system," said Mr Delves, "We make money whether it is a good year or bad year and will not expand our business if it costs us time together as a family."

The morning session was closed by award winning poultry farmer Richard Tulip who runs Lintz Hall Farm with his brother Stephen, at Burnopfield near Newcastle.

Discussing the secrets of his poultry farm’s phenomenal growth, he said: “We have immense enthusiasm for our business and this is transferred into everything we do.

“We treat our staff with respect, encourage and work alongside them every day. If someone in your business knows more about a subject than you do, let them get on with it.”

The afternoon session began with Rob Aubrook, Natural England's North East regional director.

Acknowledging that conservationism and farming has had a volatile relationship, he said things improved by working in partnership. "Environmentalism is not fluffy," he said, "it's something that directly affects the quality of life, the food we produce and the food that we eat.

“The value of wildlife in the UK is £1.2bn. A healthy economy and a healthy environment go hand in hand. We may not have always got it right, but things have improved by listening to local farmers and built up trust between you and our advisors."

Yorkshire hill farmer John Henderson spoke about his experiences of share farming over the last 30 years. He said: “Share farming is undervalued and misunderstood but is the only system that allows for gradual change in an industry that is desperate for new entrants.”

He went on to say that good communication was key to a successful share farming agreement: “I have a level of communication with my two share farmers that you simply cannot achieve with a traditional landlord and tenant relationship. We are in it together and can speak utterly freely on important business issues.”

Richard Price of Lowther Park Farms, Penrith, rounded the day off speaking about the difficulties of farming in inclement weather conditions. He said: “A huge part of my role is managing the risk that comes with the climate in the North West. Farming is a lot tougher when you get as much rain as we do.”

He ended on the importance of leadership: “Farmers need to be focused about what they want from their business and must give clear direction to everyone in the team so that they know what is required of them," he said.

The Northern Farming Conference is a joint venture between the CLA, Strutt & Parker, Bond Dickinson, Armstrong Watson, Catchment Sensitive Farming and Gibson & Co Solicitors.