Kreseda Smith - Agricultural Crime as an additional Stressor for Farmer Mental Health and Wellbeing

Agricultural crime is increasingly becoming a fact of life for British farmers. While no official figures exist for this type of crime, key rural stakeholders such as insurers publish regular indicators of the level of the problem. However, these figures, and much of the extant academic research focus almost exclusively on the financial impact of agricultural crime. Farmers in Britain face a range of stressors – events that negatively affect wellbeing – that impact on their ability to manage their business successfully.

Extant research has identified stressors such as weather, finance, regulation, staffing and time pressures. However, to date, no research has examined how agricultural crime impacts the mental health of farmers. This workshop explores the interaction of agricultural crime with other, more recognised, stressors, allowing the wider discussion of farmer stress and the impact it has on food security in the UK, and developing a resilient farming community that can withstand the wide-ranging threats to farmers’ ontological security.