Farming special - Day 3: 

It is evident initially that the sample of farmers interviewed this year seems slightly more affluent than was apparent a year ago, with marginally bigger holdings, slightly more animals, and fewer classified as small farmers.

Nonetheless, this assessment would disguise a slight hesitancy about the future, with broadly lower optimism overall than had been apparent in 2013.

However, what is starkly apparent in the current year is that any disimprovement in sentiment is primarily attributable to farmers involved in cattle, and to a slightly lesser extent, those with an involvement in tillage.