MOST farmers are not grasping the nettle and changing their businesses fast enough to tackle changes in the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, according to the Royal Agricultural Society of England, the Fellows of the Royal Agricultural Societies and the Royal Smithfield Club.

"Farmers have so much pressure on their time nowadays that they don't get the chance to work out how they are shaping up," said RASE chief executive Mike Calvert.

"Also they used to be prodded into action by a free farm advisory service and by their local agricultural college. Most of that has now gone and so they are becoming more and more isolated from what is happening around them."

RASE, FRAgS and RSC have seven working groups looking at the problem and a conference at Stoneleigh Park on Thursday November 11, the Constructive Management of Change will discuss their conclusions and aim to come up with some answers.

Mr Calvert said: "We all agree that tomorrow's farming industry needs to be vibrant and profitable.

"What's more difficult is how we get there. By bringing together representatives from all walks of the industry we aim to come up with an agenda through which we can all contribute to the future development of the sector."

Among the key areas to be covered include what changes are essential for the industry, how do individual businesses identify their optimum strategy, what will be the effect on competitiveness while meeting the feel good factors, are the market opportunities appropriate, what new products and services will be required by the industry, young peoples' views and possible ways to implement change.