According to the Savills Farmland Value Survey, the average value of prime arable land across Great Britain rose by 10.7% to £7,594 an acre during 2012. This follows an 11.1% rise in 2011.

The average value for all types of farmland across Great Britain increased by 12.3% to £6,058 per acre during 2012, which compares to 8.2% in the previous year.

In contrast, the supply of farmland has again contracted, although overall, the trend line is generally static since 2003. 134,000 acres were publicly marketed across Great Britain during 2012 compared to 155,000 acres in 2011 – a reduction of -14%.

This report focuses on publicly marketed farmland and takes no account of privately marketed farms, but anecdotal evidence suggests this market remains strong.

England

In England, our Farmland Value Survey shows the average value of prime arable land rose by 10.8% to £7,609 per acre. This follows an increase of 11% in 2011.

As we predicted in 2011, there has been a widening of the price gap between the best and the poorest quality land.

The highest prices paid for farmland were reported in the eastern side of the country, where good quality, large commercial arable farms achieved well above the average.

In contrast, there has been a weaker demand for smaller farms, where the residential element accounts for a large proportion of the value.

Further analysis of the English regions shows that the highest rates of growth occurred in the North of England. The average value of prime arable land increased by 13.5% to £7,636 per acre, and much of this growth happened during the second half of 2012.

In 2012, 88,700 acres were advertised across England. Historically, this is the lowest amount of farmland publicly marketed in England since 2003.

Map 1 illustrates how supply has been inconsistent across the English counties with a larger increase in activity in some counties such as East Sussex (410%) and Hertfordshire (195%) where supply is traditionally low.

In contrast, significantly less farmland was advertised in 2012 than in 2011 in other areas, which included Lincolnshire (-65%) and South Yorkshire (-61%).

Scotland

Average prime arable land in Scotland rose in value by 9.9% in 2012. This follows a 12.8% rise in 2011. Much of this growth occurred in the second half of the year with the best arable land now achieving around £7,500 per acre and in cases, more.

Our research reveals the volume of publicly marketed farmland increased by 25% across Scotland, amounting to a total of 38,800 acres during 2012. In fact, our analysis illustrated supply in Scotland was higher in 2012 than it has been since 2008 when 39,000 acres were publicly marketed.

Map 1 indicates that all but three counties in Scotland witnessed an increase in the supply of farmland during 2012.

Central Scotland saw a 520% increase in the volume of farmland marketed. Those counties witnessing a reduction in the supply of farmland included Fife (-24%) and Strathclyde (-18%).

Wales

The average value of prime arable land in Wales rose by 10.2% in 2012 to £7,000 per acre, and all land types rose by 9.6% to £5,309 an acre. The supply of publicly marketed farmland in Wales is historically low, with the volume of advertised farmland during 2012 at its lowest since 2004.

6,460 acres of farmland were publicly marketed in Wales during 2012. This compares to 7,193 in 2011 – a reduction of 10%.

Map 1 shows that market activity in Wales is unevenly distributed. Powys and the north east of Wales saw an increase in the amount of land advertised. In contrast North West Wales, South Wales and South West Wales recorded a fall in activity.