Farming Partners
Farming Partners is a Scottish dairy partnership platform operating 14 grass-based, spring-calving farms across Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand, connecting landowners with ambitious young farmers via a New Zealand-inspired share milking model and equity-building pathway.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersNear Dumfries, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Farming Partners does
Farming Partners is a Scottish-headquartered dairy farming partnership platform that connects landowners who want their farms professionally managed with ambitious young farmers who lack the capital to own their own operations. Founded in 2011 near Dumfries by Brendan and Maureen Muldowney in partnership with Richard Beattie and his family, the company has scaled to 14 dairy farms across Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand, milking approximately 8,500 cows under a grass-based, spring block-calving system that aligns herd management to the grass growth curve.
The core operational technology is a New Zealand-adapted share milking architecture: landowners contribute land and infrastructure while Farming Partners supplies livestock, working capital, management, and staff, with profits split 50/50. Farm managers can progressively acquire equity in the herd and transition to full Farm Partner status, an illiquid ownership pathway that has produced multiple internal success cases (e.g., David Commons scaling from 30 to 260 cows over 12 years). Supporting programmes include a Student Placement Programme feeding university graduates into the pipeline and the Farm Manager Accelerator Programme launched in June 2025, a structured 24-month development pathway.
The company is privately held with no disclosed external institutional funding. Revenue is generated through profit-sharing arrangements with landowners and through Farming Partners' equity stakes in livestock and working capital. All dairy units have reportedly been profitable every year since inception. Geographic expansion has been steady at one to two new farms per year, with the 2024 Waikirikiri partnership and 2026 Toitū Farm addition marking a clear push into New Zealand.
Farming Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Farming Partners
- Legal name
- Farming Partners
- Website
- https://farmingpartners.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Farming Partners is a Scottish dairy partnership platform operating 14 grass-based, spring-calving farms across Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand, connecting landowners with ambitious young farmers via a New Zealand-inspired share milking model and equity-building pathway.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Farming Partners industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Dairy Farming Services
- NAICS
- Dairy Cattle and Milk Production (11212), Dairy Cattle and Milk Production (112120)
- SIC
- Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Pasture-Based & Grazing Dairy Systems (AFAEACAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Milk Production (Raw Milk) (AFAEACAA), Dairy Feed & Forage Production (On-Farm) (AFAEACAK)
Keywords
Where Farming Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Near Dumfries
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Farming Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Farm Partnership Profit Sharing: Farming Partners operates on a profit-sharing basis with landowners. The landowner provides land and infrastructure while Farming Partners provides livestock, working capital, and management. Profit is shared 50/50 between the landowner and the farming partner. Farm managers can buy equity in the herd and receive profit proportional to their ownership stake.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Farming Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Farming Partners operates grass-based, spring block-calving dairy farms using a New Zealand-inspired share milking model. The company partners with landowners who provide land and infrastructure while Farming Partners supplies livestock, working capital, and management expertise. Profits are shared 50/50 between landowner and farming partner, with farm managers able to progressively build equity in the herd. Operations span 14 farms in Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand.
Product overview
Farming Partners operates as a unified dairy farming partnership platform rather than a modular software product. The core offering is a share milking-based dairy farming partnership model spanning grass-based spring-calving dairy farms across Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand. The company connects landowners who want professional farm management with ambitious farmers who lack capital to own their own operations. Individual farms (Cumrue, Killeen, Shawsholm, Nether Garrel, Lundie, Arbigland, Dalfibble, Yeskett, Waikirikiri, Dalswinton, Almagill, Third, Toitū) operate as semi-autonomous units under the Farming Partners umbrella, sharing best practices, training resources, and the partnership model. Supporting services include the Farm Manager Accelerator Programme (talent development), Student Placement Programme, and Youngstock Rearing Services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Dairy Farm Partnership Services
- Share Milking Partnerships
- Farm Manager Accelerator Programme
- Student Placement Programme
- Landowner Partnership Opportunities
- Youngstock Rearing Services
- Cumrue Farm
- Arbigland Farm
- Dalswinton Farm
- Third Farm
Quantifiable outcome
- All dairy units have been in profit every year since the initiative began
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Farming Partners
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Farming Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Farming Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Toitū Farming Partners LP (Christchurch, New Zealand)coreToitū Farm in Christchurch, New Zealand is operated as a partnership. Land Owner is Toitú Farming Partners LP, Stock Owner is Toitú Farming Partners LP, with Farm Managers Angela & Steve Reed. Year converted to dairy: 2026.
- Waikirikiri Farm Partnership (Canterbury, New Zealand)coreFarming Partners announced a New Zealand partnership with Waikirikiri Farm in Canterbury in August 2024. The partnership is described as a well-run, forward-thinking dairy business in the heart of grassland dairy farming. Both share core values: COWS PEOPLE GRASS, and passion for sustainable dairy.
- Universities across UK and IrelandminorFarming Partners has affiliation with a number of universities across the UK and Ireland, hosting many students over the years. 5 university graduates are currently core members of the team as share farmers.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Farming Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- DairyNZ: New Zealand industry body for dairy farmers, promoting grass-based systems and share-milking models. Comparable as an ecosystem player that shapes the share-milking culture Farming Partners has imported to the UK/Ireland.
- Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF): UK industry association for dairy farmers focused on succession, training, and best practice. Comparable as a peer ecosystem participant addressing the same UK dairy succession and talent pipeline challenges central to Farming Partners' value proposition.
Broad incumbents
- Fonterra: World's largest dairy exporter and New Zealand dairy cooperative. Comparable as the dominant player in NZ grass-based dairy, shaping the share-milking culture and global milk pricing that Farming Partners' NZ operations are exposed to.
- Meadow Foods: UK dairy processor supplying liquid milk, cream, and butter from British farms. Comparable as a UK dairy buyer relevant to Farming Partners' milk off-take and as a benchmark for UK dairy unit economics.
- Müller UK & Ireland: One of the largest dairy processors and milk buyers in the UK, sourcing from thousands of farms. Comparable as a counterparty and benchmark for UK dairy economics relevant to Farming Partners' profit-sharing model.
- First Milk: UK dairy farmer-owned cooperative operating multiple processing facilities and a significant milk pool. Comparable as a vertically-integrated UK dairy player competing for farmer relationships and supply.
- Arla Foods: Global dairy cooperative with major UK operations and farmer membership structure. Comparable as a large-scale dairy cooperative that provides an alternative partner path for landowners and farmers in the UK.
Regional players
- Open Country Dairy: New Zealand's second-largest dairy processor, sourcing from grass-based farms nationwide. Comparable as a NZ counterpart operating in the same grass-based, spring-calving dairy environment as Farming Partners' NZ farms.
- Synlait Milk: New Zealand dairy processor and farm operator with vertically-integrated supply. Comparable as a NZ-based grass-based dairy operator and a benchmark for the Canterbury dairy region where Farming Partners operates Waikirikiri Farm.
Direct peers
- LIC (Livestock Improvement Corporation): New Zealand farmer-owned co-operative providing dairy genetics, farm solutions, and share-milking-related services. Highly comparable given Farming Partners' explicit NZ share-milking model, NZ farm operations, and a former LIC UK manager (Daniel Turnhout) on the team.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Farming Partners social profiles
Digital presenceFarming Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Farming Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Farming Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Farming Partners M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Farming Partners
What does Farming Partners do?
Farming Partners operates grass-based, spring block-calving dairy farms using a New Zealand-inspired share milking model. The company partners with landowners who provide land and infrastructure while Farming Partners supplies livestock, working capital, and management expertise. Profits are shared 50/50 between landowner and farming partner, with farm managers able to progressively build equity in the herd. Operations span 14 farms in Scotland, Ireland, and New Zealand.
Is Farming Partners a public or private company?
Farming Partners is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Farming Partners founded?
Farming Partners was founded in 2011. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Farming Partners based?
Farming Partners is headquartered in Near Dumfries, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Farming Partners make money?
One revenue line is on record: farm Partnership Profit Sharing.
Who are Farming Partners's main competitors?
Others on record are DairyNZ and Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF). Broad incumbents are Fonterra, Meadow Foods, Müller UK & Ireland, First Milk and Arla Foods. Regional players are Open Country Dairy and Synlait Milk. LIC (Livestock Improvement Corporation) is listed as a direct peer.
Does Farming Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for Farming Partners.
What industry is Farming Partners in?
Farming Partners's product category is Dairy Farming Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAEACAI, Pasture-Based & Grazing Dairy Systems, with a secondary code of AFAEACAA, Milk Production (Raw Milk). Its NAICS code is 11212 and its SIC code is 200.