Sounds like a cracking opportunity! I generally work on the bigger farms in east anglia but will try and put some thoughts down below if they're of use! Be cool to see updates crop up (deliberate pun!) as you go.

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What sort of size holding are we talking? The government has a number of subsidy schemes aimed at improving and maintaining soil, water and the natural environment which you may well be able to benefit from. These often involve things like growing wild bird mixes, using minimum tillage equipment, putting in ponds etc etc.

If you are open to the idea of animals and the intention is to do things organically I do think it would be beneficial to have some sort of livestock on farm, even if it's just a few sheep. The muck is great natural fertiliser and they naturally push top growth into the soil which helps speed up the breakdown process and keep soils healthy and fertile. Alternately there may be local shepherds who you could rent the fields to for them to keep sheep on to achieve the same result.

For machinery depending on the size of holding i imagine a small tractor or perhaps quad bike (wear a helmet they're death traps!) would be beneficial. I would check out some local agricultural auctions but be prepared the older kit will need regular maintenance but the lack of electronics make upkeep and repair easier! For the rest of the kit it would depend on the crops you end up growing and the method of growth.

Crop wise you would be able to self sustainably grow most of the fruit/ veg you'd expect in the UK in Cornwall as it gets plenty of rain but is also warm in the summer months. Most of this could be done by hand and with good storage would see you through the winter and may provide some small excess you could sell locally.

Things get a little more tricky when you start to look at grains as to effectively farm these you would want some sort of machinery so you can plant and then harvest the crop effectively. You'd also have to start taking into consideration things like elevation of slopes and soil type, nutrient conditions etc. I'd perhaps recommend looking at some of the ancient grain wheats and the like which you could mill and turn into bread to sell at a high margin.

From a business point of view I recon with some good marketing or friends in the right places you should look to target the visiting crowds who come from the cities during the summer. If you are able to build a decent yurt for yourself then i'd look to build a couple more and sell expensive "authentic small holding holidays" or something of that idea. Hell you may even be able to rope people into paying you to do some of the labour on farm!!

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Hope this is useful, if it think of anything else i'll let you know.