Farmers Guardian articles from April 2009

Farmers Guardian archives from April 2009

Defra cost sharing plans blown apart by insurers.
April 3, 2009... * Farm leaders brand new policy a disgrace * Plans may breach taxation rules By Alistair Driver RADICAL Defra plans to impose a levy and a compulsory insurance scheme on livestock farmers appeared to be unravelling this week,...

FMD claims `struck out' of court.
April 3, 2009... * Claims followed 2007 disease outbreak * Farmers had `no real prospect' of success By Alistair Driver SEVEN farmers from across Britain have had legal claims for damages stemming from the 2007 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak...

Responsibility and cost sharing: the details.
April 3, 2009... A DEFRA consultation published on Monday seeks views on radical proposals for two fundamental changes to animal health policy in England. RESPONSIBILITY SHARING * A new independent animal health body would take over responsibility...

Food crisis needs urgent attention.
April 3, 2009... WORLD leaders were being urged to focus on the global food crisis ahead of a two-day summit of the G20 group of nations in London this week. With media attention heavily focusing on the banking crisis, the director-general of the UN's Food...

Poultry industry woes.
April 3, 2009... RISING costs and an uneven share of retail margins has left the UK poultry industry in urgent need of investment, a new report has warned. The report, written by Savills and commissioned by the NFU and UK broiler growers, shows that while...

Cross-compliance or ELS - it's your choice.
April 3, 2009... FARMERS have been warned to join environmental schemes and back the industry's voluntary set-aside plans or face the `dead hand of cross- compliance'. The NFU and Country Land and Business Association (CLA) outlined their voluntary action...

`No change' on valuations as Defra appeal successful.
April 3, 2009... * Salvage value when TB confirmed * NFU considers going to the Lords By Jack Davies DEFRA has ruled out changes to its table valuation system after it won an appeal against a High Court ruling that would have forced it to scrap...

Sugar seed supply delayed.
April 3, 2009... THE NFU will explore alternative sugar seed suppliers after growers were left waiting for deliveries this year. `Teething problems' with a new production process at supplier Germains led to deliveries being delayed. Germains, part of...

Defra issues its consultation on the implementation of sheep EID.
April 3, 2009... * Deadline remains December 31, 2009 By Howard Walsh ENGLISH sheep industry stakeholders have this week received Defra's consultation document seeking views on how electronic identification and individual animal recording can best be...

BOCM Pauls mill set to close.
April 3, 2009... BOCM PAULS has announced it is to end compound feed manufacturing at its Denbigh mill by the end of July this year, with the expected loss of 40 jobs. "Some 20 mill staff, 12 drivers and eight office staff are employed at the site and,...

Payments begin.
April 3, 2009... BEEF producers in Scotland began receiving their Scottish Beef Calf Scheme payments this week - with almost 90 per cent of claimants receiving their money in the first week. With a higher euro exchange rate, payments were up 10 per cent for...

MRSA in farm animals poses no risk to humans says EFRA.
April 3, 2009... THE European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) poured cold water over claims that MRSA in farm animals is a serious risk to public health. Publishing an opinion on the significance of MRSA on farms, EFSA confirmed there was no evidence meat from...

South Downs Park plan lambasted by industry.
April 3, 2009... THE farming industry has hit out at Defra's plans to turn the South Downs into a National Park, labelling it an `expensive bureaucracy'. The move was announced by Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn, this week, despite strong objections...

Experts warn of a major water shortage dilemma.
April 3, 2009... * Top hydrologists' future prospects fear * `Country unable to grow enough food'? By Jack Davies FARMERS could soon be facing a major water shortage which would leave the country unable to grow enough food to feed a growing...

How much water do we `eat'?
April 3, 2009... Water is used in almost every stage of food production, from growing crops to feed animals to washing and preparing products. Researchers at Cranfield University have calculated just how much water is used to produce many common foods: *...

Royalty contracts setback to growers.
April 3, 2009... NEW seed royalty contracts are increasing costs to growers and could be operating outside EU legislation, says the NFU. Seed companies Dalton Seeds, Senova and Wherry and Sons began to introduce area-based royalty contracts controlling the...

Beware the bluebells - in our `boring' countryside.
April 3, 2009... MORE than half of British people think the countryside is `boring' and many have never even considered visiting it, according to a new survey from Travelodge this week. It also revealed one-in-10 adults were unable to identify a sheep,...

LETTER: We must introduce badger controls.(Letter to the editor)
April 3, 2009... IN the mid to late 20th century TB testing of cattle was a regular and time-consuming business, making our milk safe to drink. All this work is threatened by an urban-minded Labour Commons majority with no concept of the efforts of breeding...

LETTER: TB testing is shambolic.(Letter to the editor)
April 3, 2009... REGARDING Target TB, first you pre-movement test every animal without exception. What a nonsense it is that farms on a three or four-year test schedule can move cattle nationwide without a test. It is quite possible that an animal can go...

LETTER: Make a stand - say no to EID.(Letter to the editor)
April 3, 2009... IT seems to me that the EU is out to wreck the British farmer in any way it can. This country probably has more sheep in total, than all the other member countries of the EU put together. If these `dictators' who make up the rules and...

LETTER: Conservative with the truth.(Letter to the editor)
April 3, 2009... PROMOTING the case that vastly fewer herbicides are being applied to GM crops (FG March 27) requires a certain genius for being `conservative with the truth'. Graham Brookes is surely reading from the Monsanto handbook, because the reality is...

EDITORIAL: Scales of injustice rocks industry.(Editorial)
April 3, 2009... THIS week's High Court verdicts were a timely reminder of where the balance of power lies in the `partnership' between farmers and Government. On Tuesday came the ruling that no farmer beyond those directly affected by the foot-and-mouth...

OPINION: Boffin's food for thought.
April 3, 2009... IT was almost a revelation to hear the Government's chief scientist Prof John Beddington recently warn `a perfect storm' was brewing across the globe, heralding a food crisis by 2030 unless agricultural productivity is significantly increased....

ANALYSIS: Defra claims cost sharing `will improve confidence'.
April 3, 2009... Defra believes its Responsibility and Cost Sharing proposals are a big step towards a more effective animal health policy. But the plans raise more questions than answers. Alistair Driver reports. It was at the peak of the 2001...

TARGET TB: Welsh `must co-exist in disease-free environment'.
April 3, 2009... Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones hit the headlines last week when she announced a badger cull in Wales. In reality, the pilot project is just one part of a far-reaching Welsh TB Eradication plan. Alistair Driver analyses the details. "W e...

TARGET TB: The rise of bovine TB in Wales.
April 3, 2009... * In 2008, 12,043 cattle were slaughtered in Wales because of bTB, up 52 per cent on 2007 (7,913) * The 2007 figure represented a 30.5 per cent rise on 2006 * 69 per cent of the cattle slaughtered in 2008 were located in Dyfed *...

TARGET TB: Counting the cost of bTB.
April 3, 2009... * The cost to the Welsh taxpayer in compensation has increased from #1.3m in 1999-2000, to around #23.5m in 2008-2009 * Between the 2004/2005 and 2008/2009 financial years compensation has increased by an average 28 per cent annually *...

BUSINESS: New service claims #250 an acre benefit.
April 3, 2009... IF it seems too good to be true it usually is. But the man behind a new service being promoted to arable farmers, claiming to enhance returns from selling or buying commodities at the optimum time, insists his `Agricultural Marketing Signals'...

BUSINESS: Tesco sets `sustainable' milk price of 27.43ppl.
April 3, 2009... * But others are cutting their prices By Howard Walsh TESCO has announced its new six month milk price, for members of the Tesco Sustainable Dairy Group (TSDG) signed up with Promar, at 27.43ppl. Nevertheless, it is still a cut of...

BUSINESS: Wyke states price cut holds.
April 3, 2009... MILK producers supplying cheese-maker Wyke Farms assembled en-masse at the company's headquarters in Bruton, Somerset this week demanding good reasons for a further 1.3ppl price cut to 24.08ppl. Some 74 of the company's 112 contracted...

BUSINESS: Tight supply drives prices.
April 3, 2009... WEEK-on-week increases since late February have resulted in a near 4p/kg rise in the deadweight average pig price in the latest four-week period. AHDB Meat Services says tight supplies are reported to have lifted prices on the spot market...

BUSINESS: RABDF's dairy survey.
April 3, 2009... MILK producers are being invited to take part in the The Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers' succession survey. The research is designed to determine the true picture on dairy farms and who will actually be milking cows in 2020. ...

BUSINESS: Blip or a sign of an upturn?
April 3, 2009... UNITED Dairy Farmers Northern Ireland March auction of 45 million litres showed a 1ppl increase. All sold on one-month contract for April. The average was 18.83ppl compared with 17.82ppl last month - but 22.61ppl in the same month last...

BUSINESS: Maybe no need to worry if you didn't settle in time.
April 3, 2009... * Opportunity to put rent reviews on hold RECENT legislation changes have provided an opportunity to delay rent review arbitration - even if the landlord has applied for it. This, says rural agent Louis Fell, enables discussion to...

BUSINESS: Progress made on more land for Scottish lettings.
April 3, 2009... THE Tenant Farming Forum in Scotland is continuing to make progress towards proposing changes to the Scottish agricultural holdings legislation. The aim is to encourage the release of more land to the Scottish agricultural market for...

BUSINESS: Report highlights industry needs a major confidence boost.
April 3, 2009... * Exodus expected in the next two years By Howard Walsh SOME 14 per cent of dairy farmers say they will leave the industry within two years and only 18 per cent say they have the confidence to expand. If this trend is extrapolated...

BUSINESS: Margins come under downward pressure.
April 3, 2009... ALTHOUGH dairy farmer margins improved during 2008, a significant proportion of the increase has been eroded by input costs, DairyCo's supply chain report confirms. Feed, accounting for about a quarter of the total cost of production on a...

BUSINESS: Focus for the NFU's shadow dairy board.
April 3, 2009... SKILLS and succession, and public perception of the dairy industry are two key areas to be tackled by the new NFU `next generation dairy board'. It has met for the first time and chairman Rob Harrison said: "We have spent too long talking...

BUSINESS: Yoplait sale but Dairy Crest's brands grow.
April 3, 2009... DAIRY Crest Group has sold its 49 per cent stake in Yoplait Dairy Crest three years ahead of the original provision, reducing debt and gaining more `headroom' under its banking provision. The sale, for #63.5million to Yoplait, leaves it...

BUSINESS: Forum take their fight to politicians.
April 3, 2009... DAIRY UK's Farmers Forum chairman, Roger Evans, issued a stark warning about future milk production levels when he met the Farmers Union of Wales milk and dairy produce committee. A former chairman of First Milk, he told the Aberystwyth...

BUSINESS: DFB - members, yes.
April 3, 2009... * Adjourned meetings are to be reconvened By Howard Walsh DAIRY Farmers of Britain's member council last week, acting on behalf of current producers, voted to convert all member loan capital into non- voting shares - the outcome DFB...

BUSINESS: `Inappropriate' meat inspection charges.
April 3, 2009... UK farming unions have hit out at plans to increase meat inspection charges, warning many processors could go out of business if the new charges are introduced. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is currently consulting on proposed charges...

BUSINESS: Perth plant appointment.
April 3, 2009... FRANK Ross, who was for six years an Anglo Beef Processors commercial manager, has been appointed general manager of ABP's plant in Perth. Mr Ross's agricultural career began on his family farm in Morayshire. He has become expert in all...

ARABLE: Crop establishment fears come to light.
April 3, 2009... THE impact of harvest and autumn 2008 is starting to become clear, said Masstock technical manager David Langton. Oilseed rape growers, in particular, are asking themselves `is the crop actually going to get there?' "Our trials work at...

ARABLE: Single pass and drilled OSR establishment both variable.
April 3, 2009... The latest addition to Masstock's SMART demonstration farms network invited north west Midlands farmers to discuss ways of managing backward crops and the lessons that might be learned from this season. David Jones reports. * Impact of wet...

ARABLE: Latest farm to join SMART network.
April 3, 2009... THE latest enterprise to enter the Masstock network is CC Farming, a partnership between Richard Clarke and Tom Collier, who farm the combined 330 hectares of Brickhouse Farm and Tixall Heath Farm as one unit. Much of the land adjoins the...

ARABLE: BSPB opens permanent Scottish office.
April 3, 2009... THE British Society of Plant Breeders (BSPB) is strengthening its operational presence in Scotland with the establishment of a permanent office near Perth. Scotland and the north of England will now be covered by a dedicated, full-time...

ARABLE: Certification fees set to rise.
April 3, 2009... SEED certification fees could increase by 5 per cent this summer if new Defra proposals are adopted. Defra is consulting with the industry on plans to increase seed certification rates for 2009/10 and has warned that, without the increase,...

ARABLE: What should I ask my agronomist?
April 3, 2009... Pollen beetle control WINTER oilseed rape crops are at risk of damage by pollen beetle during the green-yellow bud stages. Well-developed crops in good growing conditions move through these risk stages fairly quickly so the threat is...

ARABLE: Consultation on PCN risk.
April 3, 2009... DEFRA has launched a consultation on implementation of EU Directive 2007/33, which introduces new requirements on the control of potato cyst nematodes. The directive takes effect from July 1 2010 and affects seed and ware potato growers...

ARABLE: Starter fertilisers can bring benefits in late-drilled OSR.
April 3, 2009... * Early uptake can help maximise yields OILSEED rape growers should take a leaf out of vegetable brassica producers' book and re-examine the potential of starter fertilisers to give crops a good start. That's the view of Openfield's...

ARABLE: Past trials show spring rolling merits.
April 3, 2009... DO not forget the benefits of spring rolling following a cold winter, says The Arable Group. A succession of mild winters might have dimmed memories of the old habit, but the cold winter has prompted TAG to search through its archives for...

ARABLE: Get spring beans in ground before Easter.
April 3, 2009... WHERE spring beans are yet to be planted, try to get them in the ground by Easter. That's the advice of PGRO technical director Anthony Biddle, who says conditions in many areas are now improved following the spell of dry weather, and many...

ARABLE: Lime assurance scheme mooted.
April 3, 2009... New legislation, changing regulations and agronomic developments were on the agenda at the Agricultural Lime Association's 2009 technical forum. Christopher Lyddon reports. THE Agricultural Lime Association (ALA) is looking at the...

ARABLE: Application research.
April 3, 2009... LIME can help fight clubroot in brassicas, but the latest research shows it is not a result of changing the pH of the soil, the Agricultural Lime Forum was told. "For 40 years I've been advising people to put lime on in advance to raise...

ARABLE: Plan for better soil nutrient status data.
April 3, 2009... THE Agricultural Industries Confederation and other industry bodies are developing a system to provide farmers with better information on soil nutrient status. The specification for data to be supplied by labs has been written. The plan is...

MACHINERY: 50,000 power harrows sold.
April 3, 2009... AMAZONE has sold its 50,000th power harrow. The German firm produced its first rotary cultivator 30 years ago and first rotary harrow five years later. The company reports sales have increased in the last five years. This is partly due to power...

MACHINERY: Moscow-based Agromash Holding acquires Vogel and Noot.
April 3, 2009... * Further expansion for Russian concern THE details are not yet official but we can reveal that Austrian manufacturer Vogel and Noot has fallen into Russian hands following the sale of the business to the Moscow-based Agromash Holding. ...

MACHINERY: Expanded tyre dealer network.
April 3, 2009... Michelin has expanded its Exelagri dealer network with 41 outlets now covering the UK and Ireland. The latest tyre specialists to join are Farols at Atherstone, Warwickshire, FG Rowland, Clitheroe, Lancashire and ATS Euromaster in Newport, Isle...

MACHINERY: Kubota UK into their 30th year.
April 3, 2009... Kubota is celebrating 30 years in the UK this year. Since the company owned subsidiary was set up in 1979 it has sold more than 60,000 tractors and groundcare machines. Last year, Kubota sold its 30,000th excavator. Copyright: UBM...

MACHINERY: Responding to customer needs.
April 3, 2009... Lancashire-based dealer Clayton Farm Machinery has bought four 2050 gallon Major slurry tankers complete with 6.4m injectors to hire to farmers in the area. Michael Clayton says it purchased the tankers in response to demand from customers for...

MACHINERY: New tyres for telehandlers.
April 3, 2009... Goodyear is introducing the IT620T tyre for telehandlers. Based on the IT520 the main features are a new agricultural type tread lug for improved traction, reinforced centre tread section and a flatter wider tread to improve stability when the...

MACHINERY: Two compact loaders from Avant.
April 3, 2009... THE 745 and 750 are the latest compact loaders from Avant Tecno. Both models can handle up to 1.4t and use a four-cylinder Kubota engine delivering 49hp. The main difference between the two models is the 750 has a two-speed hydrostatic...

MACHINERY: Increased lift height from TL range.
April 3, 2009... NEW Holland has introduced the 700TL range to replace the FL loaders used on its 70hp to 140hp T5000 and T6000 tractors. The lift height has been increased by 10 per cent on the four new loaders that now ranges from 3.74m to 4.26m. The...

MACHINERY: Tractors of the future.
April 3, 2009... Will diesel engines soon be cast aside for hydrogen-powered fuel cell technology or is some form of diesel-electric power the future? Suppliers seem divided, writes Steven Vale. * Are clean engines already obsolete? IT seems a little...

MACHINERY: Improving diesel engine efficiency.
April 3, 2009... A NUMBER of US farmers are already using fuel cell technology to improve the efficiency of their diesel-engined tractors. The result of three years of research and development by New-Mexico- based Hytek Fuels, the bolt-on option creates...

MACHINERY: Making slurry pay: Anaerobic digester has simple solution.
April 3, 2009... Anaerobic digesters could prove a valuable diversification and one firm believes it can reduce the set-up costs. Mervyn Bailey reports. * Sweeping arm is key feature on new system * From 25 to 1,000 units target for 2020 THERE are...

LIVESTOCK: Herd lameness timebomb to stun masses?
April 3, 2009... * At least one-in-four cows now lame - claim * Expert says issue is just `waiting to go off' Nottingham University's vet school hosted both the Cattle Lameness Conference (for vets and advisers) and the National Cattle Mobility Event...

LIVESTOCK: `Little known' about problem.
April 3, 2009... DR Jon Huxley highlighted how little was known about lameness when looking at the `big three' - sole ulcers, white line disease, and digital dermatitis. He said sole ulcers had been linked to nutrition in the past but were now classified...

LIVESTOCK: Practical advice from Joep Drissen.
April 3, 2009... * Allow lame cows to recover by keeping them in a smaller group, perhaps with the fresh calvers * Keep heifers in a separate group, and have different cubicles for them because they are smaller than cows * Have smaller management...

LIVESTOCK: Cutting costs without harming condition.
April 3, 2009... The British Society of Animal Science (BSAS) met for three days in Southport this week. Simon Wragg reports on the latest research. * Promise shown by out-wintering system OUT-WINTERING spring calving dairy heifers on stubble turnips...

LIVESTOCK: Ideal range for growth rates in dairy heifers.
April 3, 2009... DAIRY heifers with growth rates outside a desired range of 0.6-0.8kg per head per day over the first six months of life are unlikely to achieve the correct body weight to calve at two years old, achieve good fertility or support strong milk...

LIVESTOCK: Targeting the best semen.
April 3, 2009... ESTIMATING dairy cow body condition score at six weeks post calving when routine vet checks can establish blood levels of B-hydroxybutyrate (BHB; an indicator of body energy level) can highlight animals most likely to conceive, thereby...

GRAZING MONITOR: Maximise new season with help from experts in field.
April 3, 2009... Grazing Monitor, our popular feature combining data on grass growth rates and herbage quality with expert analysis, is back for another year. * Regular nationwide grass samples studied OUR Grazing Monitor column centres around...

LIVESTOCK: Grazed grass is cheap but study all options.
April 3, 2009... EVERY year you will have been told it pays to produce more from grazing; that grazed grass is the cheapest available feed and you need to make the most of it. This advice is still true, although it must be taken in conjunction with...

LIVESTOCK: Interpreting proofs removes some of risk from bull selection.
April 3, 2009... With the latest bull proofs out next week, DairyCo breeding+ goes back to basics when it comes to interpreting the figures. * Detailed study will pay dividends A COW that will see dairy farmers through difficult times ahead needs to do...

LIVESTOCK: Genetic indexes - the facts.
April 3, 2009... * What are they and why do we need them? A genetic index provides a measure of an animal's ability to pass its genes on to the next generation. These could be genes for production, health, lifespan, conformation or for any trait that...

LIVESTOCK: Dinmore visit - one of a triple treat.
April 3, 2009... Visitors to this year's Beef Expo will have the opportunity to visit three leading beef farms in the Hereford-Worcester area the day before the main event. Farmers Guardian gives you a brief taster of the farm tours. The 50-cow Dinmore...

LIVESTOCK: Beef finishing with extra incentive.
April 3, 2009... The large-scale beef finishing enterprise based on purchasing store cattle from local markets plays a vital role in the extensive arable operation run by John Price at The Day House, Kingsland, Leominster, Herefordshire. The 809ha (2,000...

LIVESTOCK: Brothers' suckler success.
April 3, 2009... PREMIUM prices for finished cattle coupled with low cost production based on grass, make for a profitable suckler cow enterprise on the mixed farm run by brothers, John and Thomas Walker, at Tedney House, Clifton on Teme, Worcestershire. ...

BEEF SPECIAL: Bucking the bluetongue trend in the beef industry.
April 3, 2009... Research has shown beef farmers to be the most reluctant when it comes to protecting stock against bluetongue. Jack Davies looks at why many producers have decided against vaccination this year. Since bluetongue disease first arrived in the...

BEEF SPECIAL: Beef prospects at their best for years.
April 3, 2009... Global trends are pointing towards improved prospects for beef producers according to NWF Agricultural beef specialist Lachie Maclachlan. "After a difficult time for the UK beef industry it seems, that at long last, we are seeing something...

BEEF SPECIAL: Attaining problem free calving.
April 3, 2009... High levels of calving-related cow losses are placing a huge financial burden on farmers. But many calving problems are both predictable and avoidable, says vet Keith Cutler from Endell Veterinary Group based in Wiltshire. During 2007...

BEEF SPECIAL: Managing body condition score.
April 3, 2009... Managing heifers to ensure they are growing well before and after service to achieve the recommended liveweight of 65 per cent of mature cow weight at service (15 months), and 85 per cent of mature body weight at calving (24 months), will avoid...