Farmers Guardian articles from December 2005

Farmers Guardian archives from December 2005

Compulsory disease levy.
December 2, 2005... Defra pledge to cut red tape by a quarter By Alistair Driver A COMPULSORY animal disease levy ensuring farmers share the cost of future disease outbreaks with the Government will be in place by 2009, it was confirmed this week. ...

CAP spending more evenly spread out.
December 2, 2005... FUTURE EU budget figures from the European Commission have undermined claims that France is largely responsible for the problems of the CAP. Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel confirmed this week that 84 per cent of CAP funds go...

Early SPS present for Welsh farmers.
December 2, 2005... THREE-QUARTERS of farmers in Wales with valid claims will get around two-thirds of their Single Payment entitlements before Christmas - and possibly be the first in Europe to get their money. Speaking at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair on...

PARTNERS FOR SUCCESS: DEFRA'S FARM REGULATION AND CHARGING STRATEGY.
December 2, 2005... CUTTING BACK ON RED TAPE Defra is pledging to cut red tape by 25 per cent as part of its new Farm Regulation and Charging Strategy. Its `early ideas and current commitments' as to how this will be achieved include: * A rolling...

Flood warning to Government from industry leaders.
December 2, 2005... GOVERNMENT is neglecting rural Britain's flood defences and putting large swathes of farmland at risk, industry leaders have claimed. More than half of all grade one agricultural land in the UK is at risk from flooding, particularly on the...

Morley rules out calls for a climate change minister.
December 2, 2005... ENVIRONMENT Minister Elliot Morley has dismissed calls from the NFU for a climate change minister. The NFU had called for the appointment of a dedicated, cross- departmental government minister to coordinate climate change and energy...

NEWS IN BRIEF: NVZ training.
December 2, 2005... A Nitrate Vulnerable Zone on-line training course has been developed by Cheshire-based rural business consultants Berrys ABD in conjunction with the North Cheshire Training Group. Delivered by Farming Online, the NVZ challenge project aims to...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Turkeys.
December 2, 2005... The NFU has begun its traditional Christmas turkey campaign by reassuring consumers of the safety of eating poultry. NFU poultry chairman Charles Bourns said both the Food Standards Agency and the World Health Organisation had stated poultry...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Outwintering.
December 2, 2005... The SAC's outwintering demonstration, co-funded by QMS, is to be held at Easter Howgate Farm, Bush Estate, Penicuik, near Edinburgh, on December 8. It will include cows and weaned steers on kale, cows on stubble turnips and cows on deferred...

New #1.2m study on land access rapped by CLA.
December 2, 2005... A NEW #1.2 million study to encourage landowners to dedicate their land for public access has been criticised for repeating work that has `already been done.' The three-year project, funded by Defra, will promote land dedication, a...

Consultation on badger cull.
December 2, 2005... THE Government is set to issue a public consultation on culling badgers to control bovine TB in England. It is unclear, however, whether the consultation will contain firm proposals for a badger cull or will simply seek to gauge opinion on...

Bradshaw TB cases claim still a mystery.
December 2, 2005... DEFRA is still unable to explain why Animal Health Minister Ben Bradshaw claimed in Parliament that 80 per cent of bovine TB cases were caused by cattle movements. Defra officials have been trying to establish where the figure came from...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Egg award.
December 2, 2005... Scottish farmer John Campbell, of Glenrath Farms, Peebles, described as the world's largest free range egg producer, is the 2005 winner of the ISABROWN Award presented by marketing company Tom Barron ISA. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

Bennett blasts levy bodies for early review criticism.
December 2, 2005... NFU president Tim Bennett has launched a scathing attack on levy bodies that have criticised the Radcliffe Review without consulting their levy payers. Last week the Milk Development Council appeared to reject the review's findings. It...

Handley says milk co-op membership cost fortune.
December 2, 2005... FARMERS for Action (FFA) chairman David Handley said he has not yet decided where he will sell his milk when his contract with First Milk ends. Monmouthshire producer Mr Handley said that being a member of a milk co-operative had `cost a...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Scientific union.
December 2, 2005... From April 1, 2006, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development's Science Service and the Agricultural Research Institute of Northern Ireland will combine to form a new DARD Non-Departmental Public Body, the Agri-Food and Biosciences...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Mum's helpers.
December 2, 2005... Following the success and popularity of its national television advertising campaign which began in August this year, Country Life has launched a second five-week national television advertising campaign, featuring life-like computer-generated...

Feed bin link to BSE cases.
December 2, 2005... FEED bins which had not been cleaned out thoroughly may have been the source of a number of BSE cases which have arisen after the UK's reinforced ban on feed came into force. The results of its investigations have prompted Defra to urge...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Flood risk.
December 2, 2005... Welsh Assembly Countryside Minister, Carwyn Jones, has appointed Geraint Davies as chairman of Flood Risk Management Wales - the working title of the revamped Welsh Regional Flood Defence Committee - with effect from April 1, 2006. Full...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Bill Nash.
December 2, 2005... Consultant veterinary surgeon to Lohmann Animal Health, W.A. (Bill) Nash has died, aged 49, at his home in Southampton following a long illness. He was widely known throughout the poultry industry for his specialist expertise, both on-farm in a...

Unions tell supermarket clear price signals needed in red meat industry.
December 2, 2005... FARMERS needed clear price signals if they were to continue to be part of a sustainable British red meat industry, directors from supermarket group Sainsbury's were told at a meeting with farming unions. The meeting in London, between the...

Austria to stage GM crop policy conference.
December 2, 2005... AUSTRIA has confirmed that it will use its EU presidency in the first half of next year to stage a major conference on future policy towards GM crops. Decisions will not be binding, but will confirm continuing opposition in many member...

Contentious settlement of Tir Gofal payments.
December 2, 2005... A `victory for common sense' was being claimed in Wales this week with an apparent settlement of the row over proposed cuts in payment rates for the flagship Tir Gofal agri-environment scheme - but it was not made without provoking a three-way...

Option to upgrade to organic.
December 2, 2005... MANY farmers considering organic conversion but committed to existing Environmentally Sensitive Area or Countryside Stewardship Scheme agreements should be pleased with Defra's recent decision that they may be able to upgrade to the Organic...

FISHER'S VIEW: Farmers look to British Sugar to `share the pain'.
December 2, 2005... Much to the amazement of many pundits, EU Agriculture Ministers have agreed a general approach for a new sugar reform package largely based on the European Commission proposals from last June. This could be legally ratified early in 2006...

OPINION: Phased cuts can't sweeten the bitter pill.
December 2, 2005... The waiting is over and we now know what the future holds for the sugar sector in this country and across Europe. The EU Commission has announced far-reaching reform of the sector - the first reform in the sugar industry for half a century. ...

Advice and care must be taken with CFAs.
December 2, 2005... For over 25 years, contract farming agreements have been the common- sense answer to problems associated with the long term ownership of land. By bringing together a farmer who wanted to farm more land with one who wanted to farm less, or...

Full steam ahead for European sugar reform - industry reaction is mixed.
December 2, 2005... Sugar reform negotiations have concluded in plans for radical policy change, which farming leaders believe will change the face of the European sugar industry. Reaction has been mixed. Clemmie Perowne reports. EUROPEAN Union Agriculture...

SUGAR REFORM FACTS.
December 2, 2005... * Thirty six per cent price cut over four years beginning in 2006/07 (20 per cent cut in year one, 25 per cent in year two, 30 in year three and 36 in year four). * Compensation to farmers at an average of 64.2 per cent of the price cut....

BS welcome for deal, but users' group fears impact on UK jobs.
December 2, 2005... BRITISH Sugar, which is given the option of buying 83,000 tonnes of quota for its UK beet sugar business, welcomed the announcement. In a statement it said: `Our best estimate of the operating profit impact on our sugar operations, which...

`Worst possible result for developing countries'.
December 2, 2005... THE final sugar deal agreed by EU ministers is `the worst possible result for developing countries and the environment', according to WWF (World Wildlife Fund) and Oxfam. It will destroy industries and livelihoods, will not guarantee an...

New Year before source of brown rot outbreak is known.
December 2, 2005... TESTS to identify the source of the brown rot outbreak on a Nottinghamshire farm are continuing. Speaking on Wednesday from the British Potato 2005 event at Harrogate, Yorkshire, British Potato Council seed and export manager Iain Dykes...

Take steps on waste now ahead of new regulations.
December 2, 2005... FARMERS have been urged to stop burning and burying their rubbish in preparation for new waste regulations, as part of new guidance issued this week by the Environment Agency. Cormac Quigley, agricultural waste policy adviser at the...

Promotional campaign that is certainly worth a carrot.
December 2, 2005... BRITAIN'S carrot growers are planning to push through a two-year promotional campaign with a projected budget of up to #150,000. This will be aimed at raising the vegetable's profile as part of a healthy diet and will be targeted primarily...

Fertiliser assurance plan.
December 2, 2005... THE New Year will see the fertiliser supply chain incorporated for the first time under the farming assurance umbrella. If it works, it should see some of the responsibility for demonstrating traceability shifted away from the grower. ...

The WTO talks - what does it all mean for you?
December 2, 2005... Leading politicians from across the globe will meet in Hong Kong just over a week from now for talks that could profoundly alter the way agricultural goods are traded. ALISTAIR DRIVER explains what the World Trade Organisation talks are about...

Keep costs low and sharpen milk skills.
December 2, 2005... IS there a future in making grass pay? That was a question asked by Herefordshire dairy farmer Clive Gurney, who believes in a proactive business approach. Mr Gurney said people have to keep costs down and sharpen up their milk skills....

Costly improvements to make most of grassland.
December 2, 2005... DAVID Brown a suckler beef farmer based in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, spoke about the cost of land at the BGS roadshow in Taunton. He runs 161 acres and would like more, but with land selling at #15,000 per acre in NI it simply is not...

Mid Wales farmer receives British Grassland honour.
December 2, 2005... UPLAND beef and sheep producer Glasnant Morgan and his son Huw, who farm at Talybont-on-Usk near Brecon, Mid Wales, have won top honours in the British Grassland Society's National Grassland Management competition 2005. The competition...

Breeding policy to suit his easy-care solution.
December 2, 2005... OVER the years sheep farmer Sandy Welsh has seen many so-called management solutions involving extra feeding, indoor lambing sheds, CCTV for surveillance and roll-over crates. "They have all added up to more money being spent and more...

Dairy farmers take placings in closely fought contest.
December 2, 2005... THE runners-up in this year's BGS grassland management competition were Stuart Bacon, Crewkerne, Somerset, and Andrew Addison, Low Moor, Penrith, Cumbria. Mr Bacon has doubled the size of his dairy herd on his 150-hectare farm over the...

Farm enterprise funding deadline looms.
December 2, 2005... FARMING families in EU Objective 1 regions in Wales planning to diversify into non-agricultural activities will have to apply for Farming Connect farm enterprise funding before March 17 next year. From then on the scheme will be closed to...

Showground boosts rural economy by #164m/year.
December 2, 2005... THE rural economy benefits by a massive #164 million a year from events and other activities at the Royal Bath and West of England Society's showground at Shepton Mallet. The findings, revealed in an in-depth report, will form the...

Peak District grants and advice service launched.
December 2, 2005... A NEW service to provide free environmental grants and related advice and support for farmers and land managers has been launched in the Peak District. The Peak District Land Management Advisory Service will help farmers obtain advice on...

Efficient work practices and positive approach for family farm success.
December 2, 2005... At a time when many people have been forecasting the demise of the small, family-run dairy farm, a North Devon farmer is building a successful business from humble beginnings. Furthermore, he has confidence in the future of a well-run family...

`Outstanding' quality at Anglesey Winter Show.
December 2, 2005... Primestock standards at Saturday's Anglesey Winter Show at Gwalchmai, Llangefni, were, if anything, higher than ever. NEIL RYDER reports. THE retail market was the key criteria for the judge, Jim Hollingsworth of Mold, Denbighshire, when...

SCOTTISH WINTER FAIR: Sparky lights up the championship.
December 2, 2005... FOR the second time in five days Neil Slack provided the vital spark as he lit up the cattle championship on his way to overall glory at the Scottish Winter Fair. Following overall success at the National Primestock Show at Bingley the...

SCOTTISH WINTER FAIR: Monitor farms so successful another three planned.
December 2, 2005... THE Scottish Agricultural College's five monitor farms have proved so successful they plan to establish another three in 2006. Iain Riddell, SAC senior beef and sheep consultant, gave an update of the scheme and used the monitor farm in the...

SCOTTISH WINTER FAIR: Big opportunity for Scottish beef in Europe.
December 2, 2005... TWO separate debates at the Scottish Winter Fair reached the same conclusion - there were real opportunities for Scottish beef in Europe once the export ban is lifted. Speakers from Italy, France and the Benelux countries all described the...

Family's trophy joy as they add supreme award to their haul.
December 2, 2005... Despite some hazardous travel conditions and the cancellation of the poultry section this week's two-day Royal Welsh Winter Fair still drew a 23,591 attendance - only 2,000 down on the 2004 record. BARRY ALSTON reports from Builth Wells. ...

Charolais suckler herd of the year.
December 2, 2005... WINNERS of this year's Welsh Charolais-Rumenco Suckler Herd of the Year Award are Alan and Catrin Williams, who farm at Gwythrian, near Aberdaron, on the Lleyn Peninsula. According to the judges they had `an outstanding crop' of...

Pietrain pig breed in the limelight.
December 2, 2005... FOR the first time ever the Belgian Pietrain breed finished in the limelight for the overall pig championships. A home-bred 18-week-old pure Pietrain cutter from Allan Stinchcombe's Craighill herd at Llanellen, Abergavenny, took the...

Beef ribs double.
December 2, 2005... TWO brothers from Mid Wales took the championship and reserve awards in the beef ribs competition. Taking top spot was Philip Davies, from Llwyn Isaf, New Mills, Newtown, Powys, with a rib from a Limousin cross heifer, while Alan Davies, of...

Carcases dominated by Beltex and Texel.
December 2, 2005... A remarkable 73 out of the 88 entries in the lamb carcase competition classified as `E' and as usual Texel and Beltex influence dominated the main awards. Out in front for the pairs championship were two Beltex cross Texel cross, E2 entries...

Cumbrian farmer lifts top title - plus reserve.
December 2, 2005... BACK in the summer Cumbrian farmer John Hall judged the Belgian Blues at the Royal Welsh Show. He returned to the Llanelwedd showground this week to show sheep. What a successful outing from the family's 800-acre hill farm it turned out to...

Approval for new Axial.
December 2, 2005... OPTIONS for wild oat and rye-grass control will be extended next spring following the approval of a new herbicide active ingredient for use in wheat and barley. Pinoxaden, to be marketed as Axial, is a phenylpyrazolin, which manufacturer...

KEEP IT CLEAN: Future solutions.
December 2, 2005... This week's column focusing on the final phase of the Voluntary Initiative examines how pilot catchments are pointing to future solutions. The early signs are that practical new ways to minimise herbicide residues entering surface water...

BCPC copies.
December 2, 2005... COPIES of the BCPC International Congress Proceedings Vol 1 and 2 are now available. They are priced #85, from BCPC Publications Sales, 7 Omni Business Centre, Omega Park, Alton, Hampshire GU34 2QD, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 1420 593 200 Fax: +44 (0)...

High standard at BEPA 2005.
December 2, 2005... EASTERN counties growers claimed the lion's share of the honours in this year's British Edible Pulses Association (BEPA) 2005 pulse competition, with five out of six national class winners farming in the region. The combined number of...

Quality & quantity pays off for winning team in PGRO Pea Crop Challenge.
December 2, 2005... QUALITY and quantity paid off for agronomists competing in the PGRO Pea Crop Challenge this year, with the winning team of pea specialists from Syngenta growing the most profitable crop - with a margin of #430/hectare. A yield of 4.32...

Sectors of pulse market suffering from under-supply.
December 2, 2005... ALL sectors of the pulse market are under-supplied by UK production, said PGRO technical director Anthony Biddle, introducing the new pulse RL at PGRO headquarters at Thornaugh near Peterborough last week. "We are not overproducing by any...

New spring bean varieties absent from Recommended List.
December 2, 2005... FIVE new pea varieties, no new spring bean varieties, and one new winter bean have been selected to join the PGRO/NIAB 2005/06 Recommended List, announced last week. Two new white grain peas - grown for canning and splitting - have been...

Courses available to aid pesticide container disposal.
December 2, 2005... WITH regulations on disposal of pesticide containers about to change, a series of half day Operator Roadshows are being organised around the country to help farmers and sprayer operators take a fresh look at pesticide container disposal and...

Innovations to prevent and detect sprayer spillages.
December 2, 2005... TWO quick and easy ways to reduce contamination from chemical spillages have been developed by a Yorkshire farmer. Tom Banks, from Oldstead, near York, invented the Spillsave Portable Bund to allow farmers to fill a sprayer without having...

Diversifying into salad dressing rich in omega 3.
December 2, 2005... A SUFFOLK farmer whose premium quality rapeseed cooking oil has proved a hit with delis, farm shops and supermarkets is sowing a novel crop destined to be marketed as vinaigrette. Sam Fairs, of Hillfairs Farming at Heveningham, near...

Trials indicating continued pressure from black grass.
December 2, 2005... THERE are signs that early pre-emergence herbicide applications are starting to run out of steam, according to ADAS. New data from trials at ADAS Boxworth in Cambridgeshire show that the `running-out-of-steam' appears to be more noticeable...

Bison swap Wild West for Wiltshire.
December 2, 2005... North American bison are proving an unusual but profitable venture on a 100-acre farm in Wiltshire. Rosalind Pasmore paid a visit. The opportunity came 12 years ago for Colin Seaford to make the dramatic leap from managing traditional...

First Agric Block is `a great success'.
December 2, 2005... LAST weekend saw the first-ever Agric Block Fixture Weekend take place at Harper Adams University College, Shropshire, involving sports ranging from mixed netball to the digger challenge. Around 200 students from Harper Adams, Newcastle,...

Country View: The twelfth month.
December 2, 2005... I hope that, after a month of the new format of Country View inside FG, it's starting to feel part of the furniture, so to speak. We'll be bringing you lots more for this month and into 2006, with food, farming, diversification and people...

Dancing chef helps boost chicken sales at food show.
December 2, 2005... The poultry industry enlisted the help of celebrity chef James Martin last week to help reverse a 6 per cent fall in chicken sales after the recent avian influenza outbreak scares. Figures from market researchers TNS showed that the value...

Singing sheep versus crazy frog.
December 2, 2005... A FLOCK of real `singing' sheep from the Lake District is taking on the Crazy Frog this Christmas in the battle to become the novelty song of 2005. The Crazy Frog's Christmas single, Jingle Bells, is widely tipped to become Christmas number...

Cumbrian overhead wire plan.
December 2, 2005... FRIENDS of the Lake District are looking for keen-eyed locals to help identify intrusive overhead wires that are spoiling the landscapes of Cumbria. United Utilities, who are responsible for distributing electricity across the whole of the...

Holmfirth butcher scoops top shop award for NW.
December 2, 2005... J. Brindon Addy Butchers and Graziers, of Hade Edge, Holmfirth, has been named the best butcher's shop in the North West of England. Addys was one of 20 shops from throughout the country to reach the finals of the national Top Shop Awards,...

Forestry statistics published.
December 2, 2005... NEWLY-published Forestry Statistics 2005, from the Forestry Commission shows the total woodland area in the UK is 2.8 million hectares, with 12,000 hectares of new woodland created in 2004-05. Wood products imported into the United Kingdom in...

WFU president calls for back to basic approach.
December 2, 2005... WELSH livestock farmer, Ionwen Lewis, the new president of the Women's Food and Farming Union, wants the organisation to `get back to basics'. She has called on members to lobby more, get involved in consultation papers, expand WFU's...

Loyal win for Longtown.
December 2, 2005... CHRISTINA Forrester, a member of Longtown YFC for 14 years has been awarded the Dorrie Galbraith trophy for the member contributing the most to YFC in Cumbria. Christina, whose family farms at Westlinton, Cumbria, is a past club chairman,...

Future holds exciting prospects for SAYFC.
December 2, 2005... MEMBERSHIP and finances are improving and new clubs are being formed, Jim Smith, Scottish Young Farmers national chairman told delegates at the SAYFC annual meeting in Dumfries. Mr Smith spoke of `exciting prospects' for the coming year,...

JUST THE JOB.
December 2, 2005... WORCESTERSHIRE Young Farmers experienced both sides of the jobs market when they took part in the county round of the YFC `Situations vacant' competition. Intermediate competitors submitted a job application and CV before being `grilled'...

Victory for Mauchline YFC.
December 2, 2005... MAUCHLINE YFC members Jamie Hunter and Grant Woodburn have won their second national cattle dressing title. Jamie (clipper) and Grant (holder) from Ayrshire won Scottish Young Farmers dairy cattle dressing final held at the Jamieson family's...

Young Farmers rally around.
December 2, 2005... MORE than 70 Yorkshire Young Farmers tackled the off-road course at Rudding Park, Harrogate, during their annual Land Rover rally. Nidderdale YFC member David Gratton was overall winner with a clear round. David Arthurson of Easingwold...

COUNTRY VIEW: Red Alert.
December 2, 2005... At 1,000ft above sea level, Hugh and Jane Kemp's 24 hectares of woodland in a remote dale not far from the Pennine Way near Hawes, Upper Wensleydale, is one of the few safe havens in Yorkshire for the red squirrel. JOHN PARRY reports. ...

CV's: BEST BOOK.
December 2, 2005... Under-the-Hill by John Forster #10 (self published) John Forster's book, the story of his life as a Gloucestershire farmer and his Welsh cattle, is strangely addictive. My initial reaction was to wonder whether it is perhaps a...

RABI hamper appeal.
December 2, 2005... THE Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution's Christmas Hamper appeal has already matched last year's total. However, organisers say there is still a long way to go to raise the funds needed to provide more than 1,000 food hampers for...

An hour in the December garden.
December 2, 2005... There is more to do in the winter garden than sitting by the fire reading the seed catalogues. PAUL PEACOCK suggests ways in which an odd hour in the December garden can bring rewards and prepare the way for a brighter spring. The garden...