Farmers Guardian articles from February 2004

Farmers Guardian archives from February 2004

Hybrid system now in doubt.
February 6, 2004... DEFRA could be forced to abandon its plans to use a hybrid model to calculate the Single Farm Payment in England after a dramatic intervention into the debate by EU Agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler. The decision could be announced...

Angus society switch to new recording system.
February 6, 2004... THE Aberdeen Angus Cattle Society is to switch from the existing Signet recording system and adopt the Breedplan pedigree and performance recording system developed in Australia by the Agricultural Business Research Institute (ABRI). "The...

GM crops: milestone OSR rejection blow.
February 6, 2004... THE Belgian Government delivered a body blow to advocates of GM crops this week. Acting as the approval authority for the EU, it rejected a registration request from Bayer Crop Science for a GM oilseed rape, the first GM crop to be considered...

`Take the money and get out of arable'.
February 6, 2004... THE least efficient third of arable farmers would be better quitting the industry than trying to continue after decoupling, Irish researchers warn. According the state research organisation Teagasc, average entitlements in Ireland of #250...

Show returns to farm site.
February 6, 2004... THE Royal Lancashire Show is to return to Salesbury Hall Farm, Ribchester this year despite problems over traffic and waterlogged conditions last year when the third day had to be cancelled. Rennie Pinder, Royal Lancashire Agricultural...

Defra to unveil `high risk' TB counties.
February 6, 2004... DEFRA is expected to unveil plans to divide Britain into `high risk' and `low risk' counties as part of a new package of measures to control cattle-to-cattle spread of bovine tuberculosis. The long-awaited consultation on the department's...

Agency has a lack of urgency, says Paterson.
February 6, 2004... CONSERVATIVE Shadow Agriculture Minister Owen Paterson has attacked Defra for its `lack of urgency' in tackling bovine TB. The department is finally due to unveil its consultation on a new strategy for tackling the disease on Monday, but...

Farmland prices rocket due to non-farmers' demand.
February 6, 2004... THERE is so much demand from non-farmers, who now account for more than half the sales, that prices for farmland have hit a record level, according to the latest rural land survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). ...

Graham's Dairies makes its twentieth aquisition in decade.
February 6, 2004... SCOTLAND'S largest independent, family-owned dairy operation, Graham's Dairies, has acquired Brechin-based Angus Dairies in a deal which marks the 20th such acquisition by the company in the past decade. The purchase, for an undisclosed...

Farms across the UK on flood alert.
February 6, 2004... WITH 167 mm of rain falling within 24 hours in Snowdonia and heavy downpours elsewhere, farms lying along the traditional floodplains right across Wales were on high alert this week. At one time 41 flood warnings were in force. Apart...

Check date.
February 6, 2004... The sixth and final check date for the Extensification Payment Scheme 2003, covering the period November/December 2003, is December 1, 2003. The first, second, third, fourth and fifth check dates covering the periods January/February,...

Land holds up.
February 6, 2004... Agricultural land prices in Wales are holding on to their higher values. The provisional Welsh Assembly average figure for land and buildings sold in the first quarter of 2003 was #8,000 per hectare - compared with #6,700 in 2002 and 29 per...

Thai food `door still open'.
February 6, 2004... THAI chicken could still be entering the UK through the Netherlands, warned Euro MP Robert Sturdy this week. He has called on two top European Commissioners to explain why a ban has not been placed on Thai chicken shipped to Europe before...

HDC future.
February 6, 2004... A consultation on the future of the Horticultural Development Council which forms part of the statutory five-year review of the HDC, was launched this week. The consultation, which closes on April 30, seeks views on whether the council should...

Warning on chicken producer prices.
February 6, 2004... SUPPLIES of high quality British chicken will begin disappearing rapidly unless prices paid to struggling producers increase by 8p/kg, the NFU has warned. As the outbreak of avian flu in Asia fuels concerns over the safety of imported...

Pig quality campaign gathers pace.
February 6, 2004... THE threat of importing avian flu and problems in the poultry market have vindicated the National Pig Association's campaign for more support for the UK industry, according to the organisation's leader, Stewart Houston. "One of our main...

Electronic ID trials to run this spring.
February 6, 2004... A practical on-farm trial looking at electronic identification (EID) and electronic data transfer (EDT) within the English sheep industry is to be conducted by ADAS this spring. Assessing how easy the equipment is to actually use, the trial...

Hundreds injured when tagging calves, new study reveals.
February 6, 2004... A survey of farmers, which has revealed hundreds of injuries inflicted when tagging calves, has prompted NFU Scotland to repeat its call for more flexibility in the tagging regulations. Until recently, some flexibility was possible, but the...

Milk inquiry.
February 6, 2004... The Milk Pricing Sub-Committee of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee has announced that evidence sessions into its milk pricing inquiry will be held on February 9, March 1 and March 8. The NFU will be the first to give evidence,...

Potato production estimate is down.
February 6, 2004... THE final estimate of total potato production in Great Britain is 5.768 million tonnes, which is some 10.2 per cent below the five-year (1998- 2002) average of 6.420 million tonnes, according to the British Potato Council. Provisional...

Gangmasters ruling: concerns remain.
February 6, 2004... THE registration of gangmasters is a way forward to reducing unscrupulous and illegal practices in the fresh produce industry - but it is not the only answer. That was the message from an NFU seminar addressing the problems with contract...

Joining forces.
February 6, 2004... The Rothamsted Research Association (formerly Arable Research Institute Association) is join forces with the HGCA and work in partnership with other research organisations in its work for the farming industry. Copyright: CMP Information...

Roadshow fund.
February 6, 2004... The Food Chain Centre has been awarded a major grant by Defra, worth in excess of #300,000, to develop its work to promote benchmarking across the food and grocery industry. The grant will allow the national initiative to launch a travelling...

Royal honour for key vet.
February 6, 2004... LEADING cattle vet Dick Sibley has won the prestigious Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers' Princess Royal Award 2003. The former British Cattle Veterinary Association president was due to receive his award at Buckingham Palace...

`Public place'.
February 6, 2004... Defra has launched a three-month consultation on whether regulations should be made to limit the circumstances in which open access land, under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, will qualify as a `public place' under existing laws....

Quota deadlines.
February 6, 2004... THE deadlines for submission of forms to the Rural Payments Agency for the permanent transfer of milk quota are: * Permanent Transfer by lease of land (Form MQ1)L: March 1, 2004. * Permanent transfer by sale of land, end of tenancy,...

Hereford show.
February 6, 2004... The Scottish Hereford Association, in conjunction with the Hereford Cattle Society, is to hold its eighth Scottish National Hereford Show at Beefexpo 2004 at Ingliston in August. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

`Half of milk producers may quit'.
February 6, 2004... DAIRY farmers in Wales were stunned this week by a warning from a supermarket executive that the number of milk producers could be halved by 2010. Dr Kevin Hawkins, director of communications for Safeway Stores, said even his best...

BELL'S VIEW: An everyday story of - planning problems.
February 6, 2004... Our planning and environment correspondent, Dr Malcolm Bell explains how his Farmers Guardian article may have come to the aid of a farmer in The Archers radio serial. I do not know who holds the record for keeping one of my Farmers...

OPINION: The letter of the law.
February 6, 2004... Headmaster Fischler has been forced to issue some stern words to one of his most his unruly pupils. The whole class may have been sent strongly- worded letters telling them not to stray from the school's clearly defined principles but in all...

Rural change or `chocolate box' image?
February 6, 2004... Rural communities and the economy that supports them will not survive if we continue to resist change and hanker after a `chocolate box' image of the countryside. JULIAN SAYERS of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors explains. In...

Think of heifers as the herd's future.
February 6, 2004... TREATING calves, regardless of sex, as a by-product until weaning, rather than thinking of heifers as the future of the dairy herd is a lost opportunity, according to Mike Van Amburgh of Cornell University, New York, United States. ...

Scholarships.
February 6, 2004... The Royal Welsh Agricultural Society is seeking candidates from Wales for the 2004 Nuffield Food Chain Scholarships it jointly sponsors with the Royal Smithfield Club. Applicants need no academic qualifications, are usually between 26 and 45...

NFU officer.
February 6, 2004... Journalist Carl Hudspith, 22, has been appointed as the new regional public relations officer for the NFU's North West region. He was previously a senior reporter on The Visitor newspaper in Morecambe, Lancashire, and has also worked as a...

Tourism development faces High Court challenge.
February 6, 2004... THE Council for National Parks is considering mounting a legal challenge in the High Court following a controversial decision to approve a major new tourism development in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The proposed Bluestone...

CLA grant.
February 6, 2004... One of Yorkshire's most visited farms, which attracts more than 10,000 disabled and disadvantaged children every year, has won a grant from the CLA Charitable Trust. As a result, work is now under way on new wildlife ponds with wheelchair...

Northern NSA leader chosen.
February 6, 2004... A FORMER chairman of Northumberland NFU, Malcolm Corbett, has been elected chairman of the northern region of the National Sheep Association. Mr Corbett, of Dyke Head, Rochester, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, produces lamb and beef on his farm,...

On-farm training for pole trek.
February 6, 2004... A FARM worker's lust for adventure has led him to take up the challenge of walking 280 miles from Northern Canada to the magnetic north pole this spring. Ian Lindsay, who works for dairy farmers James and Ann Rogerson at Singleton, near...

Funding boost for show.
February 6, 2004... THE Royal Welsh Agricultural Society has been given a major boost following the agreement of a three-year, #60,000 annual sponsorship package with the Welsh Development Agency, the body responsible for economic development in Wales. The...

Centenary competition.
February 6, 2004... ONLY farm buildings which are 100 years old or more will be eligible for this year's Royal Welsh Agricultural Society's farm buildings competition. They must be at least as old as the society itself, which is celebrating its centenary at...

Farmers' markets.
February 6, 2004... ASHTON-under-Lyne Farmers' Market is one of the biggest in the North West, attracting around 10,000 people each month. The market was established in April 2000 with 25 stalls. It now attracts 50 food traders every month. "We are...

Longer-push buckrake.
February 6, 2004... DESIGNED for big tractors (minimum 150hp) and also suitable for loaders, is the latest push-off buckrake from HawkFawk. It has 50mm tines and a parallel push-off linkage which keeps the pushing gate off the tines and allows a longer push -...

Keeping up the pressure.
February 6, 2004... TYRE pressure - does it really matter that much? Most definitely yes, says Bridgestone UK's Barry Coleman. "What many people do not realise is that whatever other consequences of under-inflating tyres might be, excessive wear is an...

Flagship tyre makes its footprint on the market.
February 6, 2004... BY driving home the message to farmers that it pays in the long run to buy a better tyre, Bridgestone Europe is set to put another 3 per cent market share on top of the existing 17 per cent share which its Firestone brand currently enjoys on...

Clean machine.
February 6, 2004... The Master Drier Crop Cleaning System can now incorporate a suction cleaner to clean up around the machine. The driers are being promoted in a dual role as crop cleaners and the cleaning elements of the machines include an aspirator discharge,...

Highest volume tractors.
February 6, 2004... RETROSPECTIVE figures released by the AEA show that CNH was the highest volume tractor manufacturer in the UK in 2002. However, the 4,171 units sold, accounting for 28.3 per cent of the total, covers both CNH brands of which New Holland has...

Durability in three positions.
February 6, 2004... THE Bryce Suma Profi post driver now has a 375kg hammer as standard. For durability, the post cap slide rails are now solid bar. The machine's hydraulic top link hitch can be moved to three different positions to give optimum stroke on...

First-year genotyping scheme success.
February 6, 2004... THE pioneering Welsh Ewe Genotyping Scheme - WEGS ll - has been so successful that no more applications are being accepted for its first year. The three-year scheme is aiming to reduce and eventually eradicate scrapie from the national...

Area payment system `a tax on efficiency'.
February 6, 2004... ALLOCATING dairy direct payments on an area rather than historic basis would penalise the most efficient and competitive dairy farmers. That is the key conclusion of the `Future of UK Dairy Farming' report, commissioned by the MDC (Milk...

A mayoral lesson in London farming.
February 6, 2004... THE deputy mayor of London, Jenny Jones, visited one of the capital's 400 farms to learn more about the pressures facing London farmers. She spent a morning with Alan Sawyer, a tenant of the National Trust's Hawkwood Estate in Chislehurst,...

DAIRY FARMER OF THE FUTURE: Strategic thinking is key to dairy future.
February 6, 2004... In this Dairy Farmer of the Future sponsor's viewpoint, Kemira GrowHow's technical manager Howell Richards predicts a future where bigger, more cost-effective units, will be run even more professionally. WITH more cows but less labour, I...

Beef reversal in changing red meat trends.
February 6, 2004... THE European Union will become a net importer of red meat by 2008 with global factors having increasing influence on EU and UK meat production, predicted MLC corporate strategy director, Bob Bansback. In 1998 the EU had net exports of red...

UK sheepmeat sector could benefit from reforms.
February 6, 2004... IF the current confidence in the sheepmeat sector remained, then CAP reform would give producers the opportunity to increasingly focus on the market and help maintain the UK's competitive position in the European market. Jane Connor, MLC...

EU beef is set to fall.
February 6, 2004... FOR the second year running the EU would be a net importer of beef, according to MLC senior economic analyst Duncan Sinclair. "EU beef production is forecast to fall by 2 per cent this year reflecting, in the main, downturns in production in...

Skin diseases dent marketable yield.
February 6, 2004... Latest results of Cambridge University Farm's potato skin disease trials show how a strobilurin fungicide can bring about significant reductions in the incidence and severity of lesions and in-store losses - improving marketable yield and...

Spring OSR use.
February 6, 2004... The seed treatment Chinook is now approved for use on spring oilseed rape for control of flea beetle damage. Turnip and large striped flea beetles emerging from hibernation in March, just as spring oilseed rape crops are being drilled, are...

Mixed reaction.
February 6, 2004... Mixing or sequencing herbicides with different modes of action may help less than you might think in the battle against herbicide-resistant weeds. The warning comes from Rothamsted Research scientist Dr Stephen Moss, who suggests that...

Delay warning.
February 6, 2004... Don't compromise broad-leaved weed control in winter oilseed rape by delaying herbicide applications, warns Dow AgroSciences The company has advised growers with populations of mayweed and sow- thistle at a growth stage that needs control...

New combination takes pressure off.
February 6, 2004... Syngenta Crop Protection has introduced a new fungicide, formulated to help growers manage resistance. DAVID MILLAR reports from the company's R&D headquarters at Stein, Switzerland. A new combination fungicide may take some pressure off...

Resistance to strobilurin escalating.
February 6, 2004... SYNGENTA'S global fungicide resistance expert Professor Ulrich Gisi estimated that septoria tritici's resistance to the strobilurin family of fungicides escalated from 31 per cent in England at the beginning of last year to 71 per cent of all...

Novel oil.
February 6, 2004... A novel oil derived from oilseed rape grown by UK growers gained considerable support at the 4th International Symposium on Deep Frying, held in Germany recently. Dr Barry Rossell, formerly of Leatherhead Food Research, told the symposium...

Cereal ground beetle on the attack in Wiltshire, warns ADAS.
February 6, 2004... A RARE pest of cereals is causing damage to crops in some parts of the country. Cereal ground beetle larvae have been identified in winter wheat crops in Wiltshire, says ADAS. The larvae cause extensive shredding of leaves and shoots...

Guidelines to control septoria resistance.
February 6, 2004... THE cross-industry Fungicide Resistance Action Group (FRAG) has issued guidelines for septoria tritici resistance management in cereals for 2004. The new guidelines include information on mixtures, exposure time, dose rates and application...

Act now on wheat fly.
February 6, 2004... WHEAT bulb fly egg hatch has started and with crops struggling to get away from a poor start, growers are being advised to act now to prevent further damage. Independent field sampling last autumn showed infestation levels considerably...

Warning of rise in wild oats.
February 6, 2004... LEADING weed scientist Dr Stephen Moss of Rothamsted Research, has warned the incidence of herbicide-resistant wild oats was set to increase as herbicides used for wild oat control were lost under the European Union's ongoing review of active...

Mancozeb future `secure'.
February 6, 2004... THE future of the protectant fungicide mancozeb looks secure for the next few years at least after the Dutch authorities extended its registration until the end of 2008. "Following the green light of approval in the Netherlands for the...

Wool: The product found in every walk of life.
February 6, 2004... In the second part of our comprehensive look at the wool industry, we cover the end uses of a ubiquitous product found everywhere; from airport lounges to horse saddle pads and even moisturisers. Seventy-five per cent of British wool is...

RURAL LIFE: Just successful.
February 6, 2004... The first time farmer's wife Rosemary Robinson took her home-made sponge puddings to a farmers' market they sold out. The next time she and husband Graeme took more - but again, their stock ran out before demand from customers was met. It kept...

Public speaking county final.
February 6, 2004... REARING deer, reality television, France, family trees, Manchester United and Cumberland and Westmorland wrestling were among the topics discussed by Cumbria Young Farmers at the federation's junior public speaking county final. Judges Ron...

Benefits for all as nursery opens.
February 6, 2004... STUDENTS as well as the local community are to benefit from a children's nursery newly opened at an agricultural college in Lancashire. Fledglings is a purpose-built facility located on the campus at Myerscough College, catering from children...

Senior speeches.
February 6, 2004... KILMAURS YFC members Anne Auld, Fiona Leitch, Katie Barr and Kirstain Howie took team honours and Jane Armstrong of Lesmahagow was judged best individual in Scottish Young Farmers' West Region senior speechmaking competition. The event,...

Snowdrop charity walk.
February 6, 2004... A snowdrop walk at Rode Hall, Scholar Green, Stoke on Trent, is raising funds for charities including the CPRE (Campaign To Protect Rural England). Lady Baker-Wilbraham, president of the Cheshire branch of the CPRE, is opening the walk every...

A `first' for Moss at Ryedale.
February 6, 2004... BARRY Liddle took his first victory at the Ryedale Nursery trial on Saturday at Pickering, North Yorkshire, with his young, white-headed dog Moss. After running first at the Northern Nursery, at Hawes, North Yorkshire, where his dog worked...

Rock and Roy make it a Sunday `double' for Dai.
February 6, 2004... WHILE the rest of the country was subjected to some very violent storms, the worst thrown at handlers during the two days of competition at Trefelli Farm were high winds and a very occasional rain shower. But the land on this Pembrokeshire Farm...

Judges and course directors.
February 6, 2004... AT the ISDS (International Sheep Dog Society) directors meeting at Carlisle the following judges and course directors were appointed for 2004. WELSH National, July 29-31, Chirk, Wrexham. Singles judges: Colin Gordon and H. Glyn Jones....

DAIRY HEALTH: Time to change the way our cows are fed.
February 6, 2004... Producing milk is an expensive business, and rising cereal prices are constant reminders of the costs of feeding cows, writes David Beever. Rearing the replacement heifer until calving does nothing to help cash flow, apart from possible...

DAIRY HEALTH: Meeting the needs of an increasingly demanding future.
February 6, 2004... Faced with a 30-year-old dairy complex and the need for a college to have the latest technology to meet its educational needs, Askham Bryan College near York is building a new dairy unit incorporating both conventional and robotic milking...

DAIRY HEALTH: Large herd size not bar to low cell count.
February 6, 2004... SOMATIC cell counts in UK dairy herds have been on an upward trend over the past few years. Even in NMR herds, which benefit from closer monitoring, cell counts have increased from an average of 160,000/ml in 1998 to the current average of...

DAIRY HEALTH: Lungworm on the up again as immunity wanes.
February 6, 2004... The incidence of clinical lungworm disease or husk is set to increase again this season, continuing the trend seen over the past 10 years. Professor Mike Taylor of the Central Science Laboratory in York says waning herd immunity, due to...

DAIRY HEALTH: `Different approach' to trace elements.
February 6, 2004... THE importance of trace elements in the diet of cattle and sheep is now well recognised by farmers who take different approaches towards their provision, writes Tom Blair, of Phosyn. Copper, selenium, cobalt, iodine and zinc are the most...

DAIRY HEALTH: Dairy meetings.
February 6, 2004... INFERTILITY and production-related disease is costing the industry the equivalent of 4p per litre in many UK dairy herds according to Keenan. The company is running a series meetings with cattle vets and nutritionists, which will aim to...

Welsh dairy farmers caught in classic Catch 22 dilemma.
February 6, 2004... MANY Welsh dairy farming families are facing the dilemma of a classic Catch 22 situation. Low milk prices have meant they have been forced to put off vital new investment on their farms - yet without investment, both productivity and...

Embrace opportunities and adapt to market.
February 6, 2004... THE best chance of securing a sustainable future for dairying is to embrace every opportunity to adapt to the market place and rather than act as weak individuals work together with strength and loyalty. The more industry muscle approach...

Reducing the hands `picking pockets'.
February 6, 2004... TRYING to prejudge political decisions affecting the future of UK dairying was akin to crystal ball gazing, Shropshire farmer and First Milk chairman, Roger Evans, told the conference. He said he was confident that his producer co-operative...