Farmers Guardian articles from October 2006

Farmers Guardian archives from October 2006

Cameron puts farming at forefront of climate war.
October 6, 2006... Conservatives push their credentials on world environmental issues DAVID Cameron placed agriculture at the forefront of his party's war on climate change, as farming took centre stage at the Conservative Party Conference. The...

UK cattle exports to pass 100,000.
October 6, 2006... BRITISH cattle export numbers are expected to pass 100,000 by the end of the year with the trade exceeding all expectations since being reopened in May. According to EU export figures, a total of 60,057 bovine animals were exported from...

EU steps up modulation battle.
October 6, 2006... THE European Parliament's battle to prevent Defra levying modulation cuts of up to 20 per cent on English farmers from 2007 went up another notch this week. The Parliament's agriculture committee voted to reject the concept of voluntary...

High level talks on Yorkshire beet.
October 6, 2006... MIKE Blacker, ex-chairman of the NFU sugar board chairman, meets Prime Minister Tony Blair next week to discuss the future for the crop and the county after the closure of the York sugar factory next year. The meeting on Wednesday afternoon...

RPA pays out 1 per cent interest.
October 6, 2006... THE Rural Payments Agency has begun making interest payments to around 2,500 farmers on delayed Single Farm Payments, received after June 30. The Agency agreed in June to pay interest at 1 per cent over the base from July 1, a figure...

EU confirms rate.
October 6, 2006... THE European Commission has confirmed the rate at which Single Farm Payments will be converted from euro to sterling this year. The rate for the UK will be 0.67770 - making the euro worth just under 68p, marginally less than the 2005 rate....

BVA `meltdown' warning.
October 6, 2006... BRITISH Veterinary Association president Freda Scott-Park signed off with a bang rather than a whimper when she delivered her last presidential address at the BVA congress at the weekend. She tore into Ministers, particularly Ben Bradshaw,...

Overseas labour abuse could catch out UK farmers.
October 6, 2006... OVERSEAS labour providers supplying UK farmers are not being properly monitored, the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) has admitted. More than 900 labour providers in the UK have signed up for compulsory licenses from the GLA, designed...

Organic potential in `revitalised market'.
October 6, 2006... TWO important publications released yesterday show organic farmers have been achieving good incomes relative to conventional producers. Although neither group is claimed to be well off in absolute terms, the expansion in the organic market...

Speed will contain avian flu outbreak.
October 6, 2006... THE poultry industry is braced and ready for a potential outbreak of avian influenza. Vice-chairman of the NFU poultry board Nigel Joice said with the imminent start of the winter migration of wild birds the industry was at a higher risk...

Millions of vaccine doses on order to prevent flu spread.
October 6, 2006... DEFRA has ordered 10 million doses of avian influenza vaccine from pharmaceutical company Intervet, following a tendering process. The vaccine can be used against both H5 and H7 strains of the virus and could be used in poultry and other...

Ambassador says Brazilian beef is no threat to health.
October 6, 2006... BRAZILIAN officials rejected criticisms that their beef exports were a food safety risk but admitted incidents of slave labour and deforestation were an on-going problem. Responding to calls for a ban on further imports, the Brazilian...

Authorities support their own beef.
October 6, 2006... WELSH beef was on the menu at hundreds of public sector buildings across Wales yesterday (October 5) as local authorities and health trusts staged the first Wales National Beef Day. It featured a patchwork of promotional events as a...

Funds available to preserve Tir Mynydd.
October 6, 2006... WITH pressure mounting on Welsh Assembly Countryside Minister, Carwyn Jones, to change his mind on the proposed cuts in Tir Mynydd farming support payments, Plaid Cymru has claimed there was sufficient funding already available. Figures...

NBA says Irish beef undermines the UK's farm assurance.
October 6, 2006... SUPERMARKETS that continue to buy Irish beef despite doubts about farm assurance cover are undermining assurance in the rest of the UK, said the National Beef Association this week. The NBA claim a breakdown in the inspection regime for the...

First merger comes about as a result of Hampton report.
October 6, 2006... THE Dairy Hygiene Inspectorate has merged with the State Veterinary Service to make a streamlined animal health thematic agency. The merger, which came into place on October 1, will simplify inspection regimes in the UK and reduce the...

Guilty verdict for man with unauthorised medicines.
October 6, 2006... PETER Pippin of Grawen Terrace, Merthyr Tydfil, was given a two-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay #5,000 costs at Llandrindod Wells Magistrates Court for three cases involving possession of unauthorised veterinary medicines. Mr...

Supplier quits Dairy Crest.
October 6, 2006... SHORTLY after announcing the sale of its retailer brand cheese business to co-op First Milk, Dairy Crest is to `lose' another 72.5million litres of supply. Dairy Crest Direct Producers in Selkley Vale - an area at the Western end of the M4...

TB report says that cattle may be infecting badgers.
October 6, 2006... A REPORT on the spread of TB infection has brought conflicting responses from both farming and wildlife groups this week. The report, published in US journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, advises Defra to look more...

Delayed decision on badger cull `a disgrace' - Ainsworth.
October 6, 2006... FARMERS responded angrily at the Conservative Party conference when Shadow Defra Secretary Peter Ainsworth showed even less inclination for culling badgers than his Labour counterparts. Asked at an NFU fringe meeting if he agreed with...

Union calls for RSPCA to make apology over adverts.
October 6, 2006... THE RSPCA has been urged to make a public apology for failing to grasp the consequences of its discredited national newspaper campaign against the culling of badgers. Following a formal complaint from the Farmers Union of Wales, the...

Government attacked for `failing to tackle' TB.
October 6, 2006... THE Welsh Assembly Government and Countryside Minister, Carwyn Jones, in particular, came under attack from farming industry leaders and opposition AMs this week for `failing to tackle' the bovine TB crisis. Following the Minister's...

Cattle compensation figures.
October 6, 2006... Defra has released its latest monthly compensation figures for cattle compulsory slaughtered. Non-pedigree males range from #134 to #655 for cattle aged over 20 months. Dairy females from #441 to #687 for calved cows. Pedigree males,...

Trials and tribulations of a marquee wedding.
October 6, 2006... Consider this a cautionary tale. Everyone who lives in the country must at some point have trekked to some distant hotel, washed up on the outskirts of an unattractive town, for the wedding of a niece or a cousin or some such. There we...

OPINION: Back on the agenda.
October 6, 2006... If you subscribe to the (admittedly cynical) view that perception is truth, then there can be no finer example of this in action than the party conferences. As the last of the delegates check out of their hotels, and the spin machine moves...

The costs of `green' crops for energy.
October 6, 2006... ZAC Goldsmith, the millionaire environmentalist helping to shape the Conservative's green policies, warned that making biofuels from crops came at a cost to food production and the environment. Mr Goldsmith told the conference on Monday...

UK `way behind EU on biofuels usage'.
October 6, 2006... David Cameron pleaded for `sunshine to win the day' at the start of the Conservative Party Conference in Bournemouth. His party, which unveiled its new green logo, then spent four days debating how to achieve just the opposite - defeating the...

Consumers key to cutting carbon emissions.
October 6, 2006... SHADOW Defra Secretary Peter Ainsworth urged consumers to buy local food to help combat climate change. He said individuals and communities had a role to play in protecting the environment in the choices they made. It was about the way...

Conference `shambles'.
October 6, 2006... `ADMINISTRATIVE shambles' is a phrase the Conservatives have used to describe the Rural Payments Agency on more than one occasion. But this week the boot was on the other foot as thousands of delegates queued for hours in the wind and rain...

`Tories in danger of losing farmer-friendly reputation'.
October 6, 2006... DAVID Cameron's Conservatives may have found a new zeal for the environment, but they are in danger of losing their reputation as the party of the countryside, a former Tory spin doctor has claimed. Amanda Platell, who was William Hague's...

Government policy `killing off biofuels'.
October 6, 2006... THE Government was in danger of `killing off' biofuels made from crops because of its pre-occupation with new `miracle technologies' that may come along in the future, a leading figure in the green fuel industry warned. Graham Hilton, of...

Campaign for part payments as problems `likely until 2007'.
October 6, 2006... THE Conservatives are about to launch a campaign to persuade the Government to make part payments in England in December. Shadow Defra Secretary Peter Ainsworth said it was clear that the problems with the Rural Payments Agency had not been...

Support for shooting industry.
October 6, 2006... THE shooting industry received a ringing endorsement from the Conservatives for the contribution it makes to conservation and the wider economy. Shadow Defra Secretary Peter Ainsworth said that while the Government was keen to debate the...

Convert to organic for the right reasons.
October 6, 2006... PEOPLE should not go organic if they thought they were going to make a fortune. They should do it if they thought it was the right thing and they wanted to give it a go, organic dairy farmer Peter Lemmey, told the Soil Association's...

CAP may be adjusted, could well disappear sooner rather than later.
October 6, 2006... THE Common Agricultural Policy, which was subject to major reforms in 2003, is likely to be subject to further adjustments, and may well disappear far sooner than many farmers have so far considered. That was a key message delivered in...

Herd that's well suited to Lakes.
October 6, 2006... French hill farmers from the Lozere region of the Central Massif were treated to a taste of the Lake District when they visited the Wasdale Head farm of Andrew and Gillian Race as part of a tour of Cumbrian agriculture. Neil Ryder reports. ...

Sharing experiences in the EU.
October 6, 2006... THE Lozere region is twinned with Cumbria under the LEADER+ Fells and Dales Programme, which encourages links between similar areas within the EU. Veronica Waller of Fells and Dales LEADER+ said that while Cumbria and the Lozere region of...

Cornwall's new LEAF farm.
October 6, 2006... THE latest LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming) Demonstration Farm to highlight environmentally responsible farming has been named as Lower Norton Farm, near Callington, Cornwall. It joins 50 other farms across the country which open...

Auction mart plans are rejected.
October 6, 2006... CUMBRIA County Council has dealt a severe blow to plans for the South Lakeland Gateway development project at Crooklands, Kendal, which would incorporate a new auction mart with a regional information centre, restaurant/cafe, meeting rooms and...

Golden jubilee for the pioneering Welsh co-op.
October 6, 2006... Two of the country's top cattle producer groups strike gold and silver this month. BARRY ALSTON reports. BACK in October 1956, farmers in Mid Wales set aside their independence and got together to set up Britain's first locally-based...

Anniversary sale - a notable landmark.
October 6, 2006... THE Brecon and Radnor co-operative is not the only cattle producing marketing group celebrating a landmark occasion this month. The equally well known Bishops Castle and District Quality Cattle Association will be staging a very special...

Cartwheel assists in promoting the complete package.
October 6, 2006... FARMERS are generally acknowledged to be a bit set in their ways with tradition the key word while change is looked upon with a degree of scepticism. Fortunately this does not apply to all the farming community, which is where bodies such...

Attention to detail pays off.
October 6, 2006... AT Bre Pen Farm in North Cornwall, Jill and Rod Brake advocate modernising farm tourism. It is a route they have taken over the last few years, developing their business to make the most of changing demands. As well as running bed and...

Seeking answers to why the dairy industry is declining.
October 6, 2006... THE numbers of dairy holdings in the South West are in steady decline. In 1990 there were 8,249, but by 2004 this had fallen to 4,800 - a drop of 41 per cent. In a bid to address the fall or at least attempt to find answers, the NFU has...

Ploughing match pulls in a crowd.
October 6, 2006... A LARGE crowd saw Philip Allman from Stafford become North West Champion ploughman in a tight competition at the Cheshire Ploughing Match, staged at Sandbach. He also won the vintage hydraulic open event. Youth was well represented, with...

The worthy champions are crowned - after two tight contests.
October 6, 2006... ANDREW Mitchell of Scotland, driving a Ford tractor with a Dowdeswell plough, became conventional ploughing champion in the 53rd World Ploughing Contest, staged at Tullow, Co Carlow, Republic of Ireland. The reversible ploughing champion...

FG prize lightens load on busy mixed family farm.
October 6, 2006... When Martin Dennison got a phone call in June saying he had won the tractor being given away in a Farmers Guardian cpmpetition he could hardly believe it. But once he got over the shock he soon found a way to integrate it into his family's...

Simplicity and efficiency makes for profitability.
October 6, 2006... The two runners-up in the 2006 Dairy Farmer of the Future competition could not be operating systems with less in common. But whether it is prioritising milk from grazed grass or pushing cows for maximum yields, Rupert Major and Stephen Cope...

Transition from traditional milking `a real joy'.
October 6, 2006... With a purpose-built greenfield site and the cows kept indoors for the entire period of their lactation, Stephen Cope's dairy system is very different to that of either of the other two Dairy Farmer of the Future finalists. However,...

New entrant scheme is urgently needed to save British agriculture.
October 6, 2006... A NUMBER of speakers at the conference took it in turns to suggest solutions to the new entrants problem in the UK, and looked to other countries for inspiration. John Cameron, former president of the Scottish NFU, asked why Britain is the...

New farmers needed to beat the recruitment `time bomb'.
October 6, 2006... Time bombs, dinosaurs and retirement ages were hot topics at a new entrants conference in Edinburgh. DAN STEWART reports. THE problem of recruitment to the farming sector is a `time bomb', according to Andrew Stewart, chairman of the...

#10m entrants' scheme plan.
October 6, 2006... THE leader of the Scottish National Party laid out a challenge to other political parties by promising a new entrants' scheme worth #10m if the SNP is elected. Alex Salmond told conference delegates he proposes a scheme for Scotland based...

Youngstock news in brief: Princess royal opens Hi-tech dairy centre.
October 6, 2006... A state-of-the-art dairy technology centre costing #1.3 million has been opened by the Princess Royal at Barony College, Parkgate, Dumfries. The centre has been developed as a dairy facility, incorporating the latest animal welfare designs...

Youngstock news in brief: Dairy scholars head for Shanghai.
October 6, 2006... Two young representatives from opposite ends of the dairy spectrum are off to Shanghai this month after they were named joint winners of the MDC and Dairy UK annual International Dairy Federation (IDF) scholarship. Dairy farmer Adam Ball,...

Youngstock news in brief: Calf show qualifier.
October 6, 2006... The South and Wiltshire Holstein Young Breeders' Club has held its calf show - the last regional qualifier for the All-Breeds All-Britain Calf Show this weekend. RESULTS Handlers: Supreme, Catherine Elmes; reserve, Imogen Ward. ...

Youngstock news in brief: Degree powers granted.
October 6, 2006... Research degree awarding powers have been granted to Harper Adams University College, Shropshire by the Privy Council. Wynne Jones, principal of Harper Adams University College, said: "The award demonstrates that the university college has...

Young handlers give impressive display at annual trials event.
October 6, 2006... THIS year's Sheepdog Young Handlers' Trial - an annual event to help youngsters improve their handling skills - was held at Rainow, Macclesfield, on Sunday. Each competitor ran in the morning, then had a second run over the afternoon....

Country View: Cider becomes core business after livestock returns fall.
October 6, 2006... Most farms have one or two trees - and for some farmers apples and pears provide a useful additional income source. BARRY ALSTON gets to the core of the matter in the Welsh Border country. Work-wise for many farms, October and November can...

Country View: Celebrating everything apple.
October 6, 2006... IF asked what Ben Davis or a Bloody Butcher and chips all had in common, would you know the answer? They are, in fact, all varieties of apple - and from William Tell, Sir Isaac Newton and Granny Smith to Dai Chef's cookery demonstrations,...

Country View: Erwood argue their case to good effect.
October 6, 2006... THE problem of young people leaving rural areas and not being addressed by county councils - was tackled by Erwood YFC during their winning performance in Brecknock Young Farmers' intermediate brainstrust competition. The federation's...

Country View: Newton take the honours.
October 6, 2006... WELSH Newton YFC was overall winner Herefordshire Young Farmers' annual ploughing match. The club scored highest aggregate marks in both the ploughing and home sections, Ledbury YFC was runner-up with Pencombe YFC third. The event was...

Country View: New president for Wales YFC.
October 6, 2006... NORTH Wales farmer, Eryl Williams, from Ruthin, Denbighshire, is the new Wales YFC president. Active in the YFC movement for many years, he is an honorary life member of the Clwyd federation, he was Wales YFC chairman in 1988 and the...

Country View: From strength to strength.
October 6, 2006... HEREFORDSHIRE Young Farmers are going from strength to strength. Its annual membership count shows an increase from 706 in last year's return to the current figure of 728. The trend towards junior membership has continued with 49 per...

Country View: Going back to her roots.
October 6, 2006... FORMER Lancashire College of Agriculture student, the gardening show presenter and plantswoman Christine Walkden, went back to what is now Myerscough College to be filmed for her BBC2 series Christine's Garden. At the college's Lee Farm...

Country View: Stuart leads the team.
October 6, 2006... STUART Williams of Llysyfran YFC, Pembrokeshire, has been elected leader of the Wales Federation of YFC' Youth Forum which represents members aged 18 and under. The deputy leader is Hedydd Davies of Bro'r Dderi YFC, Ceredigion. ...

Country View: New vice-chairman.
October 6, 2006... SEVEN hundred bears knitted by Cumbria-Cumberland Federation of Women's Institutes members are helping to raise funds to build a school in Burundi, Africa. The toys were presented to Gren Burgess, one of the speakers at the federation's...

Country View: Autumn Council meeting.
October 6, 2006... WITH rings on her fingers and bells and bottle tops around her ankles, Fiona Katie Roberts and Big Al (her aluminium harp) brought diverse music and insight to Lincolnshire North WI members at their federation's autumn council meeting. Around...

Country View: 90th anniversary plans.
October 6, 2006... MORE than 300 members gathered at the Palace Theatre, Newark, for the Nottinghamshire Federation of Women's Institutes' autumn meeting. Chairman Vera Carter welcomed speaker Judy Theobald who spoke on her life in the police force, as a teacher...

Country View: An hour in the October garden.
October 6, 2006... You might consider that the garden in October is fast falling asleep, but there is much to see and even more to do in this month where the mornings are soft and there are still one or two surprises in the garden, as PAUL PEACOCK explains. ...

Machinery: MultiBib `offers greater wear and wider footprint'.
October 6, 2006... Michelin hopes to increase its share of the increasingly popular 65 series tyre market with the MultiBib. Suitable for tractors in the 80hp to 200hp sector, it has more volume with a longer, wider footprint than its predecessor, the XM108....

Machinery: Royal opening of Agco's European offices.
October 6, 2006... THE Princess Royal has officially opened AGCO's new European offices. The new facility at Abbey Park, Stoneleigh, which also includes a new training centre, will serve as AGCO's European centre for the management of the company's sales and...

Machinery: Trelleborg name now on TM range of radial tyres.
October 6, 2006... The Trelleborg name will now be seen on the TM range of radial tyres that have been coming under the Pirelli banner. The two companies formed a joint venture in 1999, but in 2001 Trelleborg took over 100 per cent of the shares for Pirelli...

Machinery: Yamaha's Grizzly 700 has a host of new features.
October 6, 2006... IT is not so much the ease of steering - you tend to take that for granted - as the reduced kick-back on rutted ground that makes Yamaha's introduction of variable-assist power steering an interesting development. It is one of two major...

Machinery: i-Track `will also be a deterrent' on ATVs.
October 6, 2006... THE new ATV tracker system - i-Track - developed by Datatag ID is, for the time being, exclusive to Yamaha, and a standard feature on the new Grizzly. The idea of the system is - apart from rapid location of a stolen machine - to generate...

Cropper family affair at Nidderdale Show.
October 6, 2006... THE name Cropper dominated the results at the Nidderdale Show sheep dog trials at Pateley Bridge, North Yorkshire. Running was over a steep hillside course on packets of four Swaledale shearlings. If handled carefully and from a distance...

Host rewarded with a win.
October 6, 2006... THE Pembrokeshire Nursery series got under way on Saturday on the field used earlier in the year for the Crosswell trials. Gerwyn James, host of both trials was rewarded with an eight point winning margin when his Black lost 18 points to...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Securing the breed's future.
October 6, 2006... A new breeding scheme set up by the Welsh Mountain Sheep Society (Registered Section) and aimed at helping safeguard the breed's future has got off to a flying start with the purchase and donation of an elite ram by the Anglesey-based lamb...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Beltex Society secretary goes.
October 6, 2006... Beltex Sheep Society secretary for the past 17 years, Helen Ashton, has resigned to pursue business opportunities outside agriculture. She will continue in her role until October's annual meeting and she will assist in a smooth transition...

NEWS IN BRIEF: New specialist for Signet.
October 6, 2006... Carol Davis, who worked for the Meat and Livestock Commission for 29 years, has been appointed Signet Breeding Specialist. She will become breed specialist for Texel, Hampshire Down and Leicester Longwool sheep breeds and the Welsh Black...

Difficult decisions ahead as late autumn grazing has a knock-on effect.
October 6, 2006... DAIRY farmers will be faced with some difficult decisions regarding making the best use of late season grazing while minimising the effect on next spring's growth rates, according to Promar regional consultant David Burns. "With many...

Maize monitor: countdown to harvest 2006.
October 6, 2006... FORAGE maize harvesting is now well underway in the Midlands and is around one-third complete as far north as Lancashire. The clear message to growers is to inspect cobs regularly to ensure crops are cut as close to optimum maturity as...

Top price of 1,600gns at Beechdean Holsteins.
October 6, 2006... THE dispersal of 328 Holstein Friesians for Beechdean Farms, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, attracted buyers from 16 English and Welsh counties. The top-priced cow and heifer travel to Pembrokeshire with T.G. Davies, Hundleton. ...

Belgian Blues to 6,000gns at Carlisle autumn sale.
October 6, 2006... BIDDING peaked at 6,000gns at the Border Belgian Blue Club autumn show and sale at Carlisle. A March 2005-born bull, from Dermot Small, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, put the ceiling on the trade at this annual fixture comprising of just over...

Production sale sees calves up to 3,000gns.
October 6, 2006... THE on-farm production sale from the Brockhurst herd of W.J. and M. Mash, Chesham, Buckinghamshire saw two embryo calves go under the hammer for the top price of 3,000gns apiece. The first of these embryo calves was the April 2006-born bull...