Farmers Guardian articles from September 2005

Farmers Guardian archives from September 2005

Wiseman price cut stirs further producer anger.
September 2, 2005... ROBERT Wiseman Dairies has announced a September milk price cut of 0.35ppl claiming its price premium position has cost it #2.5million over the last eight months. The move was not unexpected as Wiseman had hinted earlier this summer that...

Delays to remain in England.
September 2, 2005... THE Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are on course to meet the December start date for paying Single Farm Payments, while English farmers face a further wait of at least two-months. Officials from all four...

Non-mapped Entry Level land submissions.
September 2, 2005... FARMERS are being urged to submit Entry Level Stewardship applications, even if they still have unresolved mapping issues with the Rural Land Register. The Rural Development Service has said applications can be submitted for the land that...

Feed contaminated with human remains possible BSE cause.
September 2, 2005... ANIMAL feed contaminated with human remains may have caused the first cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), scientists have claimed. The origin of BSE is currently unknown. Possible sources that have been proposed include sheep...

Brief sugar contracts deadline extension by British Sugar.
September 2, 2005... WITH another record crop in prospect, sugar beet growers keen to continue producing the crop will need to sign and return their contracts for 2006 immediately. By the original August 22 deadline for the contracts to be with British Sugar, just...

NBA calls for Irish beef suspension.
September 2, 2005... THE National Beef Association has provoked an angry response from Ireland with calls for Irish beef imports to be suspended until assurance standards are upgraded to UK levels. The NBA claimed Irish imports fall `substantially short' of UK...

Quality Meat Scotland tests genetic origins to prove poor standards.
September 2, 2005... BEEF imported by supermarkets from Brazil is bred from a native strain proven to be of low eating quality, genetic tests have revealed. These new claims about the quality of Brazilian beef were made by Quality Meat Scotland as Scottish...

New figures show Brazilian beef imports up 20 per cent on last year.
September 2, 2005... BRAZILIAN beef imports rose by more than 20 per cent in the first half this year to nearly 20,000 tonnes. New Government figures that will add fuel to the current wave of farmer dissatisfaction with supermarket buying policies show that...

Bird flu risk likely to increase, says BVA president.
September 2, 2005... THE RISK of avian influenza or bird flu reaching the UK is likely to increase over time, the president of the British Veterinary Association has warned. While the Government said this week the risk was `remote to low', Dr Bob McCracken...

Action demand over illegal pesticides.
September 2, 2005... With an unknown quantity of illegal pesticides regularly being imported into the UK, the Crop Protection Association has demanded that Defra take more action. A top-level delegation from the association has visited the Pesticide Safety...

Major breakthrough as scientists develop blood test for BSE.
September 2, 2005... SCIENTISTS in the United States have developed a blood test for BSE in what is being hailed as a major breakthrough that could have profound implications for the beef industry. Scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB)...

Changes to the EIA.
September 2, 2005... DEFRA is proposing changes to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) regulations, and has launched a consultation period. The EIA regulations protect the rural environment from agricultural damage. They guard against possible negative impact...

`Catastrophic effect' feared from pre-movement testing.
September 2, 2005... PRE-MOVEMENT TB testing would hamper farmers' efforts to capitalise on changes to the Over-Thirty-Months rule, a leading auctioneer has claimed. Defra is still considering a requirement for cattle sold from herds most at risk from bovine...

Anger at response to cull bid.
September 2, 2005... THE group of vets campaigning for a badger culling policy to control bovine TB have expressed their anger at the negative response from Defra so far. It is six months since 351 vets put their names to a letter accusing Defra of a `total...

Charter talks go on.
September 2, 2005... THE NFU is continuing to hold talks with Tesco over the setting up of a voluntary Buyers' Charter despite the supermarket's apparent rejection of the idea last month. In its statement three weeks ago, Tesco said it did not think it was...

RAMPTON'S VIEW: `Agricultural extension' to advise nation's farmers.
September 2, 2005... I am sure that our hearts go out to the stricken people of Louisiana and the southern United States, beaten up by Katrina but at the same time I am heartened to hear, at last, the regular procession of eight tonnes of wheat passing my door on...

OPINION: Last of the summer shows.
September 2, 2005... If you still haven't had time to get out to an agricultural show this season, you've got just a few weeks left to enjoy the cream of British livestock on parade before the autumn conference programme kicks off. It seems incredible, but...

Obvious benefits of working together.
September 2, 2005... Despite the obvious benefits of working more closely with other producers through a co-operative business model, and with end customers through longer-term contracts, many farmers remain reluctant to do either. But, writes Lincolnshire...

Do you know what you are missing?
September 2, 2005... Farmers urged to work together with industry bodies to maximise the returns from food expenditure Sir Don Curry's Policy Commission report in 2002 brought us two new bodies, the Food Chain Centre and English Food and Farming Partnerships....

Benchmarking group allows information to be shared easily.
September 2, 2005... STARGRAZERS started off as the Shropshire Grassland Society back in the 1980s, becoming the benchmarking group it is today, in 2000. The 18 members of the group, mostly from Shropshire, meet up every month on a rotation system around each...

Partnerships vital in order to secure best markets for British produce.
September 2, 2005... YORKSHIRE Farmers started out as an Industrial and Provident Society in 1932 by pig producers looking to secure a better market for their animals. Based in Malton, North Yorkshire, the farmer-controlled business (FCB) now acts as a...

Clubcard information provides valuable insight into customers' tastes.
September 2, 2005... HERITAGE potatoes, run by Anthony and Lucy Carroll have been among the first group of farm businesses to use the market information from Tesco's clubcard database, the Dunn Humby Clubcard. They recently secured a deal with Booths supermarkets...

MONMOUTHSHIRE SHOW: Chepstow may be home to new show site.
September 2, 2005... NEXT year's Monmouthshire Show will definitely be held on its long- standing Vauxhall site alongside the River Monnow in the centre of Monmouth - but from then onwards it could well be staged at its new permanent showground on the Chepstow road...

MONMOUTHSHIRE SHOW: Limousin clinches win by one point in competition.
September 2, 2005... A SINGLE point gave victory in the hotly contested Monmouthshire Show supreme beef championship parade to the leading Limousin - a two-year- old heifer from across the Welsh border in Herefordshire. Lining up in front of the eight-strong...

MONMOUTHSHIRE SHOW: Home-bred Lys supreme.
September 2, 2005... WORRIES over the continuing spread of bovine TB meant the only dairy cattle at the show were Holsteins, which automatically gave the overall dairy championship to the black and whites. It went to the home-bred, six-year-old Noremead...

MONMOUTHSHIRE SHOW: `Ease up' on hedge dates.
September 2, 2005... THE Welsh Assembly is being asked to ease Single Farm Payment cross- compliance requirements for hedge trimming and laying operations. Speaking at the show, NFU Cymru vice-president, Dai Davies, said in the interests of health and safety...

MONMOUTHSHIRE SHOW: Youngsters lead their sheep to victory.
September 2, 2005... TWO youngsters - one aged six and the other five - proudly followed in grandpa's footsteps to take the overall sheep championship in a final head-to-head involving no less than 42 individual breed leaders from some of the UK's top flockmasters....

MARTLETWY SHOW: Two tickets for Texel flock.
September 2, 2005... PROBABLY one of the largest one-day agricultural shows in Pembrokeshire, the Martletwy YFC event, which began in 1951, has continued to grow each year. The team of five cattle inter-breed challenge, now in its third year, is a major...

DUNSTER SHOW: First and reserve in beef inter-breed.
September 2, 2005... THE two top tickets in the beef inter-breed class at Dunster Show, Devon, went to C.J. and L.L.M. Hutchings, of Dulverton. Taking the red ticket was their three-year-old Limousin bull Goldies Trophy, ahead of their 18-month-old Aberdeen...

MID SOMERSET SHOW: Jersey `cream' of dairy lines.
September 2, 2005... THE dairy inter-breed title at Mid Somerset Show went to the Jersey winner from Mr and Mrs C. Wadman, of Wincanton. It took the red rosette ahead of the Dairy Shorthorn breed champion, shown by K.J. Osborne and Sons, of Ston Easton. ...

POYNTON SHOW: Hereford and Holstein share top beef and dairy awards.
September 2, 2005... HIGH quality entries, a good attendance and weather to match helped make Poynton Show, Cheshire, a success at the weekend. The Hereford, Island 1 Warrior, from I. Cox, took the beef inter-breed title ahead of the Highland champion, Fiach...

CLYNDERWEN SHOW: Champion Rose takes top dairy ticket.
September 2, 2005... STILL essentially a YFC event, it was previous generations who started the idea of Clynderwen Show as a calf show and although there have been periods when the show was not held it remains as strong today as it has ever been. Heading the...

MOORGREEN SHOW: Dairy delight for Josephine.
September 2, 2005... JERSEY champion, Coldeaton Advancers Josephine, from J. Stubbs, took the dairy inter-breed title at Moorgreen Show, Nottinghamshire, ahead of the Holstein champion, Trisantona Lee Rose 3, from T.W. Kent. The Charolais Wesley Rhona from...

MEIRIONNYDD COUNTY SHOW: Heifer braves the weather to reign supreme.
September 2, 2005... TWELVE months ago a Charolais heifer picked her way to victory through knee-deep mud to win the supreme cattle championship when Meirionnydd County Show was staged at Llandrillo, near Corwen. This year's event at Harlech saw another heifer...

Youth triumphs over experience in sheep showdown.
September 2, 2005... IT was a case of youth versus experience in the inter-breed line up for Meirionnydd's overall sheep championship - and it was a teenager that won. The final face-to-face from what had been a 17-breed championship parade saw the leader and...

Increasing bureaucracy `harming' Welsh farming.
September 2, 2005... A call to cut out the creeping levels of `big brother' bureaucracy came at the show from Meirionnydd NFU county chairman, Huw Roberts. Using Mynydd Bryngwyn, at Llanuwchllyn, near Bala - a typical heath mountain owned and farmed by...

WENSLEYDALE SHOW: Holmeglen Carmen 61 wins inter-breed title.
September 2, 2005... THE Holstein breed champion, Holmeglen Carmen 61, from D. Alderson, took the dairy inter-breed championship at Wensleydale Show, ahead of the Jersey red ticket holder, G.M. Harrison and Son's Brimmoor Remake Ann. In the sheep lines it was the...

CHIPPING SHOW: Simmental Popes Nelly 2 takes overall championship.
September 2, 2005... JIMMY and Vicky Wood's Simmental champion Popes Nelly 2 took the beef inter-breed and then the overall cattle championship at Chipping Show, Lancashire, on Saturday. Reserve overall was the dairy inter-breed reserve champion and Holstein...

HOPE SHOW: Record entries in sheep classes: Charollais on top.
September 2, 2005... THERE was a record entry for the sheep classes at Hope Show, with the strongest classes in the Derbyshire Gritstone lines where D. Eggleton, from Meltham, took the honours with the champion animal - a shearling ram. The overall sheep...

New sections at Sennybridge.
September 2, 2005... Tomorrow's 140th Sennybridge Show sees new sections for coloured horses and ponies, Charollais sheep and a suckled calf class aimed at encouraging potential show stock. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

HAWKSHEAD SHOW: Title win at first attempt.
September 2, 2005... A shear Herdwick ram shown by Anthony Hartley, of Broughton-in-Furness, took the overall championship at Hawkshead Show, Cumbria It was the ram's first outing this year and the first time Mr Hartley had shown at Hawkshead since...

BELLINGHAM SHOW: Attendance at the event the best for several years.
September 2, 2005... NEIL Hindmarsh of Otterburn took the overall sheep championship at Saturday's Bellingham Show, Northumberland, with a Scotch Blackface ewe lamb. Home-bred, she is one of the family farm's 600 Scotch Blackfaces and 600 Cheviots. A Bluefaced...

Excellent weather helps to draw in the crowds at popular Aylsham Show.
September 2, 2005... CLEAR blue skies made the Aylsham Show, Norfolk, popular with the public with thousands of visitors through the gates. In the showrings, Wymondham-based Jonathan McInnes-Skinner scooped the sheep inter-breed championship for the second year...

Good performance by high yield varieties.
September 2, 2005... WINTER wheat varieties with high yield potential but normally poor standing ability have performed well this harvest, said Jim McVittie, HGCA Recommended List manager. "Over the country there has not been a great deal of lodging about and...

New arable demonstration to focus on winter wheat.
September 2, 2005... A NEW arable demonstration site is being established in South Yorkshire in a joint venture between The Arable Group and agricultural training organisation Lantra, with the help of Objective 1 funding. Located at Marr near Doncaster, the one...

Desiccants prove just as effective as acid.
September 2, 2005... DESICCANTS can burn down vigorous main crop potato canopies just as effectively as acid, according to the latest trials undertaken by Cambridge University Farms (CUF). The key to un-locking their potential appears to be use in carefully...

New off-label approvals for mancozeb fungicide.
September 2, 2005... THE protectant mancozeb fungicide Dithane has several new off-label approvals relating to its use on horticultural crops. The new SOLA's include its use on asparagus, beetroot, celery, celeriac, chicory, courgettes, marrow and pumpkins....

VI progress on commercial arable farm.
September 2, 2005... MEMBERS of the Voluntary Initiative Implementation Group have met to observe first-hand how the individual components of VI are working in practice on a commercial arable farm. The Scottish VI Indicator farm, George Lawrie's Balado Home...

Pressure on OSR weed control.
September 2, 2005... INCREASED herbicide resistance and use of min-till have combined to place greater pressure on weed control options in oilseed rape. That is the view of UAP technical adviser Brin Hughes, who says three sprays are becoming the norm as a...

Willow, a worthwhile energy source.
September 2, 2005... BARRY ALSTON reports from a pioneering project looking at new energy sources - with the potential to generate financial returns on a par with livestock production. WITH crude oil prices still spiralling and showing little signs of easing...

Dairy herd's Italian connection.
September 2, 2005... BARRY ALSTON takes a look at a Welsh dairy herd with an Italian name and a family history spanning 60 years. VE Day 1945 shaped the future for many families - not least the thousands of prisoners of war working on farms across Britain. ...

WI says it with flowers.
September 2, 2005... MORE than 2,500 people travelled to Cartmel Priory, Cumbria, for a floral celebration of 85 years of the WI in Cumbria-Westmorland. The four-day flower festival, `This green and pleasant land' depicted the activities and achievements of the...

Auction boost for Worcestershire YFC building fund.
September 2, 2005... LOTS ranging from a dog castration by a vet to a hot air balloon trip helped boost Worcestershire Young Farmers' building project by more than #2,000. The Worcestershire Federation of YFCs is raising funds to convert part of its...

Half century for Preston Ladies.
September 2, 2005... PRESTON NFU Ladies' Social Section, Lancashire, celebrated its 50th anniversary in sparkling style. Around 70 members met at the New Drop Hotel, Ribchester, for a champagne reception and dinner. Among them were sisters Nora and Hannah Goodier,...

Ayrshire `A' team hockey victory.
September 2, 2005... AYRSHIRE'S `A' team clinched first place in Scottish Young Farmers' west region mixed hockey challenge. The winning team of William Dunlop, Fraser Borthwick, Jamie Welsh, Vicki Stevenson, Nicola Gault, Jillian McKay, Joanne Coltart, and Neil...

Rural conference.
September 2, 2005... THE achievements of rural women will be celebrated at a Springboard conference in Lancashire. The event at Garstang Country Club on September 6 will feature workshops ranging from creative problem solving to business plans plus an address...

Anniversary celebration.
September 2, 2005... WELL over 1,000 members and friends enjoyed a celebration garden party to mark the 85th anniversary of the Lancashire Federation of Women's Institutes. In sunshine, with music from a silver band and a string quartet, guests including NFWI...

Baker's RABI dough-nation.
September 2, 2005... WARBURTONS Burnley bakery, Lancashire, has presented a cheque for #500 to the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution. The money was raised when the family bakers took part in Myerscough College's open day and country event, featuring in...

Dorset Young Farmers provide arena entertainment.
September 2, 2005... DORSET Young Farmers provided main arena entertainment at Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show when they took centre stage with their pantomime horse race. Sturminster Newton crossed the finishing line first to win #100 from the show society,...

Diamond dinner for Devon YFC.
September 2, 2005... SIXTY years of Meshaw YFC, Devon, will be celebrated on September 30 at a diamond anniversary dinner and dance with guest speaker James Morrish. Organisers are seeking items for a display of memorabilia - and past members and friends who would...

Billy builds on her winning streak at Midlands Show.
September 2, 2005... THE Midlands Holstein Young Breeders' Calf Show, held on Sunday at Barston, Solihull, proved a great success with many competitors taking part. Twelve-year-old Billy Westwood, of Tree House Farm, Stratford Upon Avon, was the overall...

Matthew swaps scrums for shows.
September 2, 2005... MATTHEW Williamson swapped one form of tough competition for another when he won the Border and Lakeland Holstein Young Breeders' Calf Show at Borderway Mart, Carlisle, on Saturday. Matthew, 14, had just returned from a two-week tour of...

Nineteen-year-old `veteran' takes Northumbria title.
September 2, 2005... HEXHAM Auction Mart hosted the Northumbria Holstein Young Breeders' Calf Show on Sunday, when the overall champion was 19-year-old Sarah Oliver, of Peppy Farm, Stocksfield, who has been showing for 12 years. The champion calf was...

Iain and Zac triumph in fundraising trial.
September 2, 2005... TWO points clear, Iain Ibbotson and Zac took the title at the Yorkshire Society's open trial held mid-week which raised #304 was raised for the 2006 English National. A pasture at Little Thorn Edge Farm, Trawden, Lancashire, provided a...

A novice win for Elaine and Trim.
September 2, 2005... A Norfolk handler took first place in the South Wales Sheep Dog Trials Association's Novice trial. Always a popular event, the trial is restricted to novice dogs and novice handlers and it is very unusual for it to be won by an Association...

MF's Dyna-6 meets demand for a `simpler' transmission.
September 2, 2005... Dyna-6 is the name of the latest transmission from Massey Ferguson. Unveiled at the SIMA show in Paris earlier this year and now standard on all Perkins four and six cylinder 6400 series tractors, Steven Vale travelled to southern Spain to take...

What to look for when buying a used Vaderstad Rapid.
September 2, 2005... For those looking for a way into min-till a second hand drill is an option worth considering. Andy Collings gives the Vaderstad Rapid drill a once over and discovers the points to look for when purchasing a used machine. SO, you want to...

Improved single-bed planter is available in three models.
September 2, 2005... STANDEN-PEARSON is introducing the SP Series single-bed planter, which is to be made available for the next season in two-, three- and four- row Quad models. The speed at which the cups change direction when travelling towards the openers...

Scheme to replace kit.
September 2, 2005... RECO has introduced a farm finance scheme based around the Single Farm Payment so farmers can replace machinery as required. Apart from an initial down payment, the finance plans are designed so the rest of the payments fall after the SFP...

`LEVEL-HITCH' TOWING SYSTEM.
September 2, 2005... SUMO has developed a parallel linkage system for trailed equipment that prevents the implement's towing eye fouling the tractor hitch when raised for headland turns. The Level-Hitch is to be fitted to all new Sumo trailed equipment and uses a...

`Parts packs' for ploughs and harrows.
September 2, 2005... RABE has developed a selection of `wearing parts' packs for ploughs and power harrows. As well as the 40 per cent price reduction on parts earlier this year the packs are said to offer better value than buying the parts separately and can be...

MAIZE MONITOR: Countdown to harvest 2005.
September 2, 2005... Feedback from Maize Monitor contributors around the country is that most crops remain on track for a `textbook' year, and if we continue to enjoy warm and sunny weather many growers in favourable areas should be booking the contractor to cut...

`Young NPA' host special day.
September 2, 2005... A special event to introduce young pig producers into the intricacies of the food supply chain has been organised at the Farmers' Club in London, on September 27. Part of the programme for the `Young NPA', a new section of the National Pig...

Immigrants become permanent fixture.
September 2, 2005... FARMING and related supply chain industries are becoming increasingly dependent on immigrants from eastern Europe, say industry sources. While these mainly filled casual or seasonal jobs in the past, they have become a more permanent...

Genotype markings for ram sale.
September 2, 2005... THE drive to eliminate scrapie is moving up a gear with the NSA Wales and Border Ram Sale committee's decision to introduce the new system of genotype markings at Europe's biggest ram sale at Builth Wells on September 19. The 8,403-strong...

Prevent performance loss after pig feed ban.
September 2, 2005... EXPERIENCE in other countries has shown up to a 10 per cent loss of performance following the banning of antibiotic growth promoters in pig feed, due to be introduced in the UK at the end of this year. However, Nick MacIvor of pig building...

Scottish supply chain insight.
September 2, 2005... THIRTY producers of quality Scottish beef from the Highlands and Islands were given an insight into all stages of the supply chain at a two-day event this week. Part funded through an SAC training project from the Highlands and Islands...

Students save time with sheep race design.
September 2, 2005... A VERSATILE, low cost sheep handling facility, designed and built by a team of agricultural students, has halved the time required for routine shepherding operations at Reaseheath College, Nantwich. Third year National Diploma in...

RBST appeal for rams.
September 2, 2005... The Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) is appealing for more rams for use in its Ram Semen Collection scheme. In three seasons that the project has been in operation, there have been over 100 semen collections, but more rams are needed to...

Pedigree Angus give high quality beef from grass.
September 2, 2005... PEDIGREE Aberdeen-Angus cattle are being used to produce high quality beef from grass on the high-lying Pennine farm of Upper Waterside, Disley, Stockport, Cheshire. Partners, Mary Hamnett and Gordon Oliver, will be hosting a visit from...

Angus in the Lakes and Dales.
September 2, 2005... MORE than 200 delegates from the UK are expected to participate in the four-day `Angus in the Lakes and Dales' tour this autumn, taking place in Cheshire, Cumbria, Yorkshire and Lancashire. The tour is being organised jointly by the PENWAC...

SOUTH WEST DAIRY SHOW: Show veterans enjoy a prize-winning partnership.
September 2, 2005... In October the South West Dairy Show will be celebrating its silver jubilee. The one-day show, which started in 1981, is now a well established event in the West Country. As media partners of this year's show, Farmers Guardian is taking an...

Bambro daughter leads 23rd Gold Top Jerseys at 2,500gns.
September 2, 2005... THE 23rd Gold Top show and sale of pedigree Jerseys at Carlisle saw a great trade for the small selection on offer. The top price was for Danish Du Drambo Crowberry, the reserve champion. Consigned by John and Carol McIlwraith, Dunoon, By...

Zwartble shearling ram tops Continentals trade at 2,800gns.
September 2, 2005... A SHEARLING ram from the Statesman flock of Victoria and Benjamin Stayt was the sale leader at Carlisle, on Friday, when Zwartble sheep went under the hammer. The couple own a flock at Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, and the long trip was...