We are urgently developing research requirements with other European laboratories to make sure we understand and the disease (Schmallenberg) better.Farmers Guardian
April 16, 2010
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‘Island of Ireland’ health initiative up and running
13 April 2010
Ministers and stakeholders in Northern Ireland and the Republic are meeting later this month with the intention of putting together an ‘island of Ireland’ cattle health scheme.
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‘Super dairy’ forced to withdraw plans
12 April 2010
NOCTON Dairies has withdrawn its planning application for an 8,100 cow dairy farm in Lincolnshire.
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Agchem packs improve efficiency
April 16, 2010
NEW developments in agrochemical packaging technology will bring environmental and efficiency benefits, according to manufacturers.
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Agriculture in the national news - April 12
12 April 2010
A DAILY look at how agriculture has hit the headlines across the country (Monday, April 12).
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Agriculture in the national news - April 13
13 April 2010
A DAILY look at how agriculture has caught the headlines across the country (Tuesday, April 13).
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Agriculture in the national news - April 14
14 April 2010
A DAILY look at how agriculture has caught the headlines across the country (Wednesday, April 2010).
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Agriculture in the national news - April 15
15 April 2010
A DAILY look at how agriculture has caught the headlines across the country (Thursday, April 15).
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Agriculture in the national news - April 16
16 April 2010
A DAILY look at how agriculture has caught the headlines across the country (Friday, April 16).
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Arable farmers urged to keep straw
12 April 2010
ARABLE farmers in Scotland have been asked to keep more straw from this coming season’s cereal crops in order to help their livestock colleagues.
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Badger cull ‘a tragedy’ for farmers – Brian May
16 April 2010
THE decision to press ahead with a badger cull is ‘a tragedy’ for farmers according to wildlife campaigner and legendary Queen guitarist Brian May.
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Badger cull Q&A
16 April 2010
FOLLOWING the decision to allow a badger cull in Wales the Welsh Assembly Government has compiled a comprehensive list to answer your most frequently asked questions about the policy.
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Beeston Castle bulls peak at 2,900gns
April 16, 2010
THE Western Holstein Breeders Club’s spring show and sale of bulls at Beeston Castle auction attracted an entry of 40 head.
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Beware of pitfalls if taking advantage of Feed-in Tariffs
April 16, 2010
The installation of a small scale wind project can make an attractive investment for a farming business
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Breedplan data shows better ease of calving
April 16, 2010
The latest figures from the British Charolais Cattle Society show the breed has made improvements to ease of calving without sacrificing growth rate.
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CAP support vital to UK farmers
April 16, 2010
IT is an ‘absolute necessity’ to maintain a realistic support budget for agriculture in the years ahead, said Matt Dempsey, opening the British Society of Animal Science’s (BSAS) annual conference in Belfast.
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Cash boost for Scottish and Irish livestock
13 April 2010
MORE than 7,500 Scottish producers received their share of £23.4 million of European funding this week.
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Cast your vote now for National Beef Stockman of the Future 2010
April 16, 2010
The National Beef Stockman of the Future competition 2010 has finally been whittled down to a shortlist of seven - but which one of these candidates will capture your vote and make it through to the final round?
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Cautious optimism for UK beef sector
April 16, 2010
Beef producers can look forward with some degree of certainty to a period of price stability through 2010.
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Champion British Blonde makes 4,500gns at Moira
April 16, 2010
The Spring show and sale of British Blonde males and females at the pedigree sales arena, Moira, last Friday topped at 4,500gns for the champion bull.
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Concern for livestock as volcanic ash falls
16 April 2010
ASH from the volcanic eruption in Iceland has started falling on Scotland’s northern islands prompting fears among livestock farmers.
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Conservative manifesto tackles badgers and foxes
13 April 2010
A CONSERVATIVE Government would introduce a comprehensive package of measures to tackle TB in cattle and badgers and give MPs a free vote to repeal the fox hunting ban, it has been confirmed.
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Consider life without the Board, wool growers urged
13 April 2010
‘DON’T let the Wool Board be the next Milk Board’ is the message sheep farmers are being mailed from the BWMB.
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Continental champion lamb makes £140 at Gisburn
April 16, 2010
An entry of 33 spring lambs were forward at Gisburn Mart’s April show and sale last week.
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Control docks in grassland without damaging clover
14 April 2010
Docks in grassland need to be controlled - and this can be done without affecting clover, says David Stormonth, technical manager for Interfarm UK.
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Correct boom height helps eliminate spray drift
April 16, 2010
BOOM height is the most influential factor in limiting drift during spraying, new research work has confirmed.
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Dairy expansion enough to make up shortfall
April 16, 2010
Nine per cent of UK dairy farmers are set to quit the industry – but those continuing will produce more than enough milk to cover the loss.
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Deere's Mannheim factory celebrates 50 years
April 16, 2010
JOHN DEERE’S Mannheim tractor factory in Germany celebrates its 50th anniversary in April 2010 as this celebrates the roll-out of the first green and yellow John Deere Lanz tractors from the assembly lines.
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Dingwall’s £1,000 show topper heifer
April 16, 2010
Champion at Dingwall mart’s YFC over-wintered cattle show and sale went to a 11-month-old heifer from Sarah Wilson, Wester Cairnglass, Nairn.
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Direct subsidies won't last forever, warns Paice
15 April 2010
EUROPEAN leaders have been told to develop a fair and common market across country borders because direct subsidy support will not help farmers succeed in the long term.
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Don’t underplay importance of genetics
April 16, 2010
WHILE Mike Coffey agreed good management practices were important to reducing lameness prevalence, he also highlighted the importance of genetics.
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Ellen Whitaker Steals British Open Crown from cousin Robert
12 April 2010
The British Open Show Jumping Championships came to a dramatic finish with the capacity crowd enjoying one of the most exciting finals to date
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EU launches public debate over CAP
12 April 2010
A PUBLIC debate has been launched over the future of the European Union’s £50 billion-a-year farm policy.
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Farmers urged to speak up on EU policy
16 April 2010
THERE has never been a more crucial time for farmers to speak up on the future of the CAP, the NFU has told its members.
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Farmers’ markets – 21st century solution to local sustainability?
April 16, 2010
WITH around 800 farmers’ markets across the country they outnumber Sainsbury’s supermarkets. Clemmie Gleeson looks at their incredible growth over the last 14 years, the credit crunch and what the future holds.
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Farmers’ Markets: Future opportunities and threats
April 16, 2010
AS part of our special feature on farmers markets, Clemmie Gleeson looks at the opportunities and threats offered by the format.
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Farmland prices still increasing
April 16, 2010
Farmland prices increased at auction in the Vale of Clwyd by Davis Meade Property Consultants. Grade 1 land exceeded £34,000/ha (£13,800/acre).
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Fears for SPS delivery as RPA mapping chaos continues
16 April 2010
THOUSANDS of farmers are struggling to fill in their 2010 single payment forms after the Rural Payment Agency failed to send out correct RLR maps.
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Final Holywood dispersal at Borderway
April 16, 2010
The third and final sale to disperse the Holywood herd of pedigree Holstein cattle took place at Borderway Mart last week.
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First new crawlers for hire firm
13 April 2010
Oswestry-based hire company Rob Jones Tractor Hire has recently taken delivery of what is believed to be the first hire fleet of John Deere’s new 345hp 8345RT crawlers.
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First quarter tractor registrations down
13 April 2010
THE AEA (Agricultural Engineers Association) has revealed that during the first quarter of 2010 tractor registrations for units over 50hp were down by 3,394 units, or 14.3 per cent, compared to the equivalent quarter in 2009.
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Five-a-day message falls on deaf ears
14 April 2010
VEGETABLE consumption in the UK has plummeted despite the five-a-day message given to consumers, the latest figures show.
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Fonterra milk auction surges 20 per cent
April 16, 2010
One of the international dairy market barometers – the New Zealand co-op Fonterra’s auction – has seen increases of more than 20 per cent in prices for wholemilk powder, skim powder and anhydrous milk fat.
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Fonterra moves to secure capital position
April 16, 2010
New suppliers will have three years in which to fully ‘share up’ in New Zealand dairy co-operative Fonterra.
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Former HSBC chief takes up new job
15 April 2010
FORMER head of agriculture with HSBC Bank, Pat Tomlinson, has joined a south-west accountancy firm.
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Functionality at your fingertips
April 16, 2010
IsoBus control systems are becoming more widely available with an increasing pool of compatible implements. JANE CARLEY meets one of the converts to the technology.
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Government must allow farmers to flourish - NFUS
13 April 2010
THE next Government must create a policy that allows farming and food production to flourish, NFU Scotland has warned.
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Government 'will fail to meet renewable targets'
April 16, 2010
THE Government is failing to support anaerobic digestion in the UK according to Lord Rupert Redesdale, the chairman of Anaerobic Digestion Biogas Association (ADBA).
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Grass is now approaching top quality
April 16, 2010
WET weather before most of our latest samples were taken has driven dry matters downwards, with a range of 14 to 22 per cent, and many towards the bottom of this scale.
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Grass quality not yield key to silage making
April 16, 2010
THE most important aspect in making high quality silage is the quality of the grass at harvesting, says Dave Davies of Ibers and the Silage Advisory Centre (SilAC).
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Graze cattle and sheep now to benefit grass
April 16, 2010
FOR those farmers grazing beef and sheep instead of dairy, Charlie Morgan, independent grass specialist and Eblex consultant, says the first third of the grazing season will determine the performance of the subsequent two thirds.
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Green party launches election manifesto
15 April 2010
DRASTIC changes to the Common Agricultural Policy, support for a supermarket ombudsman, banning live animal exports and the sale and production of battery eggs are among the key points of the Green Party’s election manifesto.
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Grimme has confidence with new beet harvester
April 16, 2010
Grimme is set to reveal its new six-row trailed beet harvester at Cereals 2010.
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High Court gives go-ahead to badger cull
16 April 2010
THE High Court has given the green light to a badger cull in Wales as part of the Welsh Assembly Government’s plans to eradicate bovine TB (bTB).
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High hopes for new active to sit alongside boscalid
April 16, 2010
FURTHER developments in SDHI fungicide chemistry are on the horizon in the form of a new active ingredient from BASF.
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High starch maize great for beef
April 16, 2010
HAVING grown maize for 12 years, Anthony and Nick Rees have more recently been trying different varieties, including some under plastic. Joanne Pugh visits their beef finishing unit in Pembrokeshire.
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Industry awaits court ruling on badger cull
15 April 2010
THE outcome of the Badger Trust’s High Court legal challenge to a badger cull in West Wales will be known early tomorrow morning (Friday, April 16).
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Johne's disease
April 16, 2010
What is it?A chronic infection involving the small and large intestinesCharacterised by persistent diarrhoea, gradual emaciation and great weaknessSignsVery slow onset with infected cattle unlikely to show symptoms for some timePointers to look for include an unexplained drop in milk yields, diarrhoea in an individual adult animal and loss of conditionDisease spreadCalves up to six months of age are ...
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Kuhn extends feeder and bedder range
April 16, 2010
Kuhn has extended its range of feeders and bedders with the launch of the Primor 3570.
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Labour promise ‘level playing field’ for British farmers
12 April 2010
THE Labour Party has promised to tackle unfair practices from major retailers and to work hard to ensure British farming is ‘profitable and competitive’ in its election manifesto published today (Monday, April 12).
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Lameness fight can be won with a methodical on-farm approach
April 16, 2010
TO reduce lameness in dairy herds, farmers should analyse a range of on-farm environmental factors
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Lib Dems promise farm industry shake-up
14 April 2010
LIBERAL Democrat leader Nick Clegg has announced ambitious plans to shake-up farm payments and redistribute money to Britain’s most vulnerable farmers.
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Libertyview herd sale sees top of 7,000gns
April 16, 2010
Prices reached 7,000gns when Mike Potter sold the major portion of his Libertyview herd of Holsteins at Standish, Gloucestershire.
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Lobbying steps up ahead of key IPPC vote
14 April 2010
THE EUROPEAN Parliament will meet next week to vote on controversial changes to IPPC regulations which could place a heavy burden on pig and poultry farmers in the UK.
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Lower lamb demand leads to redundancies at WCF
April 16, 2010
Reduced demand for lamb at current retail prices is the main contributing factor to redundancies confirmed on Monday at Vion’s big Welsh Country Foods plant on Anglesey.
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Maize Watch April 2010
16 April 2010
Sponsored series with KWS UK. Continuing our series, which runs each month until November, we follow the progress of maize growers in Shropshire and Berkshire.
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Majority of new born calf deaths are preventable
April 16, 2010
OF the average 8 per cent of calves that die at or near birth, 90 per cent are alive at the start of calving so their deaths are potentially preventable, says Bill May of Whitchurch-based vet group Lambert, Leonard and May
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Managing risk to achieve better eyespot control
April 16, 2010
The eyespot threat and approaches to control of the disease were the focus of a round table discussion hosted recently by Bayer CropScience. Teresa Rush reports.
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Mineral N at lower levels than normal
April 16, 2010
SOME measured Soil Mineral N (SMN) results from early spring samplings on arable land are indicating levels in 2010 may be slightly lower than average.
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Muck & maize: Starter fertiliser may boost late-drilled crops
April 16, 2010
?ALSO concerned by the two-week delay in maize drilling in most parts of the UK, Masstock crop nutrition specialist Peter Jones says a starter fertiliser ‘could bring big benefits this year’.
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Muck & maize: Work out optimum seed rates this season
April 16, 2010
Seed rates need to be given a little more consideration than in other maize growing years, according to Simon Draper of the Maize Growers Association.
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Muck and Maize: Pushing the boundaries of maize drilling
April 16, 2010
Northants contractor P. and R. Burbage is using Isobus controls, auto-steering and GPS systems to improve maize drilling accuracy. And there are efficiency gains too, as Geoff Ashcroft found out.
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Near total clearance at Sedgemoor multi-breed show and sale
April 16, 2010
A near total clearance was achieved at Sedgemoor auction centre’s first Spring south west multi-breed show and sale of pedigree beef cattle.
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New firm promises to help growers ‘profit from nutrition’
April 16, 2010
A NEW business in the crop nutrition sector is promising to help growers ‘profit from nutrition’.
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New ideas for growing profitability
April 16, 2010
National Suckler Strategy Group members have come back with ideas from a study tour to France.
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New top team at United Dairy Farmers
14 April 2010
NEW chairman of United Dairy Farmers is John Dunlop and William Hanna has been elected vice-chairman.
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NFU launches stinging attack on milk buyers
20 April 2010
NEW NFU dairy board chairman Mansel Raymond has used his first address to the union’s council to attack buyers over the price they are paying for their milk.
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NZ farmer beats crop world record
19 April 2010
A crop of Einstein winter wheat has achieved a new world wheat record for New Zealand farmer Mike Solari.
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Only use insecticides in OSR if necessary
April 16, 2010
OSR growers are being advised to only apply insecticide if it is absolutely necessary.
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Opportunity to learn all about biogas
April 16, 2010
Farmers Guardian readers are being offered a special discounted rate to attend a biogas mini conference and farm tour on May 11 near Cirencester, Gloucestershire.
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Organic sales slump 12.9 per cent
12 April 2010
ORGANIC food sales slumped by 12.9 per cent to £1.84 billion in 2009 as the recession hit the sector hard, but the area of land dedicated to organic farming grew by 9 per cent.
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Organisations assess N input balances
April 16, 2010
Concerned by the lack of information on how much N to use to produce specific amounts of grass, GrowHow UK is working with North Wyke Research and Cheshire Grassland Society to look at targeting N inputs in grassland.
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Peanuts to be used to trap badgers
12 April 2010
AS both sides of the bovine TB ‘cull or not to cull’ debate await the outcome of last month’s High Court judicial review it has emerged that peanuts are likely to be used as the bait to trap the badgers in the designated West Wales cull area.
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Pixie Lott backs milk campaign
14 April 2010
THE Michelin-starred chef Gordon Ramsay and pop’s new princess Pixie Lott launched the multi-million pound Make Mine Milk on Monday.
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Plaid Cymru acknowledges vital role of farming
14 April 2010
FARMING is central to the prosperity and sustainability of rural communities in Wales, Plaid Cymru has stressed.
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Premium paid for Warrior on buy-back
April 16, 2010
A BUY-BACK contract for the newly-recommended Group 3 soft wheat, Warrior has been announced by Ipswich-based Nidera UK.
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Quitting EU is best for farmers - UKIP
14 April 2010
THE UK Independence Party (UKIP) would withdraw from the EU and retain Britain’s seat at the World Trade Organisation so the UK could pursue agricultural trade policies directly in the national interest.
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Rat control a priority in forage
April 16, 2010
RAT control should to be an essential part of forage-making this season, to prevent silage clamps, big bale stacks and hay barns becoming the reservoirs for serious trouble in autumn and winter, says Charlie Ives, rural hygiene specialist with BASF pest control solutions.
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Red genetics are in strong demand at Bristol
April 16, 2010
A small offering of Aberdeen-Angus males and females at Bristol Sales Centre last week saw strong demand for red genetics and trade top at 3,350gns for bulls and 1,850gns for heifers.
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Remodelled Islay can handle an extra 400 cattle
April 16, 2010
United Auctions has completed a comprehensive upgrade of facilities at Islay auction mart.
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Richard and Mac’s narrow Tewitfield Open win
April 16, 2010
With a single-point advantage Richard Harrison and Mac won the week-day Tewitfield Open trial held at Greenlands Farm Village.
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Rodney Down: Sunshine and 'sexy' wheat keeps us going
April 16, 2010
THE decision to apply urea to most of the dairy grazing has meant that in just over a week we went from an average cover of 1,800kg/ha (728kg/acre) DM to 2,400kg/ha (972kg/acre).
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Royal Welsh livestock schedules released
12 April 2010
MORE than 5,000 livestock schedules for the 2010 Royal Welsh Show at Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, from July 19 to 22 have been posted out to potential exhibitors across the UK.
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Sheepdog results round-up (April 16)
April 16, 2010
Our weekly results round-up shows who has performed well in fixtures around the UK this week.
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Sheepdog trials diary (April 16)
April 16, 2010
Our weekly nationwide look at what’s in store in the sheepdog trials diary
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Simmentals top at 4,200gns as Bristol attracts vendors
April 16, 2010
The reserve male champion in the Simmental Society’s show and sale at the Bristol Sales Centre went on to make top price of 4,200gns.
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South Devon Herd Book Society's new president
April 16, 2010
The South Devon Herd Book Society’s new president is Mike Kettlewell, who owns the Upper Norton herd of South Devons at Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire
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Spanish bid creates record at Willsbro
April 16, 2010
A UK record price for the Holstein breed was set this week when a top of 90,000gns was realised at the Willsbro sale.
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Steve Heard: Spraying at last, but pylon works trauma
April 16, 2010
SO WHO did win “Dancing on Ice”? Fortunately, a still Sunday evening gave me the first chance this season to get the sprayer out and apply 0.33l/ha of Galera to some OSR fields with a threshold level of either thistles, mayweed or both.
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Stoll to launch new mower
April 16, 2010
JF-STOLL will use Scotgrass 2010 to officially launch its new GXF Contour Float front-mounted mower models, which the company claims, include unprecedented suspension movement.
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Sunny side up as egg market sizzles
April 16, 2010
A QUIET revolution is taking place in an area of mid Wales where, for generations, sheep have far outnumbered people and store cattle have a long-standing reputation for quality. Barry Alston takes a look at the freshly feathered enterprise helping to keep farmers farming in the Welsh hills.
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Sunshine greets a class field in Pembrokeshire
April 16, 2010
The decision to postpone the Pembrokeshire Fundraising Open National trial the previous week paid off as the event was held in glorious sunshine, although wet patches meant the course was run diagonally across the field.
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Taking action to control the ‘silent disease’ before it takes hold in a herd
April 16, 2010
WHEN they bought in stock to boost cow numbers, the Beaumont’s got more than they bargained for – the introduction of Johne’s to the herd. Katie Lomas finds out how they are tackling the problem.
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The need for signage: Frogmoor, High Wycombe
April 16, 2010
ORGANISERS of the farmers’ market at Frogmoor in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, have blamed signage difficulties for their decision to stop trading.
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UK Holstein record achieved at Willsbro sale
14 April 2010
PRICES peaked at 90,000gns – a record for a dairy animal sold at a UK auction – at the Royal Cornwall Showground in Wadebridge, Cornwall, last week when the Wills Brothers held a sale from their Willsbro herd of Holsteins.
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Vet warns of nematodirosis threat after a shivery spring
April 16, 2010
The cold spring means an increased risk of nematodirosis in lambs grazing pasture, as worm eggs will hatch slightly later, coinciding with the time when young lambs start eating grass.
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Vets welcome ‘essential’ badger cull
16 April 2010
THE British Veterinary Association has welcomed the green light to implement a badger cull in Wales as an essential tool to control bovine TB.
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Weevil and thrip threat to slowly emerging pulses
April 16, 2010
SPRING pea and bean crops slow to emerge from cold soils will need extra protection from weevil and thrip damage to avoid any further check in growth, says Syngenta.
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Weigh up silage options now for winter
April 16, 2010
THINK about how much silage you will need this winter, rather than how much you can make, says Liz Genever, Eblex livestock scientist.
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Worming grazing dairy animals as vital as treating beef and sheep
April 16, 2010
More than 90 per cent of dairy herds are carrying a high gutworm burden, says Fiona MacGillivray, veterinary adviser for Merial Animal Health, suggesting worming grazing dairy animals is as important as treating beef and sheep.
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Young Farmers set off on tractor marathon
13 April 2010
THREE young farm workers from Lancashire are due to set off on a marathon two-week drive in vintage tractors from John O’Groats to Land’s End this week.