Farmers Guardian
February 24th 2006

  • 1,100 average at Border and Lakeland

    24 February 2006

    The demand for fresh milking Holsteins was evident at the Border and Lakeland Holstein Club sale when 61 animals sold to average £1,100.01 to a top of 2,000gns at Carlisle.

  • A Fells History

    February 24th 2006

    Norfolk gamekeeper Jill Mason’s latest book covers the history of the Eskdale and Ennerdale Foxhounds, as well as raising much-needed funds for the pack. Liz Falkingham reports.

  • A traditional system where basic farming approach works well

    February 24th 2006

    Barry Alston meets up with NFU Cymru’s new vice-president on the family’s North Wales beef and sheep farm.

  • Apricot Tart

    February 24th 2006

    The secretary of Brailsford Ploughing and Hedgecutting Society ladies committee, Pam Yates, has sent this recipe. It comes from a book of recipes produced – and tried and tested – by committee members. They are giving all proceeds from the book to the chemotherapy unit at Derbyshire Royal Infirmary and hope to be able to present a cheque for £1,000.

  • Asda defends its role as Wiseman plans ‘inevitable but unjustified’ price cut

    February 24th 2006

    A cut in liquid milk price for its direct suppliers was expected to be announced by Robert Wiseman Dairies this week, to take effect from March 1.

  • Beckett urged to double HFA budget to safeguard future

    February 24th 2006

    Margaret Beckett has been urged to double the Hill Farm Allowance (HFA) budget in order to safeguard the management of upland areas.

  • Benefiting farms and water

    February 24th 2006

    Plans covering an area 50,000 times the size of Manchester United’s Old Trafford pitch are being put together to benefit wildlife, farm businesses and the quality of water coming out of taps in the North West.

  • Breeder calls for pre-sale inspection appeal after his bull is rejected

    24 February 2006

    A leading Limousin breeder is calling for a change to the pre-sale inspection after his much admired bull was rejected.

  • British Limousin sets a new 100,000gns world record price

    February 24th 2006

    It was a record-breaking six-figure Limousin show and sale at Carlisle’s Borderway Mart, when bull Haltcliffe Vermount went for 100,000gns. Bred by Cumbrian breeders Craig and Matt Ridley, the overall champion sold to Procters Farm, Slaidburn, Lancashire.

  • Chief vet warned of FMD seven months before virus struck

    February 24th 2006

    As the fifth anniversary of the foot-and-mouth outbreak passed this week, the Government’s state of readiness and response has again been questioned, while a report claimed Government aid had been ‘too heavily’ directed towards farming and that rural policies were in more of a mess than before the outbreak.

  • Cleavers treatment is getting earlier

    February 24th 2006

    Cereal growers and advisers are treating cleavers up to six weeks earlier than five years ago thanks to an increased understanding of weed biology and improved herbicides.

  • Confidence despite threat of avian influenza reaching British shores increasing

    February 24th 2006

    Since Farmers Guardian went to press, Defra has reviewed the information it gave on movement restrictions in the event of an outbreak of Avian Influenza.

  • Cross-compliance advice in NVZs is firmed up

    February 24th 2006

    The Environment Agency has firmed up its advice on cross-compliance requirements in Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs), farmers attending the Procam conference at Tattersalls in Newmarket, Suffolk, were told.

  • Defra accused of neglecting rural business recovery

    February 24th 2006

    The Government’s response to the foot-and-mouth crisis and its aftermath was ‘too heavily oriented’ towards the farming industry, a major new research has claimed.

  • Disbelief over plan to scrap scheme with only hints of a replacement

    February 24th 2006

    With March 10 the deadline set for responses to the Welsh Assembly’s Tir Mynydd consultation paper on the future of the hill support scheme, the farming unions in Wales are putting the finishing touches to their reactions – but there is no doubt there will be total condemnation of the proposals.

  • Dyna 4 transmission now optional on revamped Massey Ferguson 5400 range

    February 24th 2006

    The 5400 range from Massey Ferguson has been revamped with the option of a Dyna 4 transmission that is standard on a new model, the four cylinder 125hp 5470.

  • Farming community needs to encourage younger generation

    February 24th 2006

    This week has seen the second instalment of the United Auctions’ Spring Bull Sales at Perth. Auctioneer Alex Fleming is part of the team that deals with this major event and here he talks to Ben Briggs about life in the auction business.

  • Females sell to 4,000gns for Mynach Sporty-sired maiden heifer

    24 February 2006

    Limousin females sold to 4,000gns when a maiden heifer from E.D. Griffiths and Co., Cwmfelin-Mynach, Carmarthenshire, sold to Messrs Jones, Edern, Gwynedd. Mynach Velvet was sired by Mynach Sporty. The same herd sold another maiden heifer at 3,950gns. Mynach Valeri was by Sarrasin and bought by Laga Farms, Arwick, Orkney.

  • First payments are in the bank

    February 24th 2006

    Majority to be made in second half of March

  • Hardi takes a wider stance in self-propelled market with Alpha VariTrack

    February 24th 2006

    Hardi wants to increase its share of the self-propelled sprayer market with the introduction of the Alpha VariTrack.

  • Herbicide to target most maize weeds

    February 24th 2006

    A new maize herbicide for the 2006 season covers the broad-spectrum of weeds found in most UK maize crops.

  • Herd breaks new ground for production and genetics

    24 February 2006

    Breaking new ground, the same Holstein herd has come top on production and genetic performance in the latest NMR annual production report published this month for the year ending September 2005.

  • Illegal meat trade ‘not being tackled’

    February 24th 2006

    Five years after the haunting images of burning pyres and mass graves of the 2001 foot-and-mouth outbreak, the UK Government’s ‘half-hearted commitment’ to tackling imports of sub-standard and illegal meat remains was attacked this week by Farmers Union of Wales president, Gareth Vaughan.

  • Limousin champion hits 100,000gns for new world record

    24 February 2006

    Records tumbled at the Limousin spring show and sale at Carlisle when the champion animal sold for 100,000gns. Ben Briggs reports on an exciting six-figure Saturday.

  • Looking for local producers

    February 24th 2006

    A small business based near Chorley in Lancashire which sells food gifts on the internet is looking for new local food producers.

  • Mothers Day arrangements

    February 24th 2006

    For those looking for a Mother’s Day gift for those with green fingers or aspirations in that direction, Swinton Park, North Yorkshire, is offering a new Flowers for the Home course.

  • Narrower travelling width for Opico grass harrow

    February 24th 2006

    OPICO has redesigned the 6m grass harrow to use three 2m sections compared to the previous model that had four 1.5m sections. The result is a narrower transport width of 2.5m once the outer sections are hydraulically folded.Tine options are 6mm, 7mm and 8mm with prices ranging from £3,075 to £3,173 depending on the diameter of the tine.

  • One thousand sheep under the hammer

    24 February 2006

    Primestock sheep sold to a top of 135p/kg when 1,082 hoggets and 232 ewes and rams went under the hammer at Otley, Yorkshire, on Monday.

  • Potato bed former receives improvements and options

    February 24th 2006

    Lincolnshire based Reekie Potato Equipment has introduced a new four row bed former. The outer bodies are mounted on a parallel linkage allowing them to work at half or full body depth of 500mm. Bed widths are adjustable up to 2.03m.

  • Pressure on UK wool sales and returns

    February 24th 2006

    Unless demand improves dramatically in the next few weeks, British sheep farmers and their Wool Marketing Board are set for a savage downturn in sales and market returns.

  • Pushing for more time on PrM tests

    February 24th 2006

    Farming and livestock market representatives will press for further delays to the introduction of pre-movement testing (PrMT), after an embarrassing 11th hour climbdown by Defra.

  • Regulation Rollout

    February 24th 2006

    New regulations in farming are, regrettably, inevitable and with so many other pressures on your time it is all too easy to overlook something and end up on the back foot. That is why Farmers Guardian is running a six-week special to inform you about new regulation coming into force in 2006. We start this week with a summary, reviewing regulations that have recently been introduced, and looking at the year ahead.

  • Stabilisers help cut input costs as beef unit responds to farm support changes

    24 February 2006

    Reducing input costs on a large scale beef unit in response to changes in farm support was the underlying theme when The Cumbria Farmer Network hosted a farm walk at Brian and Brendan Atkinson’s Scratchmere Scar, Plumpton, near Penrith.

  • Talent spectacular to take place at Royal Highland

    February 24th 2006

    For the first time ever, Scottish YFC members are to stage a four-day talent show at the Royal Highland Show.

  • The ‘magic of mountain mutton’ conjured up on a Mid Wales hill farm

    February 24th 2006

    The ‘magic of mountain mutton’ is being conjured up on a Mid Wales hill farm – and in the farmhouse kitchen.

  • Viewing farm as a pension is ‘no longer viable’ post-SPS

    February 24th 2006

    The introduction of the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) and, additional problems arising from the change in systems at the Rural Payment Agency were expected to cause some producers’ challenges with their cashflow.

  • Wheat bulb fly egg hatch is taking off

    February 24th 2006

    After the recent cold snap wheat bulb fly egg hatch in eastern England is taking off again as the weather and soil temperatures warm up again, warns Dow AgroSciences’ PestWatch service.

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