Farmers Guardian
March 30th 2007

  • ‘Green budget’ a double hit for farmers say Countryside Alliance

    March 30th 2007

    THE budget was a double hit for farmers: They already paid £47 million a year to clear up fly-tipping at their own expense, and now they could look forward to paying more in future, as well as paying more for the 4x4s that were necessary tools of their trade, claimed the Countryside Alliance.

  • ‘More young people should consider art of sheep shearing’

    March 30th 2007

    Top Scottish shearer Hamish Mitchell has urged young farmers in the UK to consider training in a profession that has bought him regular employment and much enjoyment.

  • ‘Royal’ beef is marketed by Pioneer

    March 30th 2007

    FOLLOWING success over six years with its Lakeland brand of beef, lamb and pork, Pioneer Foodservice, of Carlisle, has added beef from the north Scottish Highlands – with a royal stamp of approval – to its range of products.

  • £1000 up for grabs in cattle health planning competition

    3 April 2007

    COLLEGE students are being encouraged to enter a competition worth more than £1,000 in prize money intended to raise awareness of cattle health issues.

  • 12,000 tonnes of grain storage

    March 30th 2007

    CONSTRUCTION work to provide an additional 12,000 tonnes of grain storage and a new intake and out-take facility at Woldgrain Storage is on schedule for completion for harvest 2007.

  • 30 per cent profit boost for the Orkney farmers winning BVD fight

    March 30th 2007

    Since cattle farmers on Orkney launched their BVD eradication scheme in 2001, Farmers Guardian has been plotting their progress with interest – and after six years it is something of a success story.

  • 400 jobs may go at Cranberry plant

    March 30th 2007

    UP to 400 jobs may go at the Cranberry Foods’ turkey processing plant near Abergavenny, South-East Wales.

  • A day in the life of a farrier

    March 30th 2007

    Farriers play an essential role in rural communities, where their skills remain very much in demand. As part of our series on mastercraftsmen, SARAH CRIPPS meets Gloucestershire-based farrier Jonathan Ward to learn more about the profession.

  • Agricultural land auctions

    March 30th 2007

    Fields House Farm, Edisford Road, Clitheroe, Lancashire comprising a farmhouse in need of renovation, stone barn, livestock buildings and 69 acres of grassland was sold in one lot at £1,675,000 by auctioneers Richard Turner and Son, Sawley, Clitheroe.

  • An unusual birth

    March 30th 2007

    Matthew Staley of Kaber, Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria had a surprise when this Swaledale ewe scanned for four lambs.

  • Are partnership agreements an outdated basis for modern business?

    March 30th 2007

    ‘Playing the Best Hand for Your Business’ was the title of a seminar organised by the CLA. Chaired by John Kerr, East Anglian farmer and regional chairman of seminar co-sponsor Clydesdale Bank, speakers focused on the preparation and review of business plans.

  • Audi A5

    March 30th 2007

    Audi has expanded its line-up with the A5 – a two-door, four seat sports coupe that brings two V6 TDIs and two direct injection petrol FSI V6s to UK customers.

  • Beef up your returns with Eblex at Beef Expo

    March 30th 2007

    A key feature at this year’s Beef Expo event will be the strong presence of Eblex and its Beef Better Returns Programme, as Netta de la Cour and colleagues explain.

  • Benefits of wormers on milk production seen by producers, says survey

    March 30th 2007

    Dairy producers are increasingly seeing the benefits of using wormers as a tool in limiting the sub-clinical, but negative, effects of parasites on milk production, according to a recent survey of producers’ attitudes conducted by Merial Animal Health.

  • Bid for TB Action Group to continue

    March 30th 2007

    HOPES were expressed that the Wales TB Action Group would remain in being after May’s Welsh Assembly elections.

  • Blonde tops Easter prime show

    March 30th 2007

    A HOMEBRED Blonde d’ Aquitaine cross heifer took the top honours at the Easter prize show and sale of prime butchers cattle at Cockermouth market.

  • Brands have made explaining what’s on offer much simpler

    March 30th 2007

    EXPORTS of wheat have been boosted by the development of the uks and ukp brands, according to grain merchant Frontier Agriculture, who have been using the brands since their introduction in 2004.

  • Brisk trade at Lancaster spring sale

    March 30th 2007

    A TOP of 6,000gns, a fast trade and high averages were realised when an entry of 200 pedigree Holstein cattle went under the hammer at the Lancaster spring special sale.

  • Bull to 6,200gns at Devon Society show

    March 30th 2007

    BREEDERS from far and wide came to buy bulls at the Devon Cattle Breeders Society spring show and sale of Red Ruby Devons held at Taunton Market, Somerset.

  • Calf export trade in disarray as AEF faces collapse

    March 30th 2007

    THE calf export trade was thrown into disarray this week as the farmer’s co-operative that started amid so much hope last May faces likely closure.

  • Champion fetches 6,000gns at Border and Lakeland Holstein club spring show and sale

    March 30th 2007

    A TOP price of 6,000gns was achieved for the champion bull at the Border and Lakeland Holstein club’s spring prize show and sale of pedigree Holstein and British Friesian bulls held at Carlisle.

  • Cheshire purchaser gets 28kg

    4 April 2007

    BIDDING rose to £1,100 at Uttoxeter at Derby’s pedigree dairy sale for Chanderlea Winnie 24 from Messrs White, Wingerworth, Chesterfield.

  • CLA warn of give and take situation

    March 30th 2007

    IT should always be remembered that this Chancellor would quite happily take away what he gave by another means, warned the Country Land and Business Association.

  • Compensation and culling ‘unlikely’ if bluetongue strikes

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA has said it is ‘unlikely’ livestock would be culled if bluetongue reached Britain, even on infected premises, raising fears the livestock industry could be left dangerously exposed to the virus.

  • CONFERENCE NEWS IN BRIEF

    March 30th 2007

    Hopes for rise in liquid prices

  • Continental ewes claim first prize

    4 April 2007

    A PEN of four Continental ewes with twin lambs at foot claimed a first prize at the first show and sale of ewes with lambs at foot at Clitheroe, Lancashire, this season.

  • Controlling coccidiosis in ewes and lambs

    March 30th 2007

    WITH ewes and lambs out at grazing, now is the time to think about the management of coccidiosis, says Dr Colin Shorrock, technical manager with the Denis Brinicombe Group.

  • Cut wastage – boost calf survival

    30 March 2007

    FINDING ways to manage cows and calves to improve calf survival could substantially boost returns in many suckler herds and significantly reduce the estimated £10 million annual cost of calf mortality to the industry, says the English Beef and Lamb Executive (Eblex).

  • Cutting plant will not be prosecuted

    3 April 2007

    THE Food Standards Agency has announced that it is not going prosecute poultry giant Bernard Matthews for breaching regulations.

  • Cutting plant will not be prosecuted

    3 April 2007

    THE Food Standards Agency has announced that it is not going prosecute poultry giant Bernard Matthews for breaching regulations.

  • Dansco is saved by Canadian processor

    March 30th 2007

    CANADA’S largest dairy processor, Saputo, has bought West Wales cheesemaker Dansco out of administration.

  • Defra caught out by poultry numbers

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA has discovered it is vastly underestimating the amount of poultry holdings in the UK.

  • Defra implements EU scab tolerance

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA has announced that the EC minimum tolerance for common scab is to apply to all pre-basic, basic and certified grades of seed potatoes in England and Wales.

  • Devon market sees strong trade

    4 April 2007

    STRONG trade and a top price of £1,320 was realised twice at the March show and sale of dairy cattle at Holsworthy market, Devon.

  • Don’t let farmhouses fall into tax trap

    March 30th 2007

    MAKE absolutely sure that your farm business is being run from the farmhouse.

  • EFRA committee inquires into ELD implementation

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA’S implementation of the Environmental Liability Directive is the subject of a new inquiry.

  • Encouraging prospects for beef in 2007

    March 30th 2007

    FEWER calves are being disposed of on-farm and exports are growing.

  • English Sheepdog Trials Results

    March 30th 2007

    HESKETH BANK, Open (50 ran) 1. T. Longton (Quernmore) Jake, 89 of 100; 2. T.W. Longton (Quernmore) Jake, 85; 3. T.W. Longton, Lady, 76; 4. Sophie Holt (Rawtenstall) Harvey, 74; 5. I. Ibbetson (Oakworth) Zac,69; 6. E. Moore (Oxenhope) Roy, 67.

  • Experience counts as Jake pips his namesake

    March 30th 2007

    THE annual Hesketh Bank open trial was held in glorious weather last Saturday on an expansive flat field beside the Ribble estuary.

  • Fair price provides the foundations for Hoskin family beef farm

    March 30th 2007

    Disparity in the supply chain is a constant gripe for the farming industry, and is a key focus of Farmers Guardian’s ‘Fair Trade For British Farmers’ campaign. However, there are examples of farmers who are getting a fair price and, in turn, looking forward to the future. Maiden Castle Farm is one such business, as DAVID BURROWS reports.

  • Farm advice service to close

    March 30th 2007

    THE Farm Business Advice Service (FBAS) will no longer be available from Monday (April 1).

  • Farmers stand up for fair trade

    2 April 2007

    MORE farmers have come forward to give evidence to the Competition Commission’s on-going investigation into the grocery market.

  • Fewer options and increased costs

    March 30th 2007

    LOSS of either isoproturon (IPU) or trifluralin is disappointing but loss of the two active ingredients together raises questions over the continuing availability of alternative herbicide options available to growers.

  • Fighting against disclosure of ‘commercially sensitive’ Single Payment details

    March 30th 2007

    NFU Cymru has said it would fight ‘tooth and nail’ the Welsh Assembly’s intention to disclose full names, main farm addresses and postcodes – and did not accept the ‘in the public interest’ argument being put forward in any way.

  • First mainland ‘known status’ sale

    March 30th 2007

    THE first ever sale of ‘BVD known status’ cattle to take place on the mainland of the UK has been announced by HI Health, the organisation contracted by the Orkney Livestock Association to oversee disease eradication and accreditation.The sale will take place at Dingwall Mart, Ross-shire on Wednesday, April 25, 2007 and, according to HI Health, will be followed by further sales at the same market and also ones at Huntley and Perth.

  • First-timer lands Lioness OSR prize

    March 30th 2007

    YORKSHIRE farmer David Massey is the winner of the DLF Trifolium/Farmers Guardian competition to find the highest oil content achieved for the variety Lioness last harvest.

  • From The Drawing Board

    March 30th 2007

    Of the thousands of applications put through the patent departments each year, only a handful ever makes it to the commercial stage. In a new series, Farmers Guardian aims to lift the lid off some of the more interesting tractor and machine patent applications, and provide a hint of some of the new machines we can expect in the future.

  • Fun farming family wanted for new documentary series

    March 30th 2007

    A MEDIA company is looking a fun, outgoing farming family, who juggle hard work and raising children, to feature in a Channel 4 documentary series.

  • FUW policy director heads back to his roots at Snowdonia estate

    March 30th 2007

    ARWYN Owen, the director of policy with the Farmers Union of Wales for the past six years and a key member of the union’s staff since 1992, is returning to his farming roots.

  • Germans push welfare labelling

    March 30th 2007

    THE German EU presidency has pressed for an EU-wide compulsory labelling scheme to give details of animal welfare.

  • Gold countryside skills challenge awards for Bridgwater students

    March 30th 2007

    Following a successful Ofsted inspection, Bridgwater College in Somerset has been named as an ‘outstanding college’.

  • Grampian Easter Strike

    29 March 2007

    THOUSANDS of staff at the meat processing giant Grampian are going on strike in the run-up to Easter.

  • Grampian Easter strike suspended

    3 April 2007

    A STRIKE by thousands of staff at the meat processing giant Grampian has been called off this week.

  • Growers and dealers flock to dispersal sale

    March 30th 2007

    A LARGE crowd of growers and dealers attended the complete dispersal sale of tractors, implements and machinery from the Moss Farm Group at Croston, Lancashire last Saturday.

  • Growers and dealers flock to dispersal sale

    March 30th 2007

    A LARGE crowd of growers and dealers attended the complete dispersal sale of tractors, implements and machinery from the Moss Farm Group at Croston, Lancashire.

  • Harrison and Hetherington Ltd farm sale

    3 April 2007

    Harrison & Hetherington Ltd conducted a farm sale on behalf of PV Dobson on Saturday 24 March.

  • Herbicides to be withdrawn

    March 30th 2007

    THE Pesticides Safety Directorate (PSD) has published details of herbicides containing trifluralin that are to be withdrawn following the EU’s vote last month for the non-inclusion of the active ingredient on Annex 1.

  • Higher incidence of husk a result of the warmer climate

    March 30th 2007

    GLOBAL warming is having quite an effect on the diseases that we see in practice – calf pneumonia has been more and more of a problem this winter from the warm and humid weather conditions and the same has been seen with clinical mastitis during the housed period.

  • Hill Farm payments begin

    March 30th 2007

    THE Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has started to make Hill Farm Allowance (HFA) payments, with about 4,000 claimants in England – around 40 per cent of the total – scheduled to receive partial payments by early April.

  • Hoggs claim championship honours

    4 April 2007

    THREE hoggs from Fox Farms, Withgill, Clitheroe, claimed the championship honours at the show and sale of Beltex sired hoggs at Clitheroe.

  • Househam‘s £1m Russian deal

    March 30th 2007

    Househam Sprayers has secured an export deal to Russia worth over £1million. The first machines are already on their way, each costing over £100,000.

  • How the budget adds up

    March 30th 2007

    FARMING and other rural businesses have taken some serious hits in the Budget, commentators are agreed. But there have been one or two other measures that maybe sweeten the pill a little. Carmen Suarez at the NFU has been examining just what the various measures add up to.

  • Ideal weather gets sugar beet

    March 30th 2007

    WITH warm and sunny spring-like weather and near ideal soil conditions in the first half of the month beet drilling got off to a flying start.

  • Imported animals and midges main route for infection

    March 30th 2007

    THE BTV8 strain of the virus is currently endemic in large parts of Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, in particular.

  • Improve your calf management

    31 March 2007

    WATCH Dairy Vet's video reports on calf management from the south-west farmers' meeting and pick up some valuable pointers from experts in the field.

  • Inability to respond to opportunity in smp

    2 April 2007

    INFLEXIBLE milk processing and manufacturing capacity in the UK is holding back producers’ returns, says a consultant.

  • International role for major milk co-op

    March 30th 2007

    FORMER chief executive of the big New Zealand milk co-op Fonterra, Craig Norgate, has said he believes a preoccupation at board level with domestic issues such as capital structures and milk pricing has diverted both directors and shareholders from the ‘bigger picture’.

  • Joules withdrawn from market

    4 April 2007

    THE fungicide Joules has been withdrawn following a Pesticides Safety Directorate investigation into the supply of chlorothalonil products.

  • Just Ask at the Busy Farmers

    March 30th 2007

    SINCE it opened its doors to the public last weekend, customers at new a North Yorkshire cafe and farm shop have been encouraged to ask where the food on their plates has come from.

  • Knight spray equipment for Challenger Rogator 618

    March 30th 2007

    Knight Farm Machinery can now fit its spray equipment to the Challenger Rogator 618. There is a choice of 4,000 or 5,000 litre stainless steel tanks and booms measuring up to 36m.

  • Lamb producers challenged to consider marketing schedules

    March 30th 2007

    A CALL for the whole lamb supply chain to work together to help change the grading and payment system for prime lamb was made at a conference held by the Charollais Sheep Society to celebrate its 30th anniversary.

  • Lambing on show at Reaseheath

    March 30th 2007

    Both agricultural students and the public received a practical lambing lesson when Reaseheath College, Cheshire, lambed its 400-head flock of North Country Mules earlier this month.

  • Leading the fight against the disease

    March 30th 2007

    THIS feature is set to be first of several looking at BVD and the possibility of a successful eradication programme in the UK.

  • Life membership for Ulsterman

    March 30th 2007

    HONORARY life membership of the Hampshire Down Sheep Breeders’ Association has been awarded to John Smyth – the first Ulsterman to ever be granted the award.Mr Smyth, a sheep farmer from Carryduff, County Down, was recognised for his ‘distinguished service to the breed for over 26 years at both regional and national level’.

  • Limousin heifer gets top money

    4 April 2007

    THE inaugural sale of 131 store and suckler bred calves held at Leek market saw a top price of £630 on Saturday.

  • Location ‘absolutely vital’ to diversification success

    March 30th 2007

    THERE were three Ls that were absolutely vital to the success of a farm shop – location, location, location. If the farm was not in the right location, a farm shop diversification was unlikely to succeed.

  • Look at the options to ensure farming survives

    March 30th 2007

    AS I get closer to the big three zero, I have been think about what I have achieved with my life. A bit morbid I know, but it’s been an interesting exercise.

  • Lutman Memorial at Goodwood

    March 30th 2007

    THE Colin Lutman Memorial Sheepdog Trial will once again be staged on the Goodwood Estate, Chichester, West Sussex. The event, held in memory of Colin Lutman, who died in May 1997, at the age of 49, will be held over the weekend of September 29 and 30.

  • Maintaining all-round Holstein progress

    March 30th 2007

    Some of the best black and white cows in the country will be present at next month’s National Holstein Show. Ahead of the event, Holstein UK takes a look at the progress the breed has made in recent years.

  • Maltsters aim to increase their exports

    March 30th 2007

    HGCA, in conjunction with Greencore Malt, hosted a delegation of brewers from the Caribbean to further the export opportunities for UK malt.

  • Meat plant merger good for farmers claim

    29 March 2007

    THE completion of meat processor Dunbia’s takeover of Kepak’s main English meat plant from April 1 will be good news for beef and lamb producers insists Dunbia.

  • Meat plant merger good for farmers claim

    29 March 2007

    THE completion of meat processor Dunbia’s takeover of Kepak’s main English meat plant from April 1 will be good news for beef and lamb producers insists Dunbia.

  • Merged meat plants seeking more stock

    March 30th 2007

    THE completion of meat processor Dunbia’s takeover of Kepak’s main English meat plant this weekend will be good news for beef and lamb producers, insists Dunbia.

  • Miliband defends modulation decision

    2 April 2007

    DAVID Miliband has defended the decision to impose higher rates of modulation in England than anywhere else in the UK or Europe.

  • Milk: Price rises starting for liquid market

    March 30th 2007

    DAIRY Crest says it will pass back to producers all the price increase it receives for milk supplies to its two major customers, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s.

  • Modulation rate set at 17pc for 2007

    29 March 2007

    FARMERS in England face modulation cuts of 17 per cent this year, a figure that will rise to 19 per cent from 2009 onwards.

  • Modulation set at 19pc

    March 30th 2007

    FARMERS in England will lose 17 per cent of their 2007 Single Payments through modulation cuts, a figure that will rise to 19 per cent from 2009 onwards.

  • More common sense applied to the CAP as Fischer Boel succeeds in reducing red tape

    March 30th 2007

    EUROPEAN Union Agriculture Commissioner, Marian Fischer Boel, has lived up to her commitment to reduce CAP red tape.

  • More paperwork is a mixed blessing for farm business

    March 30th 2007

    INCREASING paperwork and regulation is a cause of complaint for most farmers, but Christine Thompson who runs Reagarth Farm Administration Services has mixed feelings.

  • Mosaic virus symptoms strong

    March 30th 2007

    BARLEY mosaic virus symptoms in non-resistant varieties are the strongest seen for many years, according to Nickerson.  Now is a good time for growers to check their winter barley fields for mosaic virus infection, says Paul Fenwick of the company’s plant pathology team.

  • MPs: Heads should have rolled over SPS fiasco

    March 30th 2007

    FORMER Defra Secretary of State Margaret Beckett should have been demoted, and at least one senior civil servant sacked, for the ‘catastrophic’ handling of the Single Payments Scheme, MPs said this week.

  • Myerscough opens HE centre

    March 30th 2007

    The new higher education centre at Mysercough College, Lancashire, has been officially opened by Lord Shuttleworth, college patron and Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire.

  • New additions join NIAB Recommended List

    4 April 2007

    SIX new sugar beet varieties join the NIAB Recommended List for the first time for 2008 taking the total number of varieties available for selection up to 22.

  • New look agricultural stats include rising energy costs

    2 April 2007

    DEFRA’s annual report on agriculture has for the first time included a feed and fuel cost in its 2006 figures.

  • New look agricultural stats include rising energy costs

    2 April 2007

    DEFRA’s annual report on agriculture has for the first time included a feed and fuel cost in its 2006 figures.

  • New research funding to benefit flowers growers across the UK

    March 30th 2007

    FLOWER growers in Lincolnshire and elsewhere in the UK should benefit from a new research initiative funded by Leader+ (a European Community Initiative) and Defra.

  • New Rodeo has plenty to offer

    March 30th 2007

    Isuzu first introduced the Rodeo some four years ago, and has now updated its pickup with a smaller, gutsier engine that just clings on and on – and it is quiet too. Mervyn Bailey sees what else it has to offer.

  • new rules on IPU and trifluralin in the UK

    March 30th 2007

    IPU – what has happened?: The Pesticides Safety Directorate has announced that the advertisement, sale, supply and use of all products containing IPU, including mixture products, is to be phased out in the UK by June 30, 2009. All existing approvals have been amended with immediate effect to restrict the maximum application rate to 1.5kg/ha (1,500g of AI per hectare) during the withdrawal period.

  • News in brief

    March 30th 2007

    SVS is a part of Animal Health

  • NFU Cymru’s support for a flexible CAP

    March 30th 2007

    BARRY ALSTON reports from NFU Cymru’s spring council meeting at Builth Wells.

  • No merger this year for Agriscot and Scottish Winter Fair

    March 30th 2007

    THERE will still be two separate primestock shows at the Royal Highland Showground, Edinburgh, this winter, despite talks between the Scottish Winter Fair and AgriScot to merge the events.

  • NZ crossbred wool loses its traditional premium

    March 30th 2007

    NEW Zealand crossbred wool has lost its traditional price premium over UK wools as processing knowledge and machinery has shifted to China, India and Pakistan.

  • Occupying and registering land

    March 30th 2007

    STEPHEN ROOT, litigation partner with Harrogate-based Berwins Solicitors LLP, discusses ‘adverse possession’, the legal term to describe how a person who is occupying land can, in certain circumstances, gain title to it.

  • Opening up new markets for UK wheat

    March 30th 2007

    BRITISH wheats are suitable for international bread making and can be used for a variety of world breads. That was the message from the HGCA’s British Cereal Exports team to millers and bakers from around the world when they visited the UK recently to attend a Bread Baking Workshop in Gloucestershire. JOANNA BAKER asked the HGCA how the visit helps the UK wheat export market, which has an average availability of 2.5 to 3 million tonnes a year.

  • Opportunity for farmers to take advantage of rise in land fill tax

    March 30th 2007

    SMALL rural businesses would be hit hardest by the Budget, said Louis Fell of North East chartered surveyors George F. White.

  • Opposition to outbreak plans

    March 30th 2007

    DAIRY farmers have made clear their opposition to Government plans to get them to pay for disease outbreaks.The Royal Association for British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) said this week it would be ‘inconceivable’ for dairy farmers to take on the extra costs in the current financial climate. They also said it was wrong for farmers to agree to cost-sharing while the Government refused to properly tackle the issue of bovine TB.

  • Plans for stand-alone role are ‘shelved’

    March 30th 2007

    ANY possibility of NFU Cymru becoming a ‘stand alone’ organisation has been shelved by the union’s board of management – but ways and means of strengthening its role, structure and affiliation with England will form the basis of an in-depth ‘vision for the future’ assessment.

  • Prices peak at £5,000 at Carlisle sale of Continental cross calves

    March 30th 2007

    PRICES peaked at £5,000 twice when the two day show and sale of 2,537 Continental cross suckled heifer and bullock calves took place at Carlisle on Friday and Saturday.

  • Promoting Welsh meat in Belgium

    March 30th 2007

    A MARKETING drive to promote Welsh lamb and beef in Belgium saw Hybu Cig Cymru’s presence at a top trade show in Kortrijk.

  • Protest forces removal of party political comments from blog

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA Secretary David Miliband has been forced to remove ‘party political’ comments from his blog, after complaints from the Conservatives.

  • Providing skills for next generation of agricultural workers

    March 30th 2007

    While some colleges are winding up their agriculture courses, Writtle College has plans to extend and improve its provision for the next generation of farmers, farm managers, agronomists and consultants. CLEMMIE GLEESON reports.

  • RABF firmly against disease cost-sharing

    March 30th 2007

    IT would be ‘inconceivable’ for dairy farmers to share the cost of animal health controls while the issue of bovine TB remained unresolved, the Royal Association for British Dairy Farmers has claimed.

  • Record Ayrshire semen sales

    March 30th 2007

    THE marketing arm of the Ayrshire Cattle Society – Cattle Service (Ayr) – has reported record sales of semen in 2006.

  • Record pedigree numbers at Western Holstein spring show

    March 30th 2007

    A RECORD entry of 131 pedigree Holsteins were present at the Western Holstein club’s spring show held at Southview equestrian centre, Nantwich, Cheshire.

  • Record pedigree numbers at Western Holstein spring show

    March 30th 2007

    A RECORD entry of 131 pedigree Holsteins were present at the Western Holstein club’s spring show held at Southview equestrian centre, Nantwich, Cheshire.

  • Red meat linked to breast cancer

    4 April 2007

    REPORTS by the media that post-menopausal women who eat red meat have a significantly increased chance of breast cancer are “misleading” said the meat industry this week.

  • Red meat linked to breast cancer

    4 April 2007

    REPORTS by the media that post-menopausal women who eat red meat have a significantly increased chance of breast cancer are “misleading” said the meat industry this week.

  • Reducing cow emissions

    March 30th 2007

    SCIENTISTS may already have the answer for reducing cows’ contribution to global warming through methane emissions.

  • Research merger would be of international importance

    March 30th 2007

    MERGING the Aberystwyth-based Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research with the University of Wales – exclusively reported in last week’s Farmers Guardian – would result in Wales having a research facility of major international importance, said Prof Chris Pollock, the institute’s retiring director.

  • Rhug removes trans-fatty acids in produce

    March 30th 2007

    ONE of the country’s biggest organic livestock producers – the North Wales-based Rhug Estate – is highlighting its dedication to healthy food with a self-imposed ban on trans-fatty acids in its produce.

  • Risk of major tax implications for farmers

    March 30th 2007

    GORDON Brown’s final budget as Chancellor could have major tax implications for farmers, according to Lancashire tax specialist Laurence Parry.

  • Road Test – Land Rover Defender

    March 30th 2007

    In its 60-year history, Land Rover’s Defender – and the models before it – has developed something of a cult following. And without sales gimmicks or hype, the firm proudly sells a steady 23,000 of them every year.

  • Safeguarding water for farming in the future

    March 30th 2007

    Irrigated agriculture and horticulture brings around £10 million per year into the local economy of east Suffolk. Alison Lea profiles a group that works to safeguard water for farmers.

  • Sale attracts overseas buyers

    3 April 2007

    BUYERS travelled from Poland and Ireland for an entry of 1,150 lots at the quarterly collective sale of tractors, vehicles, farm machinery, plant and small tools at Forton Airfield, Montford Bridge, near Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

  • Sales up 25pc at Shrewsbury

    March 30th 2007

    ONE year on from moving to its new purpose-built site, the Shrewsbury Auction Centre is selling 25 per cent more animals than at the town’s old market.

  • Scene by the vet - March

    March 30th 2007

    GLOBAL warming is having quite an effect on the diseases that we see in practice – calf pneumonia has been more and more of a problem this winter from the warm and humid weather conditions and the same has been seen with clinical mastitis during the housed period.

  • Scientists use grassland for £1 million project

    4 April 2007

    GRASSLAND could soon be the source of a range of chemicals used in plastics, coatings and cosmetics, according to a team of scientists based in Wales.

  • Sclerotinia disease monitoring for 2007 goes live

    March 30th 2007

    THIS season’s sclerotinia germination monitoring service for oilseed rape went live on Monday at www.totaloilseedcare.co.uk.

  • Scotbeef opens £17m retail packing plant

    March 30th 2007

    SCOTBEEF, which processes over 80,000 cattle and 500,000 lambs a year, has opened the doors on what is the largest investment by a UK meat company in recent years.

  • Sheep EID tags will be next to useless if EU proposals are approved

    March 30th 2007

    EU proposals to introduce electronic identification for sheep have been branded as ‘more ludicrous than ever’ by the Farmers Union of Wales following Defra Minister Ben Bradshaw’s confirmation that the number of unique sheep numbers would be severely limited due to petty bureaucracy.

  • SHEEPDOG TRIALS DIARY

    March 30th 2007

    England 31 March. YORKSHIRE Novice Trial with Nursery,Trawden Showfield, Trawden, Colne, Lancashire. 9am start. Enter on field. No open tickets for nursery dogs. No limit on entries. Caterer on field.1 April. COLDEN Open, Great House Farm, Colden, Hebden Bridge, 8.30am start. Enter on field.Wales14 April. LLANDEUSANT SDT, Panthowell Lodge; Open National; two sessions; start 8am. Entry on field; catering.

  • Show your support for our campaign at this summer’s shows

    March 30th 2007

    FARMERS Guardian is appealing for out-going young farmers to help drum up support for its Fair Trade for British Farmers campaign at agricultural shows throughout the summer.

  • Show your support for our campaign at this summer’s shows

    March 30th 2007

    FARMERS Guardian is appealing for out-going young farmers to help drum up support for its Fair Trade for British Farmers campaign at agricultural shows throughout the summer.

  • Show your support for our campaign at this summer’s shows

    March 30th 2007

    FARMERS Guardian is appealing for out-going young farmers to help drum up support for its Fair Trade for British Farmers campaign at agricultural shows throughout the summer.

  • Show your support for our campaign at this summer’s shows

    March 30th 2007

    FARMERS Guardian is appealing for out-going young farmers to help drum up support for its Fair Trade for British Farmers campaign at agricultural shows throughout the summer.

  • Simba export boost

    March 30th 2007

    Simba looks set to increase its export business after signing a deal with French firm Bonnel.

  • Small clubs are vital to animal health and welfare

    March 30th 2007

    DEFRA was given a sharp reminder of the importance of smaller organisations and societies to raising animal health and welfare levels last Thursday (March 22).

  • Small companies face higher bills

    March 30th 2007

    MOST rural businesses would finds themselves facing a higher tax bill, warned Mike Harrison, partner in the Landed Estates Group at Saffery Champness.

  • Solid trading for Dairy Crest

    March 30th 2007

    SIGNIFICANT business expansion and trading ‘in line with expectations’ are the key aspects of Dairy Crest’s pre-close trading update for the year ending March 31, 2007.

  • Spaldings Broadcaster

    March 30th 2007

    Spaldings is increasing its implement lines with a 100-litre broadcaster for small seeds and slug pellets.

  • Spray pressure mounts on early wheats

    4 April 2007

    FOR the second year running growers are facing up to the prospects of high spring spray costs to keep over-proud crops on course.

  • SPS progress in England remains slow

    March 30th 2007

    PROGRESS on 2006 Single Payments in England continues to be slow.

  • Stepping down

    March 30th 2007

    AFTER 15 years at the top of Leyburn Livestock Auction Mart, Coverdale farmer Geoff Lambert has stepped down from his position as chairman of the company to make way for vice-chairman Richard Tuer, Bishopdale.Phil Terry, a dairy, beef and sheep farmer from Barden, Leyburn, has been elected vice-chairman.

  • Suffolk Sheep Society praised for embracing change

    March 30th 2007

    MEMBERS of the Suffolk Sheep Society were praised for embracing change by Dr Steven Johnson, a beef and sheep technologist.

  • Supply and demand rules still hold true

    March 30th 2007

    FARM income has tracked the relationship between Sterling and the Euro for the past 20 years.

  • Tackling the complex issues of BVD head on

    March 30th 2007

    With a complex variety of symptoms and effects, Bovine Viral Diarrhoea is a difficult disease to tackle. Here JOANNE PUGH takes an in-depth look at the related issues and how attainable complete UK eradication would be.

  • Temperature and altitude aid spread of the disease

    March 30th 2007

    CHANGES in temperature and altitude were the main factors behind the spread of bluetongue disease across Northern Europe last year.

  • Tesco creates dedicated supply group and pays 22ppl

    3 April 2007

    IN a £25 million initiative, Tesco is creating a direct milk supply pool of around 850 producers – and paying them 22ppl which is currently the highest price being paid to supermarket suppliers and represents around a 4ppl increase for most.

  • Tesco creates dedicated supply group and pays 22ppl

    3 April 2007

    IN a £25 million initiative, Tesco is creating a direct milk supply pool of around 850 producers – and paying them 22ppl which is currently the highest price being paid to supermarket suppliers and represents around a 4ppl increase for most.

  • Tesco creates dedicated supply group and pays 22ppl

    3 April 2007

    IN a £25 million initiative, Tesco is creating a direct milk supply pool of around 850 producers – and paying them 22ppl which is currently the highest price being paid to supermarket suppliers and represents around a 4ppl increase for most.

  • TFA accuse Brown of ‘ignoring’ agriculture

    March 30th 2007

    THE Tenant Farmers Association accused the Chancellor of completely ignoring the farming community and farm tenants in particular in the Budget.

  • The five Better Returns Programme zones

    March 30th 2007

    ZONE ONE

  • The Ryeland Flock Book Society - 100 Years 1903-2003

    2 April 2007

    THE publication of George Yeats' history of one hundred years of the Ryeland Flock Book Society was intended to co-incide with its centenary in 2003.

  • The Welsh Grassland Societies’ silage competition championship winners

    March 30th 2007

    A dairy farmer from West Wales and a beef and sheep producer from Anglesey have taken the championship awards in this year’s two Federation of Welsh Grassland Societies silage competitions.

  • Tir Mynydd cuts restored in vote

    March 30th 2007

    WELSH Assembly Opposition AMs have honoured their pledge to vote in favour of restoring payment cuts in the Wales-based Tir Mynydd hill farming support scheme.

  • Top price and the champion join Hellifield herd

    March 30th 2007

    A TOP price of £1,220 was achieved on Monday when the February Craven Dairy Auction got underway at Skipton .

  • Traditional Hungarian Goulash

    March 30th 2007

    “THIS recipe was given to me by a Hungarian friend when I lived in Budapest,” says sender Joanna Radford, from Melrose, Roxburghshire.

  • Trifluralin exclusion bad news for black grass management

    March 30th 2007

    THE EU vote to exclude the herbicide active ingredient trifluralin from Annex 1 is bad news for farmers and will create a major challenge for effective grass weed control on UK farms, according to James Knight of Dow AgroSciences.

  • Turnout decisions affect the whole grazing season

    March 30th 2007

    By David Burns, Promar regional consultant

  • UK cattle test deal could be worth £10m

    March 30th 2007

    THE introduction of a DNA testing process, which will allow cattle previously without passports to be fully registered, could be worth more than £1 million to the Scottish beef industry and more than £10 million UK-wide.

  • UK Government’s lack of regard for rural life

    March 30th 2007

    FARMING had been made the victim of the Chancellor’s bid to boost his green credentials by sparing no thoughts for farmers and rural dwellers in his Budget, said the Farmers Union of Wales.

  • US research reveals that organic food is better for you

    March 30th 2007

    ORGANIC food is better for you – at least that is what American researchers have decided following tests on kiwi fruit grown by both organic and conventional methods.

  • Voluntary IPU compliance will prevent compulsion

    March 30th 2007

    THE chairman of the Voluntary Initiative’s water sub-groups has called on farmers and advisors to redouble their efforts in support of the best practice measures promoted by the industry-wide initiative following the Pesticides Safety Directorate announcement on isoproturon.

  • Volvo XC70

    March 30th 2007

    Volvo has revamped its XC70 all-wheel drive estate, which gets a second generation 2.4-litre five-cylinder D5 turbo diesel engine, packing 185hp and 400Nm of torque.

  • VW Golf Estate

    March 30th 2007

    After a period of absence from the estate car market since it introduced the hatchback-only Mark V Golf, VW finally returns to the load-lugging market this summer with a Golf Estate. With rear seats folded into the floor, there’s 1,550-litres of boot space complete with multiple load hooks.

  • Water restrictions should be balanced

    March 30th 2007

    ANY water restrictions placed on the garden and landscape industries at times of shortage needed to be fair, proportionate, and take account of the environmental benefit of green landscapes, claimed the NFU horticulture board chairman Richard Hirst.

  • Welsh Assembly ‘rubbish’ Tir Gofal late payment claims

    March 30th 2007

    CLAIMS that the Wales-based flagship Tir Gofal agri-environmental scheme was a ‘farce and shambles’ have been ‘rubbished’ by Welsh Assembly agriculture department officials.

  • Widespread concern at RTFO

    March 30th 2007

    THE Conservatives have warned that the UK biofuels industry is being damaged by the Government’s delay in introducing sustainable criteria to meet the 5 per cent renewable fuel target.

  • Win best-seat tickets to Spirit of the Horse

    4 April 2007

    FARMERS Guardian has teamed up with Spirit of the Horse to offer six lucky readers tickets to see the famous equestrian theatrical extravaganza.

  • Wind turbine isn’t a blow to Stephen

    March 30th 2007

    A YORKSHIRE landowner is leading by example in his efforts to champion the uptake of renewable energy resources.

  • Young cowboys and Indians ready for Wild West time at the NEC

    March 30th 2007

    As the countdown to the British Open Show Jumping Championships begins, the Cheshire Hunt North branch of the Pony Club is putting the finishing touches to its ‘Cowboys and Indians’ themed musical ride, which they will perform daily at the show. SARAH CRIPPS visits them as they have their first dress rehearsal.

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