Farmers Guardian
March 31st 2006

  • Beef export ban could be lifted as early as April 14

    31 March 2006

    Good Friday – April 14 – is being tipped for the lifting of Britain’s export ban on British beef and live animals.

  • Between the flags

    March 31st 2006

    Heavy rain did not stop play at the Cheshire Hunt’s point-to-point at Alpraham.

  • Big boost for locally produced products

    March 31st 2006

    Almost two thirds (65 per cent) of shoppers are now buying locally produced food, according to a new report.

  • Big capacity to cover big area

    March 31st 2006

    As farms become larger and the number of staff employed reduces, choosing the right machinery becomes increasingly important. For Giles Porter, on 1,215 hectares in Hampshire, careful selection of machinery enables him to run the farm with just two other people – his father and cousin.

  • Bradshaw considers ‘key new tool’ to aid badger cull

    March 31st 2006

    Animal Health Minister Ben Bradshaw is considering the potential benefits of a ‘key new tool' scientists say could pave the way for a targeted badger cull.

  • Chance to win an Igenity calf

    March 31st 2006

    As the major sponsor of the National Holstein Show, Igenity are giving visitors the chance to win an Igenity calf. Igenity promises the calf will be from a leading breeder and have a ‘sound pedigree’ and ‘good parentage’.

  • College Jersey dispersal draws big crowd

    March 31st 2006

    Having bought two higher priced Ridgefield Holsteins on Monday, Messrs Eaton and herd manager David Bostock set the Brackenhurst College’s comparatively young Brackenhurst Jersey herd dispersal alight on Tuesday when they bought seven of the higher priced lots for the Eatons’ Smiddiehill herd at Albrighton, Shropshire.

  • Culling essential for control, say vets

    March 31st 2006

    Sustained and comprehensive culling of diseased badgers is essential to bring bovine TB in badgers and cattle under control, a group of vets has told the Government.

  • Dazzling trade for Ridgefield Holstein herd

    March 31st 2006

    Youngstock were undoubtedly a feature of a dazzling trade for John and Val Barker’s Ridgefield Holstein herd, dispersed in its virtual entirety on Monday, on-farm at Copt Oak, Loughborough.

  • Food for thought

    March 31st 2006

    The Food and Drink Expo, held at Birmingham’s NEC brought together thousands of leading experts in food production and retail. Highlights included the Ideas to Dine For!, product awards judged by representatives from Defra and Food From Britain and the Great Debate forum covering local sourcing.Pictures by Marcello Garbagnoli

  • Giving rewards back to farming industry

    March 31st 2006

    The National Sheep Association Wales has just elected its youngest-ever chairman.

  • Green light for a hard red spring wheat that can pull its own weight

    March 31st 2006

    Originally sent from Scotland to settlers on the US and Canadian Prairies, North American red spring wheat could be making a comeback for growers in the UK. With excellent grain quality and high proteins, one variety being grown on these shores has been described as a ‘baker’s delight’. Edward Long discovers more.

  • HGCA projects monitoring mycotoxin levels in UK cereals

    March 31st 2006

    HGCA-funded projects are providing up-to-date information on mycotoxin levels in UK cereals.

  • Hyundai takes new Santa Fe up-market

    March 31st 2006

    Lets face it – there are not many bad cars these days, and if there were, Hyundai’s new Santa Fe SUV would not be one of them.

  • Independent butchers fight back

    March 31st 2006

    Independent butchers are bucking the apparently inexorable drive by consumers to spend their food pounds in supermarkets, according to the latest figures from market analysts IGD.

  • Keenan increases capacity to meet demand with K280

    March 31st 2006

    Demand for increased capacity has led to Keenan introducing the 28 cubic metre K280. Although sticking with the horizontal paddle mixing system, the latest flagship does have some specific features.

  • Keeping mycotoxin levels down with good farm practice

    March 31st 2006

    There is a raft of new legislation relating to mycotoxins, some already in place, some due to be implemented over the next 18 months. Teresa Rush provides an update, in the last of FG’s ‘Regulation Roll Out’ series.

  • MHS strike cancelled

    3 April 2006

    Meat Hygiene Service (MHS) staff will not be going on strike this week.

  • Minister gets behind Scotch beef export push

    March 31st 2006

    It may take some time, but exporters of Scotch beef should be aiming for an export trade with mainland Europe of around £200 million each year, according to Ross Finnie, the Rural Development Minister with the Scottish Executive.

  • MPs call for Bach’s head

    March 31st 2006

    Lord Bach faced calls to resign this week as MPs savaged the Government over the Single Payments crisis and demanded help for farmers, including interim payments.

  • Never been an easier time to get into agriculture

    March 31st 2006

    There had never been an easier time to get into agriculture and, in particular, to look at alternatives, said Pat Tomlinson, HSBC’s deputy head of agriculture.

  • New mildewicide aims to tackle high disease levels

    March 31st 2006

    Makhteshim Agan has launched a new mildewicide under its Alpha branded range of generic products.

  • New pleas for interim payments

    31 March 2006

    Ministers are being asked to consider making interim payments to ease the cashflow crisis gripping the English farming industry.

  • Non-food crops are a vital source of new income

    March 31st 2006

    Non-food crops offered significant opportunities for new income streams for farmers and rural development as a whole, said Dr Jeremy Tomkinson, chief executive of the National Non-Food Crops Centre in York.

  • Oat Biscuits

    March 31st 2006

    This recipe is a family favourite from Joy Greenwood of Halstead Green, Heptonstall, West Yorkshire. “It’s fairly flexible. I sometimes use oatmeal or use wholemeal instead of self-raising flour and if you find the dough is a bit too sticky you can add more oats. I cut the biscuits fairly thick so when baked they are crisp on the outside and soft in the middle.”

  • Potential staff strike throws UK meat industry into disarray

    31 March 2006

    The British meat industry was facing massive disruptions this week if a possible strike by Meat Hygiene Service staff went ahead.

  • Recovery of the pig market undermined

    March 31st 2006

    A reported dip in retail demand for loins is felt to be at the root of an unwelcome weakening of the British pig market.

  • Renewable targets good news for farmers

    March 31st 2006

    Regulatory pressure for more renewable fuels offered a key advantage for arable farmers, said Alastair Dickie, HGCA crop marketing director.

  • RPAs failure to deliver raises stress levels

    March 31st 2006

    – but help is at hand, say rural charities

  • Sheep scab: Be on ‘high alert’

    March 31st 2006

    Farmers are being urged to be on high alert for sheep scab after a survey of vets and animal health officers confirmed there could be a resurgence of the disease this spring.

  • Shrewsburys new mart open for business

    March 31st 2006

    A new state-of-the-art livestock sales centre serving the West Midlands and Welsh Border counties came on stream this week. Barry Alston reports from Shropshire.

  • Smooth, nimble and more refined

    31 March 2006

    Mention the brand Volkswagen and the words quality, durability and prestige spring to mind.

  • Spinning Straw

    March 31st 2006

    Remember the fairytale about Rumplestiltskin who came to the rescue of a maiden challenged to spin straw into gold?

  • Stock and genetics are the future

    March 31st 2006

    In a dairy sector where the financial futures of producers are controlled largely by retail pressures, it is vital for farmers to utilise their animals’ attributes to the highest degree.

  • SVS faces a backlog on exemptions

    31 March 2006

    The State Veterinary Service (SVS) has admitted it faces a two-week backlog on applications for exempt finishing units (EFUs).

  • The banks understand

    March 31st 2006

    The message from major banks is simple: They understand the delays with the Single Payment and offer services to cover the shortcomings.

  • The healing touch of Shiatsu

    March 31st 2006

    Jacqueline Cook is a well-renowned teacher of Shiatsu for horses. SARAH CRIPPS attends one of her courses at Roseheart Kingdom in Shropshire to discover what it is all about.

  • The largest display of milking cattle in the UK

    March 31st 2006

    Run by farmers for farmers – that is the ethos behind Holstein UK and its showcase event, the National Holstein Show.

  • Training to encourage responsible riding

    March 31st 2006

    ATV manufacturers are stepping up efforts to encourage riders to experience some properly structured training before venturing out on their machines.

  • Trek to find county’s best dry stone walls

    March 31st 2006

    Two expert wallers will be trekking throughout Yorkshire this summer judging miles of dry stone walls in the county’s most unusual craft competition.

  • Warning stickers placed on some imported pork

    March 31st 2006

    Pig producers have resorted to direct action this week by placing warning stickers on imported pork in supermarkets.

  • Wild boar control provokes debate over culling

    March 31st 2006

    Opinion has become divided over the best way to deal with England’s increasing wild boar population.

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