Livestock

Liver fluke cysts are shed onto pasture from infected mud snails and we know they can survive for many months given the right conditions, but can they survive in silage?

The annual barometer of native livestock breed numbers, the Rare Breeds Survival Trust’s watchlist, has been released.But what could some of these breeds could offer UK agriculture in the future?

The challenges of farming within extreme weather conditions was the main topic discusses at a virtual event, the first in a series to be hosted by the knowledge exchange network, Agricology.

Technology which can alert farmers and stockpeople when cows are about to experience calving difficulties has been developed by scientists at Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC).

Flo Giles, 27, is a pig farmer’s daughter from Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire, and works for livestock trading company Meadow Quality. She recently represented Warwickshire Young Farmers Club (YFC) at this year’s NFU conference.

Miles and Halen Partridge established their Rowbrook herd of Galloways in the 1990s, but despite the history of the herd they have eyes firmly on the future.

The coronavirus has shown we can pull together as a community to get things done. We must keep the same spirit to push on with Brexit, says David Herbert, a South Welsh smallholder producing eggs and poultry.

Farmers will need a serious cash injection from the Government if they are to survive this pandemic, then Brexit, says Deirdre Brock, SNP rural affairs spokesman in Westminster.

Schools, hospitals, universities and care homes have been encouraged to sign up to the Public Sector Catering 100 (PSC100) campaign aimed at reducing the amount of meat on menus by 20 per cent, sparking industry concern.

The first cases of blowfly strike in 2020 have been reported in several locations in the UK.