Author Posts: Farmers Guide

A crop of oilseed rape has produced a gross output of 7. 04t/ha despite battling against flea beetle damage as it established in the autumn.

Arriving in the UK late last year, the Opticare Automix from Zarkos-Smith Associates (also known as Swinco internationally) has already proven popular with farmers, as it allows larger litters to stay with the sow without being labour-intensive.

New Zealand has suspended live cattle exports after a ship carrying nearly 6,000 animals sank off the Japanese coast on Wednesday, with the fates of more than 40 crew members still unknown.

Sheep farmers are being encouraged to conduct faecal egg count (FEC) tests in their ewes and rams prior to tupping to identify and manage any worm burdens that could impact fertility & conception rates.

A £5 million research project involving nine countries – from Scandinavia to the Middle East – is aiming to revolutionise the use of precision technology in sheep and goat farming.

Grain marketing and arable inputs co-operative Openfield has unveiled a brand-new app, and an innovative way to interact with the smart speaker Alexa.

A new strategy and improved communication with levy payers on how their money is spent are just two of the significant changes AHDB has pledged to make.

After the sodden conditions last autumn, some arable farmers may consider drilling wheat earlier to guarantee a decent area next harvest. But threats such as grass weeds and virus carrying aphids are both more of an issue in early drilled crops. Bayer’s Darren Adkins gives his thoughts on how farmers can balance the need for wheat area with pest and weed threats.

Melton Mowbray farmer Eric Wright explains how the Smart Farmer app offered his farm a simple way to improve worker safety. Farmers Guide also caught up with the app’s creator Marc Skivington about the range of updates on the way.

The financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic has changed attitudes towards saving and investing in more than half of us, according to a survey of its customers by rural insurer NFU Mutual.

A UK manufacturer of vegetable harvesting and handling machinery has this month exported its largest-ever order.

Local agricultural machinery dealership, Ben Burgess Coates, is getting ready for its second tractor run, raising money for the East Anglian Air Ambulance once again.