Author Posts: Farmers Guide

The 20th year of the Newark Vintage Tractor and Heritage Show is on course to attract the most diverse range of machines in its history. That’s thanks to some special anniversary classes and a display reviving some of the first ever exhibits.

John Deere and Yara have announced a partnership that will help farmers transition to a more sustainable food system through optimising their use of fertilisers.

This year’s BFREPA Live event will feature Scottish egg producer James Baxter, who will talk about the harsh realities of dealing with bird flu, having lost his entire flock of nearly 200,000 hens to a mandatory cull following a positive test in January.

Claas has announced that from 1st October 2023, all its agricultural machinery that meets the latest emissions standard will be approved for use with hydrotreated vegetable oils (HVOs) and new machines leaving the factory will now be filled with this sustainable biofuel, saving 2,500 tonnes of CO2 a year.

Upon losing a close farming friend to suicide, Adam Henson embarked on a project with Team Doctor to create the Keeping on Track podcast, which aims to erase the stigma around mental health in farming and raise awareness of the challenges those in the rural profession face.

Farmers and their staff can now access Red Tractor accredited veterinary training online, to complete in their own time and gain Dairy Pro points. Synergy Farm Health, which already delivers a wide variety of farmer training in-person, has developed a new online training platform, to cater for those who struggle to make physical workshops.

Visitors to this year’s Midlands Machinery Show on 8th-9th November at Newark Showground will be treated to a range of new products, fresh to the market.

Sheep farmers are being urged to stay vigilant for worm and fluke risks in their flocks this autumn following reports of high worm egg counts nationwide.

A free integrated pest management (IPM) planning tool has been developed by ADAS, NFU, SRUC and Voluntary Initiative (VI) to help farmers create crop-specific IPM management plans.

Responding to the latest State of Nature report, published this Wednesday (27th September), NFU President Minette Batters echoed farmers’ ambition to do more for nature recovery while producing high-quality, sustainable food, provided there is adequate support in place to keep businesses viable.

At today’s Sustainable Farming Conference, NFU Cymru has urged the government to provide long-term funding that accurately reflects the modern-day cost to Welsh farmers of producing food, enhancing the environment and combatting the climate challenge.

As the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite, supermarket own-label products are performing well in both red meat and dairy sectors, while most branded items are struggling with falling demand, AHDB analysis has shown.