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ARABLE

How to raise yields and trim costs for higher wheat margins

Arable farmers looking to make a higher margin in 2026 have two options to get the most from well-established autumn drilled crops showing good potential, according to a leading consultancy.…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: Is it time to scrap the Environment Agency?

On a rain-soaked morning, I found myself reflecting on the past month, a whirlwind of meetings and conferences, all centred on two fundamental pillars of farming: soil and water. The first…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: Analysing risk and gauging opportunities

Isn’t it amazing how mother nature levels things up? In 2025 we saw three months of above-average and four months of below-average rainfall, and my best guess is that we…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

New generation SDHI fungicides at risk of cross-resistance

Growers are reminded to use diverse fungicide sequences this season, following an early sign two new-generation SDHI fungicides – Miravis Plus (pydiflumetofen) and Vimoy (isoflucypram, brand name Iblon), can develop…

SOILS

Expert advice on creating biologically dynamic soils

There is currently an influx of biological products coming to the market promising improvements to soil health and yield, but can these claims be sustained in practice? Creating a biologically…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: A new year and a new direction

The new year is upon us, and with it comes a fresh set of challenges – but also a renewed sense of optimism. Last year certainly wasn’t a vintage year…

COVER CROPS

Trial shows how to establish a cover crop before harvest

Establishing multispecies cover crops into a standing crop of wheat has shown promise in a replicated large-scale trial in Northamptonshire. While it’s well-known that earlier establishment of cover crops is…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: The benefits of drone mapping

When my non-farming brother first suggested flying a drone over my crops to map them for variable-rate nitrogen, I thought it was pie in the sky stuff. However, we had…

BARLEY

Glimmer of hope for UK spring malting barley growers

A forecast sharp drop in the spring barley area this year, together with industry capacity cut backs could inject some optimism into a depressed malting barley market and push up…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: Why I’m second guessing the government

We hit our long-term average rainfall of 650mm three weeks before the year end. It feels like overnight we’ve gone from dry to very wet. While we haven’t got any…

MAIZE

Triple-use maize variety on offer to support rising interest

The demand for UK maize rise is rising, and so too is the demand for multi-use varieties which offer flexible market opportunities. Maize continues to be the first-choice feedstock for…

ARABLE

Student of the Year takes third-gen family farm to new level

After being named Student of the Year at Harper Adams University in 2025, James Allanson has returned to his third-generation family farm with a new level of precision which is…

CROP SELECTION

Prospects for spring barley after poor year for Scots growers

Following a challenging harvest season marked by quality issues and depressed markets, Scottish Agronomy is urging growers to carefully weigh up their options before abandoning spring barley in favour of…

BARLEY

Scottish spring barley: Lessons for farmers in 2026

High screenings and variable nitrogen levels were an unwelcome feature of the Scottish malting crop last year, with growers reporting a £70/t hit on failed grain and the country awash…

Arable news

OTHER CROPS

First English olive harvest marks new milestone

A Lincolnshire business has completed what is believed to be the world’s most northerly commercial olive harvest, with The English Olive Co, based near Spalding, pressing its first olives this…

MARKET OPPORTUNITIES

Crumpets made from 100% British regen wheat launched

Crumpets made from 100% British regeneratively farmed wheat are the latest product launch from regen food and farming business Wildfarmed. The launch marks the brand’s first expansion from bread into…

CROP SELECTION

Gene editing clears final hurdle in Parliament

A new regulatory framework, which allows the commercial cultivation of gene-edited crops in England, has cleared its final hurdle in Parliament and comes into force from today (13 November). The…

POTATOES

UK potato tech firm acquires sprout control specialist

Yorkshire based potato company Produce Investments has announced the acquisition of Biofresh Safestore, an established leader in sprout suppression. Expanding a growing technology portfolio, Produce Investments hopes the acquisition will…

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ARABLE

How to raise yields and trim costs for higher wheat margins

Arable farmers looking to make a higher margin in 2026 have two options to get the most from well-established autumn drilled crops showing good potential, according to a leading consultancy.…

SOILS

Expert advice on creating biologically dynamic soils

There is currently an influx of biological products coming to the market promising improvements to soil health and yield, but can these claims be sustained in practice? Creating a biologically…

COVER CROPS

Trial shows how to establish a cover crop before harvest

Establishing multispecies cover crops into a standing crop of wheat has shown promise in a replicated large-scale trial in Northamptonshire. While it’s well-known that earlier establishment of cover crops is…

BARLEY

Glimmer of hope for UK spring malting barley growers

A forecast sharp drop in the spring barley area this year, together with industry capacity cut backs could inject some optimism into a depressed malting barley market and push up…

MAIZE

Triple-use maize variety on offer to support rising interest

The demand for UK maize rise is rising, and so too is the demand for multi-use varieties which offer flexible market opportunities. Maize continues to be the first-choice feedstock for…

ARABLE

Student of the Year takes third-gen family farm to new level

After being named Student of the Year at Harper Adams University in 2025, James Allanson has returned to his third-generation family farm with a new level of precision which is…

CROP SELECTION

Prospects for spring barley after poor year for Scots growers

Following a challenging harvest season marked by quality issues and depressed markets, Scottish Agronomy is urging growers to carefully weigh up their options before abandoning spring barley in favour of…

BARLEY

Scottish spring barley: Lessons for farmers in 2026

High screenings and variable nitrogen levels were an unwelcome feature of the Scottish malting crop last year, with growers reporting a £70/t hit on failed grain and the country awash…

ARABLE

New entrant's journey from photographer to regen farmer

Starring in a film, returning home to help run the family farm, and continuing the transition to a regenerative system her father had started three years earlier have all been…

ARABLE

Young farmers bold move to take on council tenancy pays off

Joshua Dennis, a 26-year-old arable farmer from Cambridgeshire, made the bold move to take on a county council tenancy at just 22 years old. Three successful yet challenging harvests later,…

ARABLE

Young farmer completes marathon 2,000-mile US harvest

When Eleanor Gilbert graduated from university, she knew she wanted to travel overseas – not looking out the window of a tour bus, but by completing a marathon 2,000-mile harvest…

OTHER CROPS

How agronomist is helping growers earn more from niche crops

Armed with new research findings, analysis of farm yield data and many hours of crop walking, a team of agronomists are helping farmers maximise returns from their niche crops. For…

ROTATIONS

Poor grain outlook sees farms rethink rotations and machinery

For many arable farmers, the reality of low grain prices and minimal government support has triggered some of the toughest decisions of their careers. As margins tighten and markets fail…

SUGAR BEET

Suffolk beet grower counts huge cost of beet moth

Beet moth was responsible for a sugar beet yield reduction of 25%, a drop in sugar content and a forced switch to earlier lifting at Troston Farms in Suffolk, where…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Why genetics must be central to late blight management

Late blight resistant varieties must be an active component of potato crop management regimes, rather than a “just-in-case” safety net. That is the view of Dan Milbourne, who is leading…

COVER CROPS

Trials reveal best ways to maximise cover crop benefits

Opting for a chemical method cover crop destruction and at a later timing are key to getting the most out of cover crops, according to a series of three trials.…

Farmer Focus

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FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: Is it time to scrap the Environment Agency?

On a rain-soaked morning, I found myself reflecting on the past month, a whirlwind of meetings and conferences, all centred on two fundamental pillars of farming: soil and water. The first…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: Analysing risk and gauging opportunities

Isn’t it amazing how mother nature levels things up? In 2025 we saw three months of above-average and four months of below-average rainfall, and my best guess is that we…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: A new year and a new direction

The new year is upon us, and with it comes a fresh set of challenges – but also a renewed sense of optimism. Last year certainly wasn’t a vintage year…

FARMER FOCUS

Farmer Focus: The benefits of drone mapping

When my non-farming brother first suggested flying a drone over my crops to map them for variable-rate nitrogen, I thought it was pie in the sky stuff. However, we had…

Markets

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CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

Global wheat surplus keeps prices in check into new year

A large global wheat surplus continues to dominate market sentiment despite other geopolitical drivers, keeping wheat prices at persistently low levels. May 2026 UK feed wheat futures started the new…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

Outlook 2026: Sugar beet faces lower prices, increased costs

It was written last year that despite the 17.5% price reduction to a headline £33/t, the 2025-26 sugar beet campaign would produce returns for growers that compared favourably to alternative…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

Outlook 2026: Potato price pressure mounts

The optimism of the sector experienced over the past two years has been dampened by the finish to the marketing of the 2024 harvest, due to oversupply as old crop…

BUSINESS

Outlook 2026: Small returns for best combinable crop growers

The past two seasons have been incredibly challenging for all combinable crop growers – physically for all and financially for most. Fundamentally, yield, or rather lack of it, has been…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

Wheat margin achievable in 2026 after tough year for growers

UK cereals growers have endured a challenging 12 months, with low farmgate prices, weather constraints and a smaller domestic crop. While pressure remains on wheat prices due to a well-supplied…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

Defra review targets fairer returns for growers

Arable farmers have been given a “real opportunity to reset the balance of power” in the crops supply chain after Defra launched a consultation on contract fairness across the combinable…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

UK wheat growers pinched by inflation and flatlining yields

UK wheat growers are facing a financial squeeze, with inflation, flatlining yields, and low farmgate prices all having an impact on margins, according to agronomy and consultancy firm Ceres Rural.…

CROPS MARKETS AND PRICES

UK arable farms lose £828m because of extreme weather

UK arable farmers are facing an estimated £828m drop in revenues after one of the worst harvests on record. This was driven by prolonged weather volatility across spring and summer…

Spot and forward prices (£/t ex-farm)
Each set of prices comes from a single merchant, co-op or broker, and are the latest prices being paid to farmers. Ranges of prices, within one category relate to the distance of the farm from the buyer. Oilseed rape prices are latest spot and forward prices, not contract prices. Ex farm prices vary with the distance from Hull, Liverpool and Erith, crushing factories.

Arable machinery

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401+HP

First impressions: New cab major progress for Claas Axion 9

Claas can rightly revel in its top-dog status when it comes to combine harvesters and foragers. But 22 years after swallowing Renault Agriculture, its tractor division continues to lag behind.…

WORKSHOP SKILLS

Custom cultivator towed by steel rope transforms steep fields

Few things irk John Roberts more than unproductive farmland, even when it’s clinging to a precipitous hillside. But having flipped a tractor and rolled five times while trying to improve…

HOES

New in-row weeder launched for arable and horticultural crops

In-row weeding for precision-sown arable and horticultural crops is the latest development in Einbock’s already extensive portfolio of mechanical weed control implements. The Invera uses a single camera per row…

TRACTORS

Driver's view: Lee Henzell's Fendt 728 Vario

Fendt’s 700-series overhaul was big news in the summer of 2022, with the ever-popular 724 downgraded to mid-range status and a new 728 thrust to the apex. It strayed well…

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