David's Digest

Will someone please explain to me how it was that in the 1950's, when the badger population was much lower than it is now - because we hunted them - we were able, using the same tests as today, to eliminate TB from the UK cattle herd? It took us a few years of regular testing and a lot of infected cattle were slaughtered. But government, vets and farmers working together achieved it. And a disease that had been the scourge of humans as well as cattle (because not all milk was pasteurised then and people caught TB from drinking it) disappeared from our shores.

So, I ask again - if fewer badgers enabled the elimination of cattle TB then, why wouldn't it do the same today?

When our Countryside Stewardship Scheme ended after ten years we transferred to the Environmental Stewardship Scheme that succeded it. It's almost the same as the Higher Level Scheme and pays out a similar amount. In any case, you can't participate in ES and HLS, it has to be one or the other. The administration of ES is by Natural England.

The other day we had a note from the Eastern regional director of NE to the effect that there had been a hold-up in producing the latest version of the ES handbook and it would not be available until August. But don't worry, the note assured scheme participants, when it and the new annual forms arrive they will be easy to complete (we shall see) and they should be returned as soon as possible and in any case by the deadline of Sept 30 .

However, if we wished we could complete the old style forms to get them out of the way before August, which "is often a holiday period so may not fit in with personal arrangements".

Has he ever been on an arable farm?

As France takes over the Presidency of the EU today with the objective of persuading member states to ratify the Lisbon Treaty following the Irish rejection of it, as well as dealing with a bunch of other equally hot issues, not least among which is the energy crisis, its first major event is a food conference.

On Thursday France will host a major event entitled "Who will feed the World?". Speakers will include Agriculture Commissioner, Marrian Fischer Boel; the President of the European Parliament; Hans-Gert Pottering, French Agriculture Minister, Michel Barnier; French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner; Director General of the WTO, Pascal Lamy; and Director General of FAO, Jacques Diouf.

An impressive line-up, you will agree and the French are clearly taking the food crisis seriously. But what a pity all those people, who could have changed the policies that have exacerbated if not led to the problem, did not have the foresight to do so. They were, presumably, all listening to advice from political economists, all educated at the same kinds of establishments, all teaching the same misguided policies, which led them to recommend the exact opposite of what was required.

Doubtless the papers that will be presented will be studied exercises in self-justification to the effect that "it wasn't my fault guv". Whereas what is needed is an honest admission that they got it wrong and a willingness to change radically from their established path. But I'm not optimistic.

It's not in my nature to brag, as you know very well, but I thought I would just report that while some other agricultural shows are experiencing difficulties, Norfolk has just enjoyed one of it's best ever. And it remains mainly agricultural. The machinery lines were packed, as usual, although I'm not sure how much of that tackle was unsold. Not a lot, I suspect, given the lead times being quoted by most dealers.

Livestock entries were outstanding. A total of 665 cattle, of which 135 were Holsteins, and 68 were Simmentals, boosted by the fact that the breeds International Cogress was held at the show. The sheep entry was slightly down on the previous year at 546 and there were a few absentees due to Blue Tongue. But there were classes for Southdowns for the first time with 54 entries and goat numbers were up as were those for pigs, which is incredible when you consider the problems that sector has been through.

Not all that relevant to modern farming perhaps but there were 120 heavy horses at the show. And this year for the first time there were classes for ridden heavies. That will almost certainly be repeated next year.

The sun shone, the gentle breeze cooled animals and people alike, the crowds came in what must have been near record numbers - I estimate over 100,000, the grand ring programme, led by The Kings Troop, was one of the best ever, and Prince Harry (apart from giving many young ladies a thrill) made this 100th show since Norfolk was awarded it Royal Charter a thoroughly memorable occasion, for all the right reasons.

We've waited weeks for a forecast of at least five fine, sunny days to cut the hay. OK, I know hay is unfashionable these days and we also make haylage from some fields. But anyone who runs a livery will know that horse owners are a picky bunch. Some of them treat their animals like spoilt children. Indeed they sometimes look after them better than their children. Its called equine anthropomorphism I think (look it up in the dictionary). 

Anyway, to keep all of them (and their horses) happy we have to supply hay and haylage. Hence the need to make hay which takes an extra day or two of good weather and is more demanding of good management. So, following a favourable local forecast (I'm aware that the in north and the west rain is anticipated all week) we cut it and conditioned it over the weekend in the hope that we can get it baled and under cover before the weather breaks.

With the Royal Norfolk Show on Wednesday and Thursday and Wimbledon all week, both of which are notorious for wet conditions, it is, of course, foolhardy to hope fine weather will hold. But we have everything crossed; we will turn it at least twice a day, and we have threatened to lynch the local forecasters if they've told us wrong. I will keep you posted. 

As Zimbabwe prepares itself for its farcical second election in as many months (being held because Mugabe didn't like the outcome of the last one) I happened to run into a Zimbabwean farmer on holiday in Britain. I say farmer, but these days he's a farm manager, because Mugabe's "soldiers" confiscated his own farm some years ago.

I won't identify him clearly for fear of reprisals against him when he goes back. Suffice to say the farm he runs is "owned" (having been stolen) by one of Mugabe's croneys. The croney lets it to a company owned by non Zimbabwean's who live outside the country. So the "owner" is deriving an income from the place and that, apparently is acceptable to him. My new friend manages it and controls the production, the local labour, the marketing and so on.

I asked him what it was like living in an economy where there is said to be 2,000,000% inflation. He replied that he did his best to ignore it. He gets paid in US dollars and banks most of it out of Zimbabwe, only bringing in enough for himself and his wife to live on. Most of the things they need are, in any case, available on the black market and from criminal gangs and obtainable using foreign currency or barter. Whatever, no tax is paid on any transaction.

Continue reading "ZIMBABWE FARMERS STAGGER ON IN HOPE" »

A friend who used to farm a few miles from me in Norfolk got so fed up with regulations that he let his farm on a FBT and moved to France. These days he lives near Piotiers and runs a successful boarding kennels and cattery.

From what he says he's doing OK and he and his family are loving living in a country that seems to manage perfectly well with a lot less red tape. For the record, he told me that while he was still entitled to receive an SFP on the land he still owns in Norfolk, he hasn't had last years installment yet. Like a lot of us resident in the UK he has had endless trouble over maps and there are still complications over his request to have his entitlement paid in Euro's.

What he really rang to tell me the other evening, however, was about a sight he had seen out of his kitchen window. The neighbouring farmer had decided to spray his spring barley with herbicide. His tractor had no cab, safety or otherwise, and it pulled a trailed sprayer. The trouble was he couldn't reach the levers to control the sprayer from the tractor seat. So he had asked another many to ride on the draw bar of the sprayer in order to turn it off and on after each bout.

The tractor driver was in a T shirt and jeans; the chap balancing on the back wore shorts. There was no sign of any protective clothing. The operation, which clearly broke virtually every rule in the book, lasted for at least half an hour in full view of the village and a main road, but nobody bothered. Indeed such sights are commonplace around the area according to my Norfolk friend, who despite his horror of regulations, did not advocate that way of working.

He was just keen to let me know how relaxed such things are in France where nobody interferes, believing such practices are only the business of those involved.

Its old news now, of course, but having been away in America on Open Farm Sunday and unable to participate personally I have only now been able to fully assess the wonderful publicity generated by the event. There have been articles in broadsheets, tabloids, magazines and, of course, Farmers Weekly. There were pieces on radio, television and the internet and all of them, as far as I have seen, were positive.

What a wonderful job LEAF did for the image of British agriculture and home production. OK, perhaps I would say that, LEAF having once been my baby. But I take no credit for Open Farm Sunday. It was conceived after I left the LEAFchair. So, I unreservedly congratulate all involved.

Not only has LEAF improved external relationships with consumers, it has also, it seems to me, helped bring together many organisations within agriculture who have united around the Open Farm Sunday initiative.

Lets build on that; lets ram it down Defra's throat that LEAF's activities show the industry is capable of self regulation and does not need more government generated paper work; and now that we are enjoying slightly better profits, lets support LEAF with the cash it needs to fulfill its objective to become the sensible, environmentally balanced and productive face of British farming.

One of the most memorable farms visited by the recent Farmers Weekly Farm Study Tour to America was to a 17,000 acre holding in Idaho. As mentioned in a previous blog the area is officially a desert with only 8-10 inches of rain per year but has plenty of free water available for irrigation.

One of the main crops grown on the farm in question was sugar beet - well over 2,000 acres. Last year the farmer, Duane Grant, drilled half that acreage with Roundup Ready, GM, seed. This year he has planted his entire acreage with GM varieties and told us that what he was doing was probably reflected across the whole of the USA where sugar beet are grown.

He took us to see some fields that had been drilled a few weeks before. The beet plants were at the six to eight leaf stage and had not been treated with anything to control weeds. These consisted of fat hen, or sheeps tongue as he called it, and a variety of other weeds that were unfamiliar to the British party. They were growing vigorously and in places seemed to be in danger of swamping the beet plants.

"That's not a problem", he said, "we'll be spraying them with Roundup in a day or two and that will quickly sort them out". He told us he expected to have to spray the crops with Roundup twice during the growing season and that, based on last years experience, this would produce weed free crops. He estimated his total cost of spaying and chemical would be no more than £15/acre and that changing to GM had saved him well over 75% of his previous weed control costs.

The sting in the tail was that the GM seed was twice as expensive as conventional. Clearly, Monsanto know the precise benefits their chemical can provide and grab a fair slice of the margin for themselves. Even so, such savings could transform the economics of sugar beet in this country as well. And surely the cost of seed will soon have to come down. I just hope these things happen in time to save the UK sugar beet industry.