Food for Thought

I did give some thought to how our story on the Sunday Times Rich List would be interpreted.

You could argue that it gives the wrong impression of the farming industry - furthering the myth that all farmers are loaded etc.

But it's pretty obvious that no one on the list is actually making their money from agriculture - in fact some of them probably just view farming as a pleasurable way of spending their millions!

From Mike Abram, Deputy Arable Editor

Oliver, the driver of the brand new John Deere 732 trailed sprayer we were using, wasn't happy. He'd just banged stakes into three railway sleepers to hold them solid in the tramlines of the wheat, and now, we told him to drive over them at speed while spraying.

I guess we at Farmers Weekly felt pretty confident that we were doing the right thing when our Local Food is Miles Better campaign tried to steer consumers away from food that's been jetted in from the other side of the world - including produce from third world countries.

Within the next two weeks, chairman of the US House of Representatives agriculture committee, Collin Peterson, will table the first draft of a new US Farm Bill. It will provide the first real clues as to what US farm support policy will look like for the next five years - and how much they will spend.

There's still a long way to go. The agriculture committee will have to chew it over, then send it to the whole House for its approval. A similar process will go on in the Senate across the road on Capitol Hill. Only when a single text is agreed between the House and the Senate will it be sent to the Whitehouse for presidential approval. That could take until the end of the year - or longer if President Bush decides to veto it.

One thing that is already clear, however, is that the new Farm Bill will be crafted with US farmers' and ranchers' best interests in mind. While there is a grudging acceptance among congressmen that US farm policy needs to comply with world trade rules, there is no question of them trying to pre-empt the outcome of the Doha Development Round.

That is what the EU did with its 2003 CAP reforms, setting itself a "negotiating mandate" for the WTO. But now everyone wants the EU to go further in opening up markets and reducing producer support.

In contrast, the USA is looking to make only minor changes. It is more interested in keeping domestic farm support compatible with the current WTO agreement, not the next one.

"We want a Farm Bill that will be good for American farmers and ranchers, rather than good for the WTO," Mr Peterson recently told Farmers Weekly in Washington. What a refreshing change to hear politicians who really want to look after their farmers.

Posting by Poultry World editor Richard Allison

Next week sees me head south to Brazil. No it's not my annual summer break, (although I wish it was), it's work.

I'm travelling with a group of EU journalists at the invitation of the Brazilian Poultry Exporters Association to take a look its poultry sector and meet the Brazilian Minister of Agriculture. I'm looking forward to finding for myself how their industry stacks up in terms of animal welfare and quality standards.

Brazil is one of the largest exporters of poultrymeat to the EU and last year, it won the case against the EU on salted chicken. But it continually receives criticism, some unfounded, on its poor welfare standards in the Brazilian industry.

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to spend my day clay-shooting with Dame Ellen MacArthur courtesy of country clothing supplier Musto.

Having spent the inevitable three and a half hours on the dreaded M25, I eventually turned up at the West London Shooting Ground, narrowly avoiding Musto's press conference and just in time to join the shooting party before the competition kicked off.

I am certainly no 'dead-eyed-Dick' but what I lack in skill, I like to think I make up for with enthusiasm. I work on the principle that the more lead in the air, the greater the chance that something will fly into it!

As I've already said on the FWi forums I wasn't as impressed with this documentary as I thought I would be.

I'm all for telling the truth about British farming, but I don't think the show really got across why these kind of things were happening.

However looking at the comments on the posting I made last week, not everyone agrees with me.

It is certainly a topic that has got people talking - 13 comments so far and they keep coming in...

9.30am
I'm optimistic as we sit down to start this year's SP5 form. It's the third year of doing it - so it must get easier - and Dad informs me that he hasn't "many" split fields this year which is what normally causes us a headache. It makes a pleasant change as he normally likes to distribute bits of set-aside around the place which require us to draw endless sketch maps and argue about how big each bit really is.

9.39am

I notice something interesting. It can't be a co-incidence that the average farmer is in his late 50s and the size of the print in the SP5 guidance book is getting bigger? In ten year's time will the form come with a free magnifying glass?

10.16am

We've just spent half an hour checking of all the different field parcels to see if the pre-populated form is right. They all seem to be there but I'm perplexed by the crop codes that have been put in column C8. They seem to be based on the 2006 crop codes but they suggest the RPA already knows what the land is being used for in 2007. Do we actually need to be filling in this thing at all?

11.15am

It now transpires there seems to be just as many split fields as normal. We have one field data sheet where we seem to have deleted practically every entry because they need to be entered on a blank sheet. I think the measuring wheel is going to be needed very soon...

11.30am

Had a fifteen minute hunt for the contract for the industrial set-aside. Eventually located in a stray file. Panic over.

11.45am

We've completed most of the field data sheet and miraculously most of the pre-populated entries seem to be right. Perhaps the RPA is finally getting its act together? In some ways though, the fact that the pre-populated entries are right, makes it more confusing. Because we're not actually writing anything on some lines it is easy to loose track of which ones you have done and which ones you haven't.

12.00pm

Back to the boredom of drawing sketch maps, but I am diverting myself by eating the sweet and chocolate supplies. We have a choice of wine gums, rhubarb and custards or Roses.

12.30pm

We're really starting to motor now - if I am honest this seems significantly more straightforward than last year. Or do I speak too soon? We haven't tackled Part E yet and I remember that causing us big problems 12 months ago. One to try after lunch.

Entrepreneurship has dominated farming's history.

From Robert Bakewell to Turnip Townsend, people in agriculture have consistently developed new ideas into successful businesses. And then subsidies came along.

Posted by Poultry World editor, Richard Allison, in Brazil

Well after what seemed like a days on a plane, I've made it to the world's fourth largest city, Sao Paulo. At the centre of this city of 30 million people, is the head office of the Brazilian Poultry Exporters Association (ABEF).

The first thing that strikes is how much the Brazilian government is helping the poultry sector to succeed, by part funding an new initiative to boost the image of Brazilian chicken.

My visit marks the start of a new era as the Brazilian industry looks to reach out to UK and EU consumers. I'm part of the first wave of journalists invited to visit poultry units.

An agreement by EU farm ministers to set new welfare rules for broiler hens, including a maximum stocking density of 39kg live birds/m sq, has triggered a predictably mixed response.
EU food safety commissioner Markos Kyprianou, who initiated the Directive, said it would "result in better animal welfare across Europe".
But Peter Stevenson of Compassion in World Farming said it did nothing to prevent intensive poultry production which caused unnecessary suffering to billions of chickens every year.
Junior DEFRA minister Ben Bradshaw, who voted in favour of the Directive, said it "sends a strong message that we care about animal welfare".
But Conservative MEP Neil Parish, who chairs the European parliament's agriculture committee, said it was "a missed opportunity" to impose even tougher standards.
Whatever one's welfare perspective or political starting point, there can be no doubting that having a pan-European set of rules is better than having no Directive at all.
That's not to suggest there were no rules before. Directives governing the treatment of farm animals, their transport and their slaughter already apply to EU broiler production. But this new Directive serves to bring them all together and add the conditions on stocking density.
For UK broiler producers it will make little difference. As the British Poultry Council points out, most UK producers already operate at 38kg/m sq under existing farm assurance schemes.
It's also true to say that stocking rates are just one part of the equation. Feeding, watering, handling, ventilation, temperature control and litter proviosion are all equally important - and these are all covered by the new Directive.
There are real reasons to be concerned, however.
First, the new Directive does not apply to imports. There is every likelihood that processors in particular will turn to suppliers from South America and South-east Asia, who can produce poultry meat at a fraction of the cost, without the welfare guarantees.
Second, the UK government may chose to "goldplate" the EU legislation. The fact it is a Directive rather than a regulation means there is plenty of scope for DEFRA to apply its own interpretation.
Third, the major retailers may also impose tougher conditions on their contracted suppliers, pushing up costs for no extra margin.
Once again UK producers could find themselves disadvantaged, despite the EU Commission's best attempt to harmonise the business environment.

Posted by Poultry World editor, Richard Allison, in Brazil

When travelling across Brazil, the first thing that hits you is the scale of the country. It's roughly the size of Europe and in one state alone there is more than nine million hectares of extensive grassland ripe for cropping.

One option mooted is sugar cane for biofuel production. The sector is already planning to expand by at least 50% in the next four years.

So in the middle of my poultry schedule, I managed to catch up with Federique Rose e Abreu, the government official responsible for co-ordinating the Brazilian biofuel sector. I wanted to find out whether this expansion would have an impact on UK feed prices via soaring world grain prices.

It was a big day for Tony Blair yesterday - but it was also a big day for me. Why? Because - rather bizarrely - it was the day I became David Miliband's toilet attendant.

I was lurking outside the press room at the CLA's centenary conference when the minister appeared and asked whether I could check if there was anyone in the toilet opposite. The reason he wanted me to check it out was because it was the ladies and he didn't want to surprise anyone. The reason why he didn't want to use the gents further down the corridor is anyone's guess...

Posted by Poultry World editor, Richard Allison, in Brazil

After four days in Brazil on a media trip, I finally have onto a poultry site. And the first thing that hits you is the scale of the operation. Huge processing plants purely dedicated to producing chicken for export to Japan, the Middle East and Europe.

Mention Brazilian chicken in the UK and you often hear comments like "they operate to lower welfare standards" and "they don't have the same level of traceability." But the bad news for UK producers is from what I have seen, they are actually going beyond EU standards.

I've just picked up an interesting snippet from the Whitehaven News. The paper has checked to see what its most popular stories have been over the past few months and discovered that a one paragraph piece about Keswick hill farmer Will Cockbain has scored very highly.

The web editor said he did wonder if Mr Cockbain's name meant the story had picked up some 'unintended' traffic. But he pointed out that others stories featuring Mr Cockbain have not attracted the same attention.

Perhaps Cumbrian hill farmers have a new following.

People put hours of thought into ways possible ways to diversify their business and put their assets to best use. But have you considered that your most valuable asset might be you?

The six sector companies which will replace the levy boards in 2008 are looking from top-quality individuals to apply for positions on their boards. They are positions which will put you at the forefront of deciding how the millions raised by collecting statutory levies are actually spent. They could also earn you £500/month.

Many people will assume that they won't be considered because they aren't well-connected or are inexperienced in that kind of arena. But what the sector companies really need is enthusiastic people who understand the sector and the wider challenges they face. They are also keen for some new younger faces.

You may consider yourself an 'ordinary' farmer, but don't rule yourself out of the running. You've everything to gain by putting in an application and absolutely nothing to lose.

We've been looking out some interesting facts about farming that might be appeal to children. But they are proving pretty interesting to us!

For example, did you know that there are 21m individual grains in a tonne of wheat.

Or that black and white cows have patterns as unique as a human fingerprint.

Anyone got any more?

Another post from Ian Ashbridge on the concept of "peak oil".

Academics, commentators and campaigners are divided over the concept of "peak oil" - the year at which fossil fuels begin to decline rapidly and we are forced to develop new ways of producing energy. Depending on whose figures you believe, oil extraction may have already peaked - it is variously pegged to be between 2005 and 2030.

But one enterprising academic has launched an innovative new research project into exactly how people might cope without fossil fuels.

Posting by Crops Editor Charles Abel:

Farmers must dig deep to back British biofuel, argues East Yorks farmer Edward Sharp in today's issue of Crops magazine.

Without a dramatic contribution to the national renewable fuels effort they risk missing out on yet another promising new market, he argues. Is he right? Or is it enough to sign up to supply contracts or petition government for more support?

Mr Sharp believes farmers should contribute an extra £1/t levy on all traded wheat to generate £15M a year to back the use of British wheat in bio-fuel processing. That could make a material difference, helping to underpin a major marketing drive. After all promotion is so often the key.

The resulting prestige and improved standing for farmers with the British public could be immense. What do you reckon?

If there is one subject that gets farmers going it tends to be the issue of vegetarianism.

Wales had a vegetarian farm minister called Christine Gwyther a while back and there was absolute uproar.

So I can't see a new report called, Why it is Green to go Vegetarian, going down too well.

Produced by the Vegetarian Society, it suggests:

The digestive systems of farmed cows and sheep are responsible for 37% of the total methane generated by human activity; this gas has 23 times the global warming impact of CO2.

Livestock production is responsible for 70% of the Amazon deforestation in Latin America

I also can't see the fact that the NFU has a plug for National Vegetarian Week on its website going down too well either...

For years, shoppers and politicans have taken low food prices for granted. But now weather worries around the world are making it increasingly difficult to ignore how vulnerable our food supplies can be. The latest chapter in this undoubtedly long saga was opened this week by the National Office of Statistics. Its latest report on food prices

Shambo, that steer (that's right it's not a bull) held as a sacred animal by some Hindus in wales, that tested positive for bovine TB has his own webcam, click here to see, as you'll see it's only marginally more interesting than watching the cheese cam.

Watchers will note how clean Shambo is, but also that he must be bored stiff (if farmyard animals ever get bored that is).

Posted by Poultry World Editor Richard Allison

I watched the BBC's "Whistleblower" TV programme last night where an undercover BBC journalist claimed to have uncovered food hygiene failings in two of the major retailers.

In the middle of the programme, came a piece on a broiler farm supplying one of the supermarkets featured and I thought, here we go again. Another token poultry unit to make the programme sexier to viewers.

However, if what was shown was true, I am alarmed at the lapses in biosecurity.

What with low-cost food imports and now today's debate on the role of nuclear power, I have to admit to wondering if the bubble is bursting on our indulgent lifestyles.

Only last week I was talking to a friend about "our generation" (I'm 35) - our use of cars, as much food as we can eat etc - and couldn't help wondering if in another 20 years' time we'll look back with affection at how easy it all was.

How reliant on others will we be for "staple" commodities such as food and energy by 2030? How vulnerable will that make us?

For years, farmers have been told that the self-sufficiency arguments for food production are outdated - something David Miliband reinforced recently. And yet at lunchtime today, the PM has cited our declining self-sufficiency in energy as a major concern and the reason for his backing of a UK-based nuclear solution.

My carbon footprint doesn't fit.

As the climate change industry grows, various websites are offering us the chance to measure our carbon footprint. But how effective can they be?

There seem to be fewer and fewer climate change deniers about these days. Perhaps, as the evidence has grown, the remaining sceptics have begun to fall silent.

Now one researcher is suggesting that it is doubly important that we act now to avert climate disaster.

"Environmental philosopher" Julian Darley's unsettling view is that: "The full range of what will happen will only be revealed to historians." He suggests that those of us alive today might never find out exactly how harmful fossil fuels have been. Potentially leaving future generations up an even more difficult creek that we now imagine.

Mr Darley is a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute and author of High Noon for Natural Gas

The Channel 4 documentary, The Lie of the Land, is in journalistic terms the gift that keeps giving.

It was first screened back on 3 May, but the Farmers Weekly office is still getting letters and e-mails from farmers in response.

So when we heard that documentary maker Molly Dineen was attending a second screening of the programme at the Royal Society for Arts in London we were keen to go along and hear what she had to say.

The Soil Association's consultation document on whether or not it should be certifying air-freighted produce makes interesting reading.

Because the document makes it clear that the "the vast majority of imported organic food comes by ship or road" - not by plane.

Which rather suggests that even if the SA decides to take action against food flown in by aeroplane, we're still going to be eating plenty of imported organic food.

If you were in any doubt about the need for the Year of Food and Faming - which is all about reconnecting kids with the countryside and the food the eat - then here it is.

One of our journalists recently attended an initiative run by Bridgwater College in Somerset which involved inviting 500 schoolchildren onto its Cannington-based farm.

Here is a selection of the questions and comments they made:

"Are the cows going to be made into sausages?"
(When looking at a sheep) "Is that a cow?"
"Are there any elephants here?"
"Cor - it stinks out here."
"It scares me when the cows go moo."
"I didn't realise that not all cows are eaten."
"I've learnt that cows are milked with a pump - I thought you had to hand squeeze them and sit on a bucket."

But from the pictures we've got of the event it looks like they had a good time and must have improved their knowledge!

I've just come back from a food industry conference debating whether food miles are too simplistic a measure of sustainability.

Listening to - and taking part in - the debate, it was clear that there is no one simple answer and that yes there are indeed flaws with food miles as a concept.

Certainly the New Zealanders who tuned into the event live from Auckland think so. They fear food miles is just protectionism by the back door, and they're at pains to point out that if you look at the whole life-cycle analysis of their production, taking into account maritime transport to the UK, they are much more carbon friendly.