Today’s news is dominated by three items on animal disease – the Scottish government's decisions to pursue compulsory bluetongue vaccination; the Welsh Assembly's move to step up anti-TB badger culling; and DEFRA's phased bluetongue vaccination.
News is also emerging of a Gloucestershire farmer whose telehandler broke down as it crossed a main railway line yesterday, disrupting rail services. The incident follows a long-standing complaint with Network Rail over rabbit control.
On the livestock side of the industry English beef carcass quality continues to improve, latest EBLEX figures showing 48% of prime beef carcasses are meeting the MLC’s R4L or better specification.
With store cattle prices up more than £100 a head on last year, and demand for prime cattle reaching fever pitch, it looks like this spring's trade will only get dearer.
Back on the arable side of the industry, as crops motor through their growth stages, farmers are urged not to let up on disease control. Applying strobilurin fungicides can also help milling wheats better use nitrogen, says distributor UAP.
For sugar beet growers much of the advantage from early drilling has been watered down, following slow emergence, says British Sugar. A fifth of the crop was undrilled on Tuesday.
Egg and broiler producers are calling for more price increases as production costs continue to rise, putting them under yet more pressure.
Potato growers should be turning their attention to dumps if they are to reduce the risk of early-season blight, warns the Potato Council's Rob Clayton.
Machinery fans may want to check out what's hot on FWi, where there is plenty to satisfy all tastes from Wreckers Yard photos to real a parts hunters dream - a real combine wreckers yard.
On the forums discussion has been heating up over rent reviews.
Meanwhile, a new website has been launched which hopes to make farmers' markets more convenient,
Applying slurry to arable crops without the compaction caused by heavy tankers sounds a sensible idea? It's easy when you have the right kit.
Finally, straw from light land may not be as useful a source of crop nutrients as some growers believe, says a Suffolk contractor.