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All the latest agricultural news for the arable and livestock farming sectors across the UK. Keep up up-to-date with farming policy from Defra and the devolved governments, agricultural subsidies and grants, farm compliance, farming business news and rural issues.

Advice and tips

CRIME

9 tips to combat farm theft during darker nights

As the nights draw in following the end of British Summer Time, farmers are advised to ramp up security to deter rural thieves. See also: Video – farmers’ top tips…

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Why on-farm water supply is critical to contain fires

Farmers need to be fully prepared to counter the risk of fire at any time but particularly at certain times of year such as harvest and during festivities such as…

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Top tips for how to take on dangerous job of mixing slurry

Farmers are being warned by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) to take extra care when planning the dangerous job of mixing slurry. Slurry gas is a…

TENANCIES AND RENTS

How to become a county council farm tenant

County council farms provide a great opportunity for people looking to reach the first rung in the farming ladder and many holdings are designed specifically with new entrants in mind.…

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Case studies

NEWS

Farmers Weekly Awards – Young Farmer finalists 2018

Young farmers are the future of the agricultural sector and are coming into the industry by working on family farms, starting new businesses and competing for tenancies. Some sell themselves…

NEWS

Mooing cattle recorded in bitter row over noise

Mooing cattle on a Yorkshire farm will be recorded for a year in a bid to end a bitter planning row between an organic beef farmer and his neighbour. The…

AWARDS

FW Awards winners – on farming, winning and judging

With just two weeks to go until the closing date, if you haven’t already entered or nominated someone for a Farmers Weekly Award this year, there’s no better time to…

NEWS

Video: How Gloucs farmers are working to prevent flooding

Farmers and landowners in Gloucestershire’s Upper Thames area are working together to manage the land to provide catchment-scale solutions to prevent future floods while making businesses resilient.  When storms Eva…

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Community

OPINION

Opinion: Never mind Brexit, what about my meniscus?

Neighbour: "Did you properly check your meniscus?" Me: "I didn't know I had one." This has been the flavour of the farming conversation round these parts throughout April and May.…

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Insights

NEWS

How farming suffered post-WW1 from government 'betrayal'

The First World War had a disruptive effect on British farming, but the aftermath of war was almost as turbulent, as Richard Munday, Hertfordshire farmer and historian explains. See also: First…

NEWS

First World War Armistice 100th anniversary: Farming's role

Farming played a crucial role in the First World War, but its achievements are often overlooked in history books. We look at how the war affected farmers in Britain and…

NEWS

Exclusive: Source reveals Defra farm payments fiasco

Farmers Weekly has been contacted about the frustration of processing Environmental Stewardship (ES) claims following a massive Rural Payments Agency (RPA) remapping exercise, which led to serious delays to farmers…

CRIME

On patrol with the police in the fight against rural crime

It’s a drizzly mid-September morning as I travel to Buckinghamshire ahead of “Operation Agriculture”. The operation is a week-long crackdown on rural crime affecting farms and the countryside in the Aylesbury…

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News

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Farm vehicle involved in level crossing incident every week

An incident involving a farming vehicle at a level crossing occurs every week on average in Britain, according to Network Rail. In the past 10 years, five people have been…

BREXIT

Poll: Should there be a second referendum on Brexit?

It is turning out to be another crunch week in the ongoing negotiations between the UK and Brussels, with the prime minister suggesting the two sides are now in the…

NEWS

AHDB money should go into one pot, says CLA chief

An overhaul of the way money is collected and spent by the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board (AHDB) is needed to get away from the “silo mentality” and so deliver better…

NEWS

Hero farmer honoured for catching paedophile

A North East farmer has been honoured for his act of bravery at a national police awards ceremony. George Common, 60, was recognised for his part in catching a paedophile…

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Opinion

NEWS

Opinion: Agriculture was fundamental to victory in WW1

Ypres, the Somme, Passchendaele, Gallipoli, Jutland; seminal battles of the First World War, whose names have echoed down the generations and whose combatants are commemorated with reverence on Armistice Day…

NEWS

Opinion: History reveals the folly of dependence on imports

As we approach a red letter Remembrance Day this Sunday (11 November), my thoughts turn to the effect war has had on my own family. Being born in peacetime, I’ve…

NEWS

Opinion: Food for thought from West African adventure

I’m bad at saying no to things. This is how last week I found myself in a mud hut in northern Ghana. I was speaking, via two translators, to a…

NEWS

Opinion: Ruminant sector must do more on antibiotics

Take a bow, UK livestock industry. As chairman of RUMA (Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture), I would like to congratulate you on your incredible achievements in reducing farm antibiotic…

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Test and reviews

16 essential farming apps for 2014

Smart phones have revolutionised how farmers run their businesses, with apps doing anything from identifying weeds to recording and managing grazing platforms. There’s an amazing array of apps on the…

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Video

WEATHER

Video: Drought-hit dairy farmers determined not to sell cows

Two Anglesey dairy farmers who have been among the hardest-hit by the drought are determined to spend their way out of trouble instead of selling cattle. Business partners Johnjo Roberts…

WEATHER

Video: Farmers trade water in battle to save crops

The Environment Agency says it will fast-track applications from drought-hit growers who want to trade water with other farmers in a bid to save crops. Agency team leader Jonathan Thompson…

NEWS

Video: How Next Generation network is helping young farmers

The next generation of farmers are young, passionate, experimental and brave – but most importantly, they are succeeding. The Exmoor Hill Farming Network is one organisation that has prioritised supporting…

NEWS

Video: Farmer's camera catches fly-tipper in the act

A dairy farmer is appealing to the public to help identify a shameless woman caught on camera appearing to fly-tip on his land. Joe Tucker, 19, installed a small camera…

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