Archive Article: 2002/03/01
Disastrous to dissect the union
It is not surprising that, as your report (News, Feb 15) points out, eastern counties arable farmers are disgruntled with the state of their sector and despondent about the future. But if they imagine they can improve things by breaking up the NFU they are making a disastrous mistake.
The union has immense influence on the political situation in relation to our industry. Despite sustained efforts by the government and the unholy alliance of special interest groups and elements in the media, that influence is being maintained.
This is mainly because the NFU represents the vast majority of farmers across all sectors, which is important as the number of people involved in agriculture continues to fall. If farmers seek to destroy this unique organisation, they should accept that they would be administering the coup de grace to the industry as a whole.
Some of those mentioned in your report should look closely at their own performance before criticising others. Guy Smith has been pressed by myself, as Essex NFU chairman and others, to use his considerable talents to effect change from within the union of which he is a member. Why does he not do so?
It has been suggested Marie Skinner takes on a new public relations role. If that results in the display of foot shooting seen in the national media during her recent campaign to become NFU deputy president, heaven help us.
As to Oliver Walston, who with his infamous TV series should take much of the blame for the jaundiced view taken of arable farmers by the government, I am not overly concerned at his threat not to pay his NFU subscription. In recent months there was a strong move among his fellow East Anglian farmers to have him chucked out.
John Jolly,
Southminster Road, Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex.
Praise for NFU travel cover
I award 10 out of 10 for NFUs medical travel insurance. Last month I was caught in New Zealand with a nasty skin disease called cellulitis. It brought on hallucinations, together with a high temperature. I was rushed to Rotorua Hospital and put on a drip for a week. When the disease settled down, I had a three-hour ambulance journey to Auckland Airport. Then a first class ticket with a 6ft bunk to Heathrow was followed by another ambulance journey to the farm.
All the details and payments were dealt with by NFU Insurance. Well done and many thanks.
George Scales
Scales Farms Ltd, Cobblers Pieces, Abbess Roding, Ongar, Essex.
One year to make a poster?
Great news one year after the biggest crisis in farming history. A poster has been designed for display at our airports telling passengers not to bring illegal meat, dairy products, fish and plants into the country. One year to design a poster my sons partner could have done in 10 minutes.
Margaret Thompson
1 Fen Bank, Isleham, Ely, Cambs.
£0.5bn needed to help farming
For Sir Donald Currys plan to revitalise farming to have any success, Gordon Brown has to come up with £0.5bn and theres no chance of that. Applying Swiss or New Zealand methods of cutting subsidies will not work here because they have full control of imports and exports.
Sadly, as we are in the EU, we do not. We take anybodys imports and from places where disease is rampant. Farming is fast going the same way as the fishing industry and this government could not care less.
D J Phillips
Plumtrees, Sladbrook, Staunton, Glos.
Food scares bury bad news
Big job losses have been announced recently at British Airways and British Telecom. Then, the government decides to rattle the old BSE skeleton. It seems food scares are a good way of burying bad news. Am I the only one noticing this pattern developing?
Phil Smallwood
Greenheyes Farm, Northwich Road, Stanthorne, Middlewich, Cheshire.
Organic bodies causing conflict
Why are certain organic bodies hell bent on pitting farmer against farmer? Weve had to put up with the director of the Soil Association doing all he can to besmirch the image of conventional farmers. Now the Organic Milk Suppliers Co-operative OMSCO is going down the same route. Witness their Cerne Abbas Giant publicity stunt. OMSCOs marketing director lost no time implying that industrial agricultural methods and by definition pesticides, might be responsible for reducing human sperm counts.
Im sure there are plenty of ways of advertising all that is good about organic milk without having to denigrate or smear conventional dairy farmers.
I rarely hear conventional farmers slagging off organic farmers. Few see any difficulty existing alongside one another.
Lets hope that the farmer members of OMSCO realise the damage their marketing director is doing. Surely it is better to try to pull together rather than split the industry?
The Curry report makes the point that the farming industry has become disconnected. OMSCOs actions dont help the re-connection process.
George Bentley
Foresters Cottage, Isington, Nr Alton, Hants.
Well done to Prince Charles
I would just like to say well done to Prince Charles for staying in a Cumbrian farmhouse bed and breakfast recently. Therefore doing his bit to make the public aware that the countryside is definitely open for business again after the dreadful foot-and-mouth crisis last year. What a pity Mr Blair, Mrs Beckett, and Lord Whitty are too "busy" to do likewise – or are they just too cowardly to face those whose businesses they helped to ruin?
Caroline Cooper
cowstead@supanet.com
Medicine plan will be costlty
The EU bureaucrats wish to make it more expensive and difficult to maintain the health and welfare of our animals. As a pharmacist with over 30 years experience, I can confirm that Britain has stringent laws that regulate the distribution of veterinary medicines.
The Prescribed Merchant List medicines cover veterinary products such as wormers, dips, vaccines and external parasite treatments. These medicines are available from agricultural merchants who employ suitably qualified persons holding AMTRA registration, authorising them to hold and dispense such medicines. This allows most of us with pets, and farmers with livestock, access to common medicines used in the treatment of minor infections. The British Veterinary Association and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain endorse the current legislation and practice of distribution of veterinary medicines.
On July 18, 2001, the European Commission adopted proposals for changes in the regulation of animal medicines in the EU. Under the proposed change of Article 67, all animal medicines for farm livestock and horses would become Prescription Only Medicines. They would be available only under a veterinary prescription. That would require us to see a vet to secure a prescription for a wormer for our dogs, cats and horses. Such a visit to a vet may cost about £40 plus the cost of the wormer. Farmers would have to pay substantial new charges to vets each time they require medicines to treat their animals.
We have been buying animal medicines under professional supervision from agricultural merchants for decades. The system has worked well to protect animal health in a cost-effective way. Why should we succumb to the whims of faithless bureaucrats in Brussels who seem to have nothing better to do than to create useless legislation that interferes with well-established, successful distribution systems in Britain? If the Continentals do not have a distribution system like ours then let them adopt our system.
Bashir Khanbhai MEP (Con) Eastern region
bkhanbhai@europarl.eu.int
Dairymen – unite to fight
Once again Mr Handley and Farmers For Action should be applauded (Opinion and Business, Feb 15). Come on First Milk, Milklink, Milk Group, and Zenith, get behind the people that count – dairy farmers. Or does that not suit their private agendas? It makes no sense to let the Danes get Express, these are the people importing Danish produce to replace our own.
These are the people who now market Anchor in this country. These are the people who would soon turn to Polish milk and then take the profits back to Denmark. Why cant we wake up? The ship is sinking and Milk Link and Zenith seem impotent to stop this. But most of their top executives can change jobs more easily than we can.
Why go without a good fight? Lets get control of a large player, attract members from other co-ops, rationalise the number of chief executives, company secretaries and offices. That will also reduce the number of tankers crossing the country, all of which costs us money.
Then, it is not beyond most intelligent peoples imaginations to see that direct supplies can be attracted from other non-farmer owned companies and perhaps milk can be brokered. That would offer a farmers organisation with real size that can set prices and has the proper enthusiasm to stand up to the supermarkets. This need not be a dream, it is up to us.
Gayne Cooper
cowstead@supanet.com
Let science do our marketing
Millions of consumers worldwide, including tropical growers, commodity brokers, multi-nationals and health neurotics, will be thrilled to learn that chocolate may be an alternative to a daily aspirin as a protection against strokes.
It may well overtake the wondrous and delicious cranberry as a new runner in the health stakes. Its juice is so ably promoted and marketed by the small but ingenious American Cranberry Growers Association on the evidence of various research scientists that it can stave off the onset of senile dementia and other ailments. Another recent example was the discovery that milk from Guernseys in New Zealand had some unique advantage over that of other breeds.
When will British producer co-operatives follow this example and sponsor research to discover previously unsuspected or little known life enhancing qualities in home produced items? Items such as rhubarb or blackcurrants or gooseberries or watercress or quinces or Stilton? A scientists word might prove more sustainable than a celebrity chefs.
Incidentally, Ribena goes well with gin and a little tonic.
John Jenkin
Meads, Eastbourne, East Sussex.
Extra beet, but cant deliver it
British Sugar has introduced growers to its 20:20 Vision, and this would appear to be one of its main talking points at the forthcoming growers meetings. When would the extra beet be accepted if there was a 20% increase in yields? Presumably in April and May to keep its factories working efficiently.
In 1998 I installed an irrigation system on this light land farm, informing my fieldman of a reduction in beet area from 88ha to produce my contracted tonnes.
Suddenly, a tonnage contract with BS is changed to an area contract, but not on the official beet contract signed by both parties. September issued beet delivery permits were reduced from 145 in the previous five campaigns to 116, for a contract of 3500t in the 2000-2001 season. Despite dialogue with the factory manager, who insisted I had an area contract, no extra permits were issued until the last few weeks of the campaign.
With a change of factory manager and area manager this year, I hoped reason would prevail. But to my dismay, I was issued with one fewer permit this year – 115. The new factory manager explained in writing how my area contract relates to my permit issue.
Consequently, I had delivered just 49.6% of my contract by the end of December, and completed my issued permits on 12 Feb with 81.5% of my contract fulfilled. About 30 loads of beet remain for delivery of contract, plus "C" beet deliveries; all of those are reliant on begrudgingly issued permits.
So I dread to envisage the chaos when all growers are expected to grow 20% more tonnage on the same area yet receive no permits to deliver the beet.
B Harris
Manor Farm, Horsford, Norwich, Norfolk.
Trees offer an alternative
I was interested to see read your report about lower production in Wales (News, Jan 25) and the Talking Point (Jan 25) from James Croxon. This article relayed his experience of alternate land use with new woodlands.
There is no doubt that the small former Grade III dairy units do offer opportunities for Farm Woodland Premium Scheme development. That can either be via an introduced third party investor or the resident farmer himself. If the former, then there will often be the opportunity for the retired farmer to retain a few acres, and importantly his residence.
The granting of FWPS status and introduction of new owners is not straightforward but we have assisted clients such as Mr Croxon and achieved the excellent results for all involved that he details with such enthusiam.
These are alternatives for the small dairy farmer being squeezed out of his traditional business. We hope that further examples of South Dairy Farm in Pembrokeshire can be created in south Wales. Importantly, it also conforms to the latest indication of where government support will continue to be aimed.
Graham Heath
Tilhill Forestry Ltd, Llandovery, Carmarthenshire.
Hardwoods are prudent choice
James Croxons article (Talking Point, Jan 25) was an interesting view from one farmer who has planted a substantial area of new woodland. Mr Croxon has taken the long view and believes that careful design will offer pleasure and value and provide a wonderful habitat for wildlife.
Strangely, many farmers seem apprehensive about planting hardwoods although some will accept planting in field corners and difficult areas. Few appreciate the full potential for income, pleasure and value from planting larger areas. New hardwood plantations are sensibly funded through the Farm Woodland Premium Scheme. There are especially attractive options on offer in the National and Community Forests.
But there is the opportunity for radical thought on the value added front. New ideas and advice may be available at the National Agricultural Centre at Stoneleigh on Mar 7 (diversification in woods and forests). Farmers may well benefit from a better understanding of the opportunities ahead. Why not telephone Sue Archer (024-7685 8252).
Hugh Snell
Lulham, Madley, Hereford.
Twaddle trade, here I come…
I recently attended a breakfast meeting for arable farmers which was kindly provided by a well known agricultural merchant and shipper.
After absorbing the latest agronomic developments in chemicals and varieties, we moved on to grain marketing. At this point we could all thump our chests because we are at the leading edge of traceabilitgy and assurance – something which is becoming a tremendous advantage in the market-place.
Then the speaker produced a chart to show that assured UK grain is the second cheapest grain in the world next to (possibly radioactive) wheat from the Ukraine. Im sure we can rely on the NFU to dream up further parasitic schemes with which to beat farmers. But Im heading for diversification. With the wealth of experience I have gathered over recent years in farming, Im launching a new career as a consultant to the fastest growing industry in the western world – twaddle.
Tim Care
Lower End Farm, Bradfield-on-the-Green, Northants.