SM members support retaining part of bonus
Big concern in beef trade over threat of Agenda 2000 chaos
By Philip Clarke
BEEF market managers meet in Brussels today (Friday) to thrash out the final details of the Agenda 2000 reforms and how they will be implemented in member states.
But there is mounting concern that what they agree will lead to administrative chaos and could disadvantage UK producers.
In particular, the latest texts call for a three month retention period for beef producers wanting to claim the new slaughter premium, which will be worth up to k80 (£53) a head by 2002.
The rationale is that the commission wants to ensure the subsidy only goes to genuine farmers and not traders who happen to buy the cattle shortly before they are killed.
But the NFU argues that three months is far too long; even the two months required for beef special premium is pushing it, says livestock committee adviser, Kevin Pearce.
"British farmers want to be able to sell their animals when they are ready and the market wants them, without the restrictions of a three month retention period. When it launched Agenda 2000, the commission said it wanted to simplify the system and prepare producers for world markets. This does neither. If anything, it makes it worse."
The proposal fails to recognise the reality of the British system, in which cattle move from one holding to another far more frequently than on the Continent. "A lot of finishers only hold the animals on farm for a few weeks. This could upset the whole structure of our industry," says Mr Pearce, who also fears the commission may raise the beef special premium retention period to three months as well.
Time is running out, with the beef management committee keen to adopt the new regulations before heading off for the August holiday. As such, NFU president, Ben Gill, has written to EU farm commissioner, Franz Fischler, urging his intervention. *
Let Suffolk irrigate
SUFFOLK growers must be allowed to continue irrigating high value crops which contribute millions of £ to the regions economy, according to a report released this week.
The study was commissioned by the East Suffolk Water Abstractors Group, which consists of 110 local farmers. It followed an Environment Agency report two years ago which suggested that the amount of groundwater abstracted for spray irrigation might have to be halved.
The report, The Importance of Irrigation in the Rural Economy of East Suffolk, produced by Bidwells and the Landscape Partnership, shows that a combination of light, free-draining sand, a favourable microclimates, and irrigation enable the regions agriculture to contribute over 20% to the regional gross domestic product, compared with a national average of 1.8%.
Loss of irrigation would reduce capital expenditure by £4.6m a year, and cut £11.3m from farm wages, and, therefore, local income. Variable input spend would fall at least £7.4m.
Crop value would plummet by a minimum of £14.5m for the ESWAG group, based on Nix figures. "But there are a lot of specialist growers tending to supply higher value markets. Add on the quality premiums and the figure rises to £27m," says Richard Warburton of Bidwells.
Potato processors and packers say replacement early produce would have to be imported from southern Europe or North Africa, he adds.
Environment Agency estimates suggest a 50% rise in spray irrigation in the next 25 years in East Suffolk, though this could be met from existing resources. To encourage efficient water use, the ESWAG report recommends several measures which should be taken (see box). *
SM members support retaining part of bonus
SCOTTISH Milk members have supported a resolution allowing the board to retain part of the bonus or 13th payment made to producers to help fund company development, probably processing.
"This years 13th payment was 0.6p/litre," chairman John Duncan told Mondays AGM. "If we had withheld 0.1p of that it would have generated £500,000 and allowed us to raise 10 times that amount."
SMs cheese arm made a profit of £153,000 in the past year. But UHT company Drakemire, in which SM has a 36% share, made a loss of £142,000 mainly due to a quality control problem.
In the year to Mar 31, the SM group showed a surplus transferred to reserves of £1m compared with £1.6m in the previous 12 months.
Directors pay remains at the 1997 level of £8400 after members insisted that the board share the pain of producers. The co-op sank to the bottom of our milk table last month, paying just over 15p a standard litre, though its seasonality deduction was one of the highest.
But several companies dropped their base prices. Wiseman Englands was down 0.85p to 17.45p/litre; Wisemans Scotland and Aberdeen prices are reduced by 0.75p to 16.55p/litre. Lancs Dairies paid 19.368p/litre, down 0.168p.
Nestlés Dalston and Girvan butterfat and protein prices have been cut by 5% to 2.035p a % and 3.362p a %, respectively. Golden Vale has trimmed its constituent values by 2.4%. Butterfat is now worth 2.075p a %; protein 2.95p a %. Transport charge is up £1 to £4 a stop. *