This Week in Farming: Iran latest, OSR optimism and IHT blow
Farmer Tom Martin and his father George outside the High Court in London © Lisa Martin Welcome back to another edition of This Week in Farming, your one-stop shop for the best Farmers Weekly content from the past seven days.
First, here are your markets (opens as PDF). Beef continues to slip, but so does red diesel, which is hovering only a whisker above the £1/litre mark.
Now, on with the show.
About the author
Iran latest
What’s remarkable about the falling diesel price (and surging stock market) is the extent to which financial markets appeared to have moved on despite the unresolved blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
But warnings of summer fuel shortages remain, and this week Jeremy Moody, secretary of the Central Association of Agricultural Advisors (CAAV), issued a plea to government to consider use of emergency powers to ensure farmers have enough diesel to get harvest and drilling done.
CAAV is forecasting arable farmers to lose around £138/ha this coming harvest, once support payments and diversification income are taken out of the calculation, but steeper losses next year once fuel and fertiliser costs bite harder.
Oilseed rape optimism
Where is the chink of light in this grim picture? Shining on oilseed rape growers, where prices have followed the wider oil market upwards and the outlook is positive.
In a special selection of rapeseed content this week, we also profile a Devon farmer who has returned to OSR cropping, provide a detailed guide to OSR varieties to drill this summer and give some in-season advice in this week’s addition of Crop Watch.
Dairy demand grows
A rising global demand for milk will chip away at the current glut as production slows, experts have said, providing a positive medium-term outlook for dairy producers.
Yet UK farmers are still belt tightening amid low prices and higher costs, with Farmer Focus writer Eurig Jenkins noting that a recent spell of slurry pumping had cost £2,000 more than last year.
This week, we round up some savvy investments to improve efficiency, provide the latest advice on reducing clamp spoilage, and look at how backing gates powered by artificial intelligence can improve cow flow.
Meanwhile, the NFU is pushing back on Defra plans to introduce pig- and poultry-style environmental permitting for dairy and beef producers.
Farm safety warning
An on-farm death every week since the beginning of April has sparked fresh alarm about agriculture’s safety record.
The Health and Safety Executive said the main causes of serious and fatal injuries in farming remain unchanged, with workers still most at risk from moving vehicles, using machinery, handling livestock, falls from height and being struck by falling objects.
Business editor Suzie Horne spoke to farmers and safety advisers this week for fresh insight into how they are helping to keep agricultural workers safe, including serious injury training, management of phones in the workplace and strict enforcement of safety gear such as high-visibility and helmets.
Who’s up and who’s down?
On the up this week is a former Royal Marine who said a career in farming gave his life new purpose, as a specialist charity prepares to to expand its support for former service personnel seeking new careers.
Feeling glum are the farming campaigners who sought a judicial review of the way the government implemented the recent changes to inheritance tax. Their case was dismissed this week by the High Court.
Listen to the FW Podcast
Don’t forget to listen to the latest Farmers Weekly Podcast, with Johann Tasker, Louise Impey and Hugh Broom.
This week, the team discuss the fuel warnings from CAAV, report on Dyson Farming’s plan for the future, and salute the Princess Royal as she receives an award for her long-standing support of agriculture.
You’ll find it anywhere you get your podcasts, or listen free on the FW website.