This Week in Farming: Milk prices, Rabi cuts, and cattle theft

Welcome back to 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) and there’s another sharp dip for lambs, with liveweight prices now standing at almost identical levels to last year’s.

Now, on with the show.

Dairy markets dither

After months of stable prices, a 4% dip in the Global Dairy Trade index means milk buyers are now split on their outlook for the market, with some processors up, some down, and some holding flat for next month.

Alongside the markets, forage will be the main concern for many producers, and the livestock team have the latest advice on getting the most out of autumn grass now that most farms have seen rain.

And for those engaged in a bit of business planning, two pieces from the most recent Business Clinic might be useful.

First, a look at what paperwork is needed for developing a new greenfield site and second, an analysis of whether a dairy business structure is best as a partnership or a limited company.

Quality calves

Giving youngstock the best start in life is one of the best ways to secure a herd fit for the future, and this week we also have two pieces focusing on that.

First, a look at the benefits of ad-lib milk feeding and second, a round-up of calf rearing tips and tweaks that could help you take calves from good to great.

And if you were in any doubt of the value of this, fresh analysis of the worth of genetic potential has revised up the value of each point of the profitable lifetime index from £1.58 to £2 a cow a year.

This means dairy herds in the top 25% for genetic merit earn £173 more a cow a year than herds of average genetic merit.

Charity trouble

Rural charity Rabi has made seven regional managers redundant in a move it says will help it build a stronger and more connected local presence, but which has alarmed some farmer supporters.

And in separate charity news, the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (NFYFC) says it has lost an undisclosed amount of Defra funding that it has enjoyed for the past 30 years.

Curiously, Defra denies the claim. In 2024, NFYFC had total income of £927,445 and total expenditure of £1,188,741, according to its most recent financial statements.

Size matters

Machinery editor Oli Mark has been test-driving the Neomach Nova X40, a pivot-steer loader suitable for mucking out in some pretty tight places.

The lifting stats are pretty respectable: the tipping load limit is 1.4t, it’ll hoist 1.2t a metre high and reach to 3m with the boom fully extended.

Elsewhere in machinery there are more kit launches, with Kuhn unveiling 7.2m and 8m versions of its Megant min-till tine drill and contractors Josh and Helen Collins talking us through a relatively easy summer marred only by some expensive breakdowns.

Who’s up and who’s down?

On the up this week is everyone behind the Love Lamb Week initiative as they celebrated a decade of the marketing campaign designed to champion the flavourful red meat.

Feeling down is one Omagh beef farmer after he reported up to £30,000 worth of bullocks stolen from the Camlough Road area of Sixmilecross. Police are investigating.

Listen to the podcast

Don’t forget to tune in to the Farmers Weekly podcast, with Johann Tasker, Louise Impey and Hugh Broom.

This week they welcome shadow farming minister Robbie Moore to the show, as well as discuss a BTEC in agriculture and warnings of a cliff-edge in farm stewardship payments.

You’ll find it anywhere you listen to podcasts, or listen free on the FW website.