This Week in Farming: Tributes, new Defra team, milk protests

Welcome to This Week in Farming, your regular round-up of the best content on the Farmers Weekly website in the past seven days.

Every Saturday we select five of the biggest topics that have got people talking, and look ahead to what’s coming up in this week’s Farmers Weekly podcast.

Her Majesty the Queen

The whole nation was deeply affected by the news on Thursday (8 September) that Her Majesty the Queen had passed away peacefully at Balmoral in the presence of her family.

The farming industry was quick to respond, with numerous organisations expressing their deep sorrow on behalf of their members, as reflected in heartfelt tributes to the Queen on the evening of her death. 

Throughout her life, the Queen showed a real appreciation and understanding of the countryside and British agriculture, some of which we captured in this pictorial lookback at her association with farming.

Her Majesty’s passing came just a few months after her Platinum Jubilee in June, which we celebrated at the time with a look at Farmers Weekly’s coverage of her links to agriculture over the years.

All change in Westminster

In a historic week for the country, Tuesday also saw the appointment of a new prime minister, Liz Truss, followed by the formation of a new cabinet and top team at Defra

With issues such as soaring input costs, labour shortages, and the transition to a new support system, the wishlist of farming organisations for the new prime minister is a long one.  

The actual delivery will depend, in part, on how the new Defra secretary, Ranil Jayawardena, appointed late on Tuesday evening, decides to play things, though his reputation as a free-trade enthusiast has raised some concerns. 

The hope is that the new Defra farming minister, Mark Spencer, will bring some greater experience of farming to the top table, being a farmer himself and a former chair of the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs. 

It was certainly the end of an era for departing George Eustice, prompting us to reflect on some of the highs and lows of his tenure as Defra secretary. 

Milky ways

It has been a mixed week for the dairy sector, with the news dominated by the disruptive activities of vegan group Animal Rebellion, which has been on a mission to “stop dairy”.

The group claims to be “non-violent”, but that did not stop them from inflicting £80,000 worth of damage at Muller’s dairy in Willenhall, West Midlands, puncturing the tyres and putting expanding foam in pipes. There were numerous arrests. 

Animal Rebellion went a step further on Wednesday, spraying white paint over the palace of Westminster and Big Ben.  Processors insist supplies have not been badly affected.

On a more positive note, Waitrose and M&S announced milk price increases, with Freshways sticking at 50p/litre, having previously threatened to lower its price.  

Maize Watch 

Maize harvesting is gathering pace, with a mixed picture emerging around the country.

Our regular Maize Watch feature suggests high dry matter content in some eastern regions, courtesy of the drought. While in the wetter North and West, people are holding off until cobs and grains harden.

However, Farmer Focus writer Andrew Blenkiron reports very disappointing yields on his initial cuts of forage maize in Suffolk, with some of the most drought-affected areas yielding just 20% of target.

But looking ahead, at least growers will have more choice in future, with nine new maize varieties on the latest British Society of Plant Breeders’ Forage Maize Descriptive Lists.

Other departures

In other people news, this week saw the departure of Dutch farm minister Henk Staghouwer from his role in government, stepping down in the face of strident farmer opposition to his government’s plans to shrink livestock farming as a way of reducing gaseous emissions.

But his departure will be of less concern to Farmers Weekly readers compared with the news that long-time columnist Charlie Flindt is relinquishing his Flindt on Friday slot at the back of the magazine, as he exits the arable side of his tenanted farm in Hampshire.