All English farmers can now access free TB advice regardless of their risk status following the awarding of a new contract.
Defra granted the TB Advisory Service (TBAS) Successor Contract to Farmcare Solutions, an entirely vet-led team. The joint venture company is made up of VetPartners, Independent Vet Care (IVC), UK Farmcare and Obligace.
Welsh dairy farmers planning on investing in new technology and equipment could benefit from grants worth up to £12,000 after the Welsh Government announced today (19 August) a new expression of interest window for the Farm Business Grant will open on 1st September.
Rural Affairs Minister, Lesley Griffiths, said a budget of £2m will be available for farmers to invest in new technology and equipment to improve their technical, financial and environmental performance.
Dairy farmers abstracting water from the environment, including boreholes, could face changes to the amount they are charged after the Environment Agency launched a consultation today (18 August).
The consultation will review and update the way businesses are charged for water abstraction licences with the aim to help manage and protect water resources.
Three finalists have been selected for this year’s Dairy Industry Woman of the Year Award. Run as part of the RABDF’s Women in Dairy initiative the award is now in its fourth year and has previously crowned the likes of Mary Quicke MBE and Karen Halton of Halton Farms winners.
This year’s nominations have seen a lot of young dairy ambassadors nominated says Women in Dairy organiser Emily Egan.
“It’s really great to see lots of young talent coming to the forefront of the nominations as they are the future of our industry.
“This year’s finalists all act as exemplary ambassadors for the sector, displaying strengths in areas that are vital to the future success of British dairy farming, which is going to make choosing a winner very difficult.”
The finalists will now face an interview with members of the advisory panel ahead of the award being presented at the Women in Dairy Conference, which is taking place virtually, on Wednesday 22 September. More information and tickets can be found at www.womenindairy.co.uk/conference
Amy Eggleston from Leicestershire
Passionate about the industry and educating others Amy opens the family farm up to schools and supermarkets and anyone in the wider public who wants to learn more about dairy farming. She also participates in video calls with schools, speaking to a wide age range, from nursery aged pre-schoolers to sixth form children looking to start their career. Having built up a huge following on social media she regularly uses this platform to promote the sector and give updates on her day-to-day farming life.
She has recently written as a columnist for Farmers Weekly for 12 months, featured on national TV and local radio and taken part in the Tesco Future Farmer Foundation.
Poppy and Josie Lewis (L to R) from Wales
Sisters Poppy and Josie Lewis are taking over the family farm from their parents. Milking 200 cows and rearing calves and cattle they show how resilience, hard work and teamwork contributes to business development.
The farm already runs an adventure park and has recently invested in a new parlour which includes a viewing gallery and information centre that is set to open to the public with the aim of educating people about agriculture and the dairy industry. They also use their social media platform to educate their following on what farming entails.
Sophie Gregory from West Dorset
From a non-farming background Sophie is a mum of three young children, works on the family farm and spends any other free time educating the public about farming. She is part of several focus groups, takes part in Farmer Time and her and her family have been featured in various Arla videos about farming. She also takes part in Open Farm Sunday doing live videos for their Facebook page.
Showing schools around the farm and explaining the logic behind everyday farming practices through social media are just a couple of examples of her passion for the industry and educating the next generation.
The NFU and the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) have teamed up to issue advice for its members about the problems caused by a lack of labour in the food supply chain. Haulage, processing, packing and hospitality are all areas of concern, with driver shortages being particularly acute, as seen in the news recently.
A response to the RABDF Labour Survey from Farming Minister Victoria Prentis has sparked fresh hope the government may consider helping the dairy sector recruit more workers into the industry.
In a letter to the RABDF last month (4 June), Ms Prentis thanked the RABDF for highlighting the dairy sector labour challenges in a report that was submitted to the Government earlier this year.
