Groundswell 2021

steveR

Member
Mixed Farmer
Maybe ELMS will make a payment for a rear mounted Standen hoe with seated operator, rather than a fancy new camera guided hoe. Possibly a supplement for a Dexta over a more modern tractor (such as a Ford 3000). Also a supplement for no cab, so the tractor driver is more in touch with nature to spot those errant nests.

Just need to bring back Sugar Beet to the West Midlands.... profitable sugar beet, I mean!
 

holwellcourtfarm

Member
Livestock Farmer
Just need to bring back Sugar Beet to the West Midlands.... profitable sugar beet, I mean!
Can sugar beet be grown without damaging soil? I haven't grown them for 40 years (since Felsted factory closed) but, thinking back, harvesting then invariably made a terrible mess. That's before you factor in the intense cultivation and the severe chemical regime.
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
Can sugar beet be grown without damaging soil? I haven't grown them for 40 years (since Felsted factory closed) but, thinking back, harvesting then invariably made a terrible mess. That's before you factor in the intense cultivation and the severe chemical regime.

No is the simple straightforward, truthful answer.

Which leads me to a question 'what does society and regenerative agriculturalists do about sugar in their diet'?

As the focus of government (for which I read society) is on soil health and well being (whatever that means) I assume sugar from the UK is really not on and should be dropped. Does that mean sugar from anywhere growing beet sugar is dropped? So, is cane sugar allowed? And if so what standards are applied to that sugar - pesticides and soil health standards. Should 70million UK citizens consume any sugar?

I am you may consider being combative - yes, maybe, but these are the truths government must face - as it seems to latch onto regenerative agriculture, to me anyway, in an effort to assuage the climate change issue.

I have asked on here before of direct drill farmers and those practicing regenerative methods do they eat carrots and other root vegetable in the winter months. Bear in mind half my life is spent in silt fields watching the soil being pummeled to death - to fill the shelves with fresh vegetables, roots and salad. All of which in my part of world do nothing for regenerative agriculture as I see it, though very happy to be corrected.

JY
 

holwellcourtfarm

Member
Livestock Farmer
No is the simple straightforward, truthful answer.

Which leads me to a question 'what does society and regenerative agriculturalists do about sugar in their diet'?

As the focus of government (for which I read society) is on soil health and well being (whatever that means) I assume sugar from the UK is really not on and should be dropped. Does that mean sugar from anywhere growing beet sugar is dropped? So, is cane sugar allowed? And if so what standards are applied to that sugar - pesticides and soil health standards. Should 70million UK citizens consume any sugar?

I am you may consider being combative - yes, maybe, but these are the truths government must face - as it seems to latch onto regenerative agriculture, to me anyway, in an effort to assuage the climate change issue.

I have asked on here before of direct drill farmers and those practicing regenerative methods do they eat carrots and other root vegetable in the winter months. Bear in mind half my life is spent in silt fields watching the soil being pummeled to death - to fill the shelves with fresh vegetables, roots and salad. All of which in my part of world do nothing for regenerative agriculture as I see it, though very happy to be corrected.

JY
Absolutely spot on.

Personally I have been a big sugar consumer and now believe it played a big part in my heart attack last year. As a result I am trying to cut right down on it and now believe that society in general should do so too. The food industry has huge issues with that though as it is used to hide so many bad practices that they use to drive up profit.

As for field scale vegetables and salads, again you are right. The industry is built on very destructive soil practices. It IS possible to grow these things for personal use without intensive cultivation but I don't know of anyone who has made it work on a field scale. It's a thorny problem for government.
 

Wombat

Member
BASIS
Location
East yorks
Just look 2 year ago when they were having to tow the veg harvesters up the fields in june with challengers (other twin track machines are available :ROFLMAO: )
 

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer
Using 20 plus ton prime movers/ machinery in any type of agriculture is ignorant lunacy, whether they have tracks or not.
I am sure the future is those mini robots trundling up and down fields, battery powered and light doing no damage to the soil and big machines will seem about the same as ploughing with two steam engines and wire ropes does to us now!
 

AT Aloss

Member
NFFN Member
I am sure the future is those mini robots trundling up and down fields, battery powered and light doing no damage to the soil and big machines will seem about the same as ploughing with two steam engines and wire ropes does to us now!
I think HarvestBot is going to have to be a bit bigger & HaulageBot will still have to spill his load as he rolls it on a badly cambered roundabout & hold up all the traffic at rush hour
 

Wombat

Member
BASIS
Location
East yorks
I really enjoyed the day at groundswell but i thought there was a lot of companies trying to get their ideas into future poilicy, get that bit of research paid for or the way they happen to provide data on x,y or z usage down as the defacto way it should be paid for going forward.
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
I am sure the future is those mini robots trundling up and down fields, battery powered and light doing no damage to the soil and big machines will seem about the same as ploughing with two steam engines and wire ropes does to us now!
Actually , Steam ploughing - a traction engine at each end of the field on the headland wire rope winching a plough to and from themselves was a very good way of keeping weight off ..effectivily controlled prime mover traffic.
 

sjt01

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
North Norfolk
I think HarvestBot is going to have to be a bit bigger & HaulageBot will still have to spill his load as he rolls it on a badly cambered roundabout & hold up all the traffic at rush hour
Fleet of robotic wheelbarrows anyone?

I thought this tobacco harvesting system was neat - conveyor belt wound up by tractor onto elevator into trailer - I am sure the manual intervention can be engineered out!

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steveR

Member
Mixed Farmer
Can sugar beet be grown without damaging soil? I haven't grown them for 40 years (since Felsted factory closed) but, thinking back, harvesting then invariably made a terrible mess. That's before you factor in the intense cultivation and the severe chemical regime.

In all honesty, I very much doubt so... A wet Late December really was a horror some years.

There is an inmate here whose name escapes me at the moment, who grows DD beet in Scotland, which would/could mitigate against some of the problems. Drilled into a stubble would provide more stability for the machinery? Chemistry could be an issue, but stale seedbed and DD might help too.
 

Lincsman

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
Actually , Steam ploughing - a traction engine at each end of the field on the headland wire rope winching a plough to and from themselves was a very good way of keeping weight off ..effectivily controlled prime mover traffic.
Just what I thought, better than a grey fergy trundling up and down smearing the furrow bottom.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 80 42.3%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 66 34.9%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 15.9%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 7 3.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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