The Farming Forum

Written by Agriland Team

Argo Tractors, which encompasses tractor brands such as Landini and McCormick, has appointed Adam Waugh as a parts specialist (covering the UK and Ireland).

Adam (pictured below) explained: “Having worked on parts and sales in the family machinery dealership, I’ve seen from the other side of the counter the importance of good parts management – so that customers can get the items they need when they need them.



“I’m already visiting and introducing myself to dealers and...

Make sure you choose the right varieties for your circumstances by checking varietal traits - find out more about canopy architecture and how it can help you to pick varieties that fit your soil type or management plan. Dr Simon Bowen explains more...

Written by Agriland Team

A prototype of virtual reality (VR) glasses was tested on dairy cows on a farm in Russia to improve cow conditions, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Moscow Region.

The VR glasses displayed a summer field – which had a relaxing impact on the cows’ moods, according to the testers.

In a statement on the matter, it was noted that, as well as physical needs, researchers began to pay more attention to the emotional state of animals.

“Examples of dairy farms from different countries show that in a calm atmosphere, the quantity, and sometimes the quality, of milk increases markedly,” the Russian authority noted.

In addition, it was cited that...

106: Liquid milk market dynamics

Written by AHDB

We take look at the factors affecting the British liquid milk market with Patty Clayton, AHDB’s lead analyst for dairy.

In this episode we discuss how much milk is produced, where it’s processed, the challenges affecting Wales and Scotland as well as resources available to help dairy farmers plan for the future.

For the latest industry data, analysis and insights from the dairy sector, visit our market web pages.

Sign up for our weekly Dairy Market Weekly email for the latest market news and analysis.

Feedback survey: We'd love to know...

Written by John Swire

Sourcing British, climate-friendly beef and lamb can play an important role in tackling the climate crisis – that’s the take-home message from the NFU’s meeting with the country’s universities this week.

The 40 university delegates heard from a variety of speakers including Dr Michelle Cain (University of Oxford), Professor Michael Lee (Rothamsted Institute), Dan Crossley (Food Ethics Council), Professor Judy Buttriss (British Nutrition Foundation), Alan Hayes (IGD) and James Evans (Shropshire beef farmer).

The speakers explained why over-simplistic reporting of beef and lamb farming could, if taken to extremes, actually make the climate and environmental problem...

Written by Agriland Team

The slowdown in registrations of new tractors (in the Republic of Ireland) witnessed since the end of July continued in October. That’s according to the most recent figures issued by the Farm Tractor & Machinery Trade Association (FTMTA).

Its data shows a 17% drop in new tractor registrations during October of this year; compared to October of 2018.

The FTMTA’s chief executive – Gary Ryan – commented: “While there was still a substantial drop last month, it was actually an improvement on the performance during August and September whereby there was an average year-on-year drop of over 30% over those two months.”...

Agritech and how it's revolutionising the industry

Written by

Will is at Intelligent Growth Solutions in Scotland to understand how vertical farming works and how it can create a perfectly controlled environment for growing. He also visits CowAlert to see the latest in livestock tagging technology, and talks more widely to the experts about how agri-tech is shaping the future of farming.

www.intelligentgrowthsolutions.com

www.icerobotics.com

Continue reading more on Rock and Roll Farming...

Written by Agriland Team

The College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) is set to hold a ewe management post-tupping event next month.

The event will take place on Tuesday, December 10, at CAFRE’s Hill Farm Development Centre, Glenwherry, Co. Antrim.

There will be two sessions on the day:

• The afternoon session is taking place between 2:00pm and 4:00pm;
• The evening session is taking place between 7:00pm and 9:00pm.

Speaking to AgriLand, Dr. Eileen McCloskey, sheep technologist for CAFRE, said: “The mating season is well-underway or for many early-lambing flocks is now complete. Much hard work, care and attention will have gone into ram...

Written by Jamie Day

Agribusiness 2020, the annual AIC member conference, drew over 220 agribusiness executives to Peterborough last week. The keynote speaker, Defra food and farming minister George Eustice, had been forced to pull out shortly before the event once the general election had been called. Opening speaker AIC chief executive Robert Sheasby commented that the last year […]

The post Agribusiness 2020 – looking beyond the Brexit stasis appeared first on AgriTrade News...

Written by Matt Hopkins

This is a pretty remarkable graph (see below). It depicts the growth of the world’s population since roughly […]

The post The Digital Future of Farming: Could This Mean the End of World Hunger? appeared first on PrecisionAg...

Based Notts/Derbyshire border (M1-J27/8).

I have a lot of experience of ploughing (2,000 acres/year, in the 1990s) and primary cultivations. Also haulage work (including HGV, Class 1) and various other farm equipment.

I have mostly worked with grass, cereals and combinable break crops but also have some experience with maize, sugar beet, potatoes and carrots.

I am quick to learn new procedures and can work alone or in a team.

Please message or email [email protected] for more details.

The Biggest Little Farm review – The Good Life, California style

Written by Leslie Felperin

A lovingly made documentary about a couple who move out of LA to farm the land using traditional, environmentally friendly methods

Those interested in farming, adorable animals and environmentally friendly lifestyles will swoon over this lovingly made documentary made by John and Molly Chester, a pair of Los Angeles-based workers from the media salt mines who upped sticks and bought a farm.

John is a director-cinematographer specialising in wildlife photography, and Molly a chef and food blogger interested in rediscovering traditional farming methods as opposed to the large-scale...

Historic agreement brings increased choice for sugar beet growers



Sugar beet breeder KWS and the joint Seed Working Group of British Sugar and NFU Sugar have reached an agreement that extends the seed offering to growers.

The agreement means growers can for the first time choose between seed that is processed and pelleted by the breeder or by Germains Seed Technology.

Ben Bishop, KWS sugar beet country manager for the UK, described the agreement as ‘historic’ as it was the first-time growers had a genuine choice in pelleting technologies.

“Thousands of hectares of KWS own-brand seed have been purchased and grown by a limited number of...

Written by Rachel Martin

A Chorley egg farm and packing business has been fined £60,000 this week after a forklift truck overturned on a slope trapping the driver.

Manchester Magistrates’ Court heard that on December 1, 2018, an employee of Staveley’s Eggs Ltd. had been driving the forklift truck at the company’s premises at Goosnargh Near Preston, when the truck overturned, trapping the driver between the truck and the ground.

As a result, the driver was left with serious, life-changing crush injuries.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the areas where forklifts were driven had significant changes in gradient which meant they were not suitable for the...

Remedying Soil Problems After a Difficult Harvest

With the recent challenging wet weather in many areas of the country, farmers should consider what can be done to make their soils more resilient for the years ahead, says Matthew Hyslop, Hutchinsons agronomist, based in Angus and Perthshire.

Rainfall in the central Angus area for the months August, September and October totalled 283mm whereas in 2018 for the same period totalled 122mm, and with wet conditions, growers are facing problems with establishing winter cereals and potato harvesting.

“Soils have had little opportunity to dry out properly and with additional...

Written by Matt Hopkins

There has been a lot of buzz about potential uses of drones in agriculture, reports Growing Produce. And, […]

The post Drone Tech Takes Weed Control on the Farm to a New Level appeared first on PrecisionAg.

Continue reading on the Precision Ag Website...

Written by Agriland Team

An appeal for information has been made following a series of suspicious incidents in which cattle and sheep have been wounded and killed in the UK recently.

In a statement released on Friday, November 22, Hampshire Constabulary appealed for information, stating:

“We are appealing for witnesses following suspicious incidents involving animals near Lyndhurst.

“We received a report at around 11:00am on Tuesday, November 19, that a dead ewe had been found at the roadside in Penn Common Road, Bramshaw. The ewe had a puncture wound to its side.

We are looking to see if this incident is linked to two other incidents, in which cows have been found with wounds...

Click to expand...

Keith Holly obituary

Written by Greg Dunning

My grandfather Keith Holly, who has died aged 93, was an agriculturalist, a researcher into weeds and a campaigner.

In 1960, he was involved in establishing the Weed Research Organisation (WRO) in Begbroke, near Oxford, funded by the Agricultural Research Council. He worked with the organisation for the rest of his career, in Begbroke and further afield, and spent 1965 in Raleigh, North Carolina, on a project funded by the WK Kellogg Foundation...

Written by Charlotte Cunningham

CPM readers can step forward and become part of the solution to climate change, says the UK’s premier fertiliser manufacturer. Here’s how and why. By Tom Allen-Stevens Crop production can play a key role in mitigating against climate change. Arable farmers should plan now to ensure they make the most of this great opportunity. That’s the view from CF Fertilisers, who have partnered with CPM, and a number of other key industry players, in a quest to encourage the UK’s arable Climate Change Champions to step forward. The aim is to illustrate how UK crop production can be part of the solution, as both an emissions source and a sink, to the “single biggest issue facing...