- Location
- Darlington
Totally agree. I do a risk assessment everytime I start a job. Just step back take a second weigh the job up then get on with it. Called common sense.
Concerned about Red Tractor collapse.
- Thread starter traineefarmer
- Start date
Same here
as said writing it down and shoving it in a file on dusty shelf achieves nothing. No one to read it apart from me, And I don’t need to read it if I already have the thought in my head.
and let’s face it I can’t exactly sue myself if I get it wrong,
And on a more serious note as a one man band I can’t afford to take risks.
- Location
- Darlington
Was about to add, most of us wouldn't be here if we didn't do it. I once spent a day reading risk assessments for the varying tasks involved with slinging steel the amount of repetition was incredible. Can't deny it's a stupidly dangerous job, but an hour or two spent with an experienced hand can teach a lot more than a day reading the same stuff over and over again.
- Location
- Somerset
Here’s a good one
View attachment 1009521View attachment 1009520
2 screen shots here. On the top one there is an icon marked ‘The benefits of red tractor assurance’
if you click on it it brings you to the second screen shot.
so finally an admission from the tractor that membership has no benefits
It's still on their website as below
It would be interesting to know how much RT are URGING AIC to amend their rules???????????
RED TRACTOR BACKS “LEVEL PLAYING FIELD” FOR UK FARMERS OVER FEED GRAIN IMPORTS
Author: Jim Moseley, Red Tractor chief executive
Red Tractor recognises and supports the principle for all UK growers to be free to choose which markets they access, whether they are assured or not.
We have listened to and understand the concerns of some members, particularly when it comes to the requirements set for grain imported for animal feed production which we know has led to calls for a “level playing field”.
To help find a solution, Red Tractor joined a working group led by NFU vice president Tom Bradshaw to establish the facts on imported grain standards and compliance. The AHDB, the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) and UK Flour Millers are also involved.
At the heart of this issue lies what’s known as the “gatekeeper protocol” part of the AIC feed assurance schemes. This allows grain produced in a country where there is no farm-level assurance to enter the UK feed market. The protocol is part of the Feed Materials Assurance scheme (FEMAS). This essentially provides an assurance system to certify that feed ingredients destined for UK livestock feed meet strict legal and industry safety requirements.
To ensure the safety of livestock feed, Red Tractor has always specified that feed must be assured under the FEMAS, Universal Feed Assurance Scheme (UFAS) or other recognised schemes.
Currently, FEMAS is not open to UK non-assured feed grain growers – that’s because of the substantial costs associated with testing, but we can see how this might be interpreted as a “closed shop”.
It is Red Tractor’s view that UK growers should be granted like-for-like access to this scheme, allowing them the freedom to choose to only supply the livestock feed market in this way.
Red Tractor’s standards already allow for this, meaning non-assured UK grain producers wouldn’t face any additional requirements in choosing to take this route to market should the AIC make the necessary changes to allow it.
We are urging the AIC to review and amend its scheme to create a route to market for non-assured domestic grain under FEMAS and its “gatekeeper protocol”. Equal opportunities to supply the UK’s assured animal feed market should be given to domestic farmers as is afforded to imported grain.
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
Of course it’s bollox, just the same as my farm building plan, showing which gates I should fling open quickly in the event of a fire.
We have maybe been biting our lips and writing up all these nonsensical ‘plans’ for too long. Any sane person knows full well that nobody would refer to a written plan in a RT file in such an event, but we’ve all been begrudgingly carrying on and feeding the parasite.
tullah
Member
- Location
- Linconshire
And then once you did finally get going you were paying tax to pay these wasters etc. to watch over you.
Playing devil's advocate here but I think the logic, if you can call it that, of producing a written safety policy is so that you can prove that you'd identified hazards and taken reasonable precautions to stop anyone getting hurt from them. Not just employees but the tanker driver, feed reps, contractors, walkers, your great aunt etc, and also yourself.
Don't shoot the messenger, I think it's bo**ocks as well but neither do I think such things will ever go away so in my case I spent a couple of hours writing some very generic stuff, stuck it on a shelf, and now it's one less thing they can send me their lovely little non-conformance notes for (there's plenty of other areas where they still do...)
- Location
- Darlington
Yes got to admit, it's part of life. I believe a lot of this clipboard bollox way invented to create jobs, trailer test and 2 HGV tests for example. These have now gone, due to labour shortages, hopefully some of these other assessors will go the same way. Not holding my breath mind. Before TASCC we had multiple audits. I can see merchants having to audit us if we lose RT and there is no replacement.
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
That’s as maybe, but H&S is well outside the remit of Red Tractor. It has absolutely nothing to do with food safety.
Iirc it is necessary to have such a H&S plan if you employ more than 5 people, which is fair enough. RT has, once again, chosen to gold plate that legislation, even though it adds nothing to the safety of food production.
Oh I’m sure your right, but where will it end……
Correct and there is no way the average rt assessor is fully trained in all aspects of health and safety so it’s a reasonable to point out that they don’t actually know what there looking for in such a plan.
This is exactly why I still maintain that our own non gold-plated scheme is preferable to the multi agency/customer audits that will likely arise from the complete scrapping of FA.
The original idea behind FA was fundamentally sound, be seen to be doing the job about right.
The downfall came when everybody and their dog was allowed to add on bits and pieces, for no return to the producer, and to include stuff that is way in advance of actual law; annual sprayer testing for eg.
I would be happy with a continuing trimmed out verification scheme, that demonstrates compliance with all the relevant legislation, and no more.
We could then collectively tell anyone asking "Yeah, look,
we as a supplier are demonstrably compliant with all the required legilation, independently verified by a credible auditor, thanks very much for your enquiry". Job done.And if Waitrose want pictures of their beef cattle wearing sun hats on a Sunday, then they can negotiate with their willing supplier and pay accordingly, without involving the rest of us in their nonsense.
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I would go further and say that by treating Health and Safety with the same box ticking mentality as the rest of the red tractor nonsense, you are in fact diminishing the importance of it and by thinking that you can file it away on a shelf, as already said, is in fact counterproductive.
We have an appalling accident rate as it is and the last thing we need is these arrogant box ticking empire schemes meddling with peoples lives.
I’m with Drillman and others who have said that safety has to be part of the planning of every job every day, especially for those who work alone.
I don’t know how you get past the “I’m invincible” mentality of some people, possibly by lots of pictures and stories, but I’m sure its not going to be helped by another farm assurance file.
We have an appalling accident rate as it is and the last thing we need is these arrogant box ticking empire schemes meddling with peoples lives.
I’m with Drillman and others who have said that safety has to be part of the planning of every job every day, especially for those who work alone.
I don’t know how you get past the “I’m invincible” mentality of some people, possibly by lots of pictures and stories, but I’m sure its not going to be helped by another farm assurance file.
That’s put it a lot better than I did
Just sold a couple of loads this morning and had the same thing said to me but from a different merchant. It seems the grain industry has Red Tractors cards marked.
They don't audit the farms where in imported goods come from so if they started doing that it would be a court case. All UK grain farmers against said merchant. A solicitor would take that on as a no win no fee job and its blatantly wrong and illegal to do that.
Timbo
Member
- Location
- Gods County
- Location
- Moreton-in-Marsh, Glos