Who has replaced Guy Smith at Red Tractor?

[Grass And Grain]

If everyone just left would get rid of it

No OSR next year. I've 2 loads sold for November requiring RT, then might as well take a price penalty for my perfectly good grain. Nice one RT/NFU.

 

[Humble Village Farmer]

No OSR next year. I've 2 loads sold for November requiring RT, then might as well take a price penalty for my perfectly good grain. Nice one RT/NFU.

Same here. We should use the combinables price tracker thread to offer loads out and find a buyer that way

 

[Grass And Grain]

Same here. We should use the combinables price tracker thread to offer loads out and find a buyer that way

I've got a little local merchant lined up.

 

[Barleymow]

No OSR next year. I've 2 loads sold for November requiring RT, then might as well take a price penalty for my perfectly good grain. Nice one RT/NFU.

£20 deduction to sell my milling wheat to go on a boat , foreign buyers obviously don't mind mixed grain. Oh hang mine is mixed with foreign grain sold to UK mill then loses rt status what a complete load of B##$#x it all is

 

[Clive]

5.Do you like to go on TFF, Twitter etc and bitch and moan about how nothing gets done yet don't want to actually get involved in changing things, if yes then you won't get anywhere in the process because you wont even apply because you CBA!

wrong on the CBA bit

 

[Clive]

Reading this thread could the new Combinable Chair set a new Red Tractor set a new record and and resign before even being announced !

It's a gravy train career suicide role that's for sure that will make anyone less popular with most other farmers as ebola

 

[SilliamWhale]

Reading this thread could the new Combinable Chair set a new Red Tractor record and and resign before even being announced !

It's a gravy train career suicide role that's for sure that will make anyone less popular with most other farmers as ebola

It's an odd role. Being paid to publicly work against your fellow farmers and to deliberately avert your eyes from double standards just to curry favour with the NFU and RT and maybe make a few quid.

Most farmers wouldn't do it for £100k out of principal but I'm sure social media will have an opinion on the new person and rightly so.

 

[Sid]

You may be willing to pay for it but its not actually a service checking that you are compliant. It's a branding exercise dressed up by a middleman.

Legally you could still be breaking a law and RT inspection would mean nothing either way.

Where does it say I am willing to pay for "it" as in RT.

Please quote my post where I stated that.

You've had 6 hours and I am still waiting.

Your making false accusations.
Take a proper gentleman to admit they are wrong. I therefore conclude you don't fall into that camp.

 

[Treg]

Reading this thread could the new Combinable Chair set a new Red Tractor set a new record and and resign before even being announced !

It's a gravy train career suicide role that's for sure that will make anyone less popular with most other farmers as ebola

Is it?
I'm happy to take the role if offered , I know very little about arable farming but couldn't do any worse than any of my predecessors, it is paid isn't it

 

[SilliamWhale]

You've had 6 hours and I am still waiting.

Your making false accusations.
Take a proper gentleman to admit they are wrong. I therefore conclude you don't fall into that camp.

Sidney sweet pea I've just combined 40 acres, give me a chance

You said and I quote when we discussing Red Tractor:

I said I was willing to pay for a service for assurance I am compliant in one inspection. I don't want bells and whistles.

Now if that means another obtuse form of assurance everyone else is unaware of then so be it but it reads to me that you are willing to pay for assurance - in the grain trade there is one form of assurance -Red Tractor because they are the only ones who have made it up. Whether or not you want bells and whistles for organic or grass fed etc is irrelavant to this because you are making a decision on that based on your farming system. The fence you have impaled yourself on must be hurting!

 

[Grass And Grain]

Is it?
I'm happy to take the role if offered , I know very little about arable farming but couldn't do any worse than any of my predecessors, it is paid isn't it

Someone could come in and totally shake it up.

Past form seems to have been much of the same + addition of a few more standards, to the point where some are leaving due to the hassle/time/cost factor.

 

[Sid]

Sidney old boy I've just combined 40 acres, give me a chance

You said and I quote when we discussing Red Tractor:

I said I was willing to pay for a service for assurance I am compliant in one inspection. I don't want bells and whistles.

Now if that means another obtuse form of assurance everyone else is unaware of then so be it but it reads to me that you are willing to pay for assurance - in the grain trade there is one form of assurance -Red Tractor because they are the only ones who have made it up. Whether or not you want bells and whistles for organic or grass fed etc is irrelavant to this because you are making a decision on that based on your farming system. The fence you have impaled yourself on must be hurting!

Managed 7 other posts in meanwhile

I said I'm happy for an assurance scheme without bells and whistles unless I get a premium.

Does one exist, not at the moment so I have to pay my shilling to be able to sell my milk.

 

[SilliamWhale]

Managed 7 other posts in meanwhile

I said I'm happy for an assurance scheme without bells and whistles unless I get a premium.

Does one exist, not at the moment so I have to pay my shilling to be able to sell my milk.

Yep I can do it while unloading but I can't find quotes.

As I said you are willing to pay for assurance. I was correct, I've quoted you.

At the very least with the milk you do tend to get RT label on a 4 pinter from the supermarket so there is an element of capture of the alleged "brand" even though its shite, but in grain we are shafted from the moment the grain leaves the farm and yet have the costs of complying, so its why we are so pee'd off.

Apology accepted given that you style yourself such a gentleman

 

[Treg]

Managed 7 other posts in meanwhile

I said I'm happy for an assurance scheme without bells and whistles unless I get a premium.

Does one exist, not at the moment so I have to pay my shilling to be able to sell my milk.

Sid, as has been pointed out to me, why are we paying twice for assurance?
We're Organic, Organic certification is far more complex than Red Tractor, Consumers understand exactly what Organic is and pay a premium for it.
We as Organic producers pay to be certified, why do we have to pay again for a mickey mouse assurance scheme that is lower standard than our Organic certification?
Our premium is for being Organic, Red Tractor achieves nothing for us other than adding a cost.
Thank you @Grass And Grain for pointing out my errors in supporting Red Tractor

 

[Hfd Cattle]

We I sent 4 cows off earlier this week .
Ond was not farm assured cos I got my dates wrong and she hadn't been with me long enough . ....it didn't seem to matter !!

 

[Grass And Grain]

Sid, as has been pointed out to me, why are we paying twice for assurance?
We're Organic, Organic certification is far more complex than Red Tractor, Consumers understand exactly what Organic is and pay a premium for it.
We as Organic producers pay to be certified, why do we have to pay again for a mickey mouse assurance scheme that is lower standard than our Organic certification?
Our premium is for being Organic, Red Tractor achieves nothing for us other than adding a cost.
Thank you @Grass And Grain for pointing out my errors in supporting Red Tractor

I'm not familiar with organic certification, but if it's reasonably robust with things like vet med, movement records, feed purchases etc (which I'm sure it will be), then someone needs to communicate this to the processors/retailers. I presume the organic audit is somewhat more in-depth when looking at these sort of things. Fine tooth comb territory.

Or if it needs just a tweek or two to keep buyers happy, then surely it's better to have it all in a single inspection and payment.

I can possibly understand if supermarket wants the RT logo on everything for simplicity, but I'm quite certain the consumer will recognise and buy based on the "Organic" badge, and they'll presume the farm's been audited (which it has).

Seems bonkers to be audited and pay twice. Wants sorting.

Enlighten me. You get the RT audit at same time as the organic? By same inspector?

Do they just check half a dozen more things? Then sort of fill in rest of audit from what they saw during organic audit?

 

[Treacle Sponge]

5.Do you like to go on TFF, Twitter etc and bitch and moan about how nothing gets done yet don't want to actually get involved in changing things, if yes then you won't get anywhere in the process because you wont even apply because you CBA!

CBA? How many farms are scraping by on a tiny amount of staff? A lot of us are on the older side and struggling to keep up with legislation and computer tapping while keeping on top of the actual, physical workload. We all take far too much on because we somehow have to make the business profitable. It's really not CBA ...it's why doesn't the union who purports to represent British farmers actually represent our interests and how can they create an assurance scheme that works against its members and favour importers? It's their main job, damnit, and they have failed. Our job is to produce food. We shouldn't have to (and have not got time to) defend and represent food production in this country. What are the NFU for FFS?

 

[Treg]

I'm not familiar with organic certification, but if it's reasonably robust with things like vet med, movement records, feed purchases etc (which I'm sure it will be), then someone needs to communicate this to the processors/retailers. I presume the organic audit is somewhat more in-depth when looking at these sort of things. Fine tooth comb territory.

Or if it needs just a tweek or two to keep buyers happy, then surely it's better to have it all in a single inspection and payment.

I can possibly understand if supermarket wants the RT logo on everything for simplicity, but I'm quite certain the consumer will recognise and buy based on the "Organic" badge, and they'll presume the farm's been audited (which it has).

Seems bonkers to be audited and pay twice. Wants sorting.

Enlighten me. You get the RT audit at same time as the organic? By same inspector?

Do they just check half a dozen more things? Then sort of fill in rest of audit from what they saw during organic audit?

Yes we have to have a 12 month inspection for Organic, Red Tractor done the same time, couple of hours for Organic then quick 10 minutes just double checking we've covered everything for Red Tractor or the inspector says they'll fill it in when they get home
I would say alot of things Red Tractor have copied from Organic, things that have been in Organic for 10/ 20 years have creeper into Red Tractor, especially herd health plans etc
Feed / vet meds stuff like that yes inspector goes through with fine tooth comb must all add up .

 

[tullah]

CBA? How many farms are scraping by on a tiny amount of staff? A lot of us are on the older side and struggling to keep up with legislation and computer tapping while keeping on top of the actual, physical workload. We all take far too much on because we somehow have to make the business profitable. It's really not CBA ...it's why doesn't the union who purports to represent British farmers actually represent our interests and how can they create an assurance scheme that works against its members and favour importers? It's their main job, damnit, and they have failed. Our job is to produce food. We shouldn't have to (and have not got time to) defend and represent food production in this country. What are the NFU for FFS?

The British Farming Union is coming to sort out the crap that's been imposed on us and stupidly agreed to by the Nfu.

 

[Clive]

Yes we have to have a 12 month inspection for Organic, Red Tractor done the same time, couple of hours for Organic then quick 10 minutes just double checking we've covered everything for Red Tractor or the inspector says they'll fill it in when they get home
I would say alot of things Red Tractor have copied from Organic, things that have been in Organic for 10/ 20 years have creeper into Red Tractor, especially herd health plans etc
Feed / vet meds stuff like that yes inspector goes through with fine tooth comb must all add up .

Have organic growers ever bought up the stupidity and pointless nature of that with the Soil Accociation or OF&G ?

Another example of Red Tractor just being a compulsory tax on growers blackmailed into paying so they can access their market