No
|
Title
|
Summary
|
955
|
Environmental impacts - woodland creation
|
An increase in woodland planting over the next
few years is needed to stabilise soils, intercept sediment, nutrients and
pollutants, to benefit flood management and increase soil microbial activity
and carbon content. Younger trees tend to sequester carbon more rapidly than
older trees though the amount of carbon stored is higher in the latter. Large
scale conifer plantation in the middle of the last century has damaged wildlife
and landscape.
Natural England
|
954
|
Childrens' Centres
|
A minority of rural parents miss out on health
care, continuing education, the opportunity to have social relationships,
childcare and employment. Rural Children’s Centres feature a flexible
use of outreach, help for families with transport needs and the use of a
wide range of satellite venues, mobile facilities and home visiting. They
also engage the trust of many of the families who find it hardest to access
services. With additional funding more families could be located and helped.
Savings might be possible by using more volunteers and by co-locating other
services.
Commission for Rural Communities
|
953
|
Carbon footprinting - opportunity or threat
|
UK dairy farms have cut their greenhouse gas
emissions by about 10% since 1990 and will hit the Kyoto targets by 2020.
The main reason is that they have produced a similar amount of milk
from a fewer, higher yielding cows. More efficient, more profitable dairy
farms are likely to have a lower carbon footprint than less efficient ones.
An ASDA/Walmart supply group of 550 producers is targeting a 10% reduction
in emissions within 3 years by calculating their carbon footprints and sharing
best practice. Initiatives like this need to be driven forward and
well publicised.
Sam Evans, Kite Consulting, National Farm Management
Conference
|
952
|
Beef and sheep GHG roadmap
|
The Government’s UK Low Carbon Transition Plan
requires farmers to continue reducing their annual GHG emissions to be at
least 11% lower than predicted for 2020. Steady improvements in beef and
sheep production efficiency have taken place, with 5% fewer animals required
to produce each tonne of meat in 2008 than in 1998. For beef the targets
imply liveweight gain increases of 0.32 kg/day together with an increase
of around 0.05 calves/cow/year. For sheep an improvement in liveweight gain
of 20% and 0.075 more lambs produced per ewe will be needed. There is ample
scope to achieve these targets
EBLEX
|
951
|
The sustainability of hill farming
|
Since 1900 sheep numbers have increased fivefold,
there has been polarisation of farm size, mixed farming has tended to disappear
and there has been considerable change in habitat types. The change to Single
Farm Payment has reduced stocking but the land continues in good agricultural
condition. Agri-environment schemes might be more effective if they covered
bigger areas and paid on results. Visitors and residents of nearby towns
say they would pay to help support landscapes.
Rural Economy and Land Use Programme
|
950
|
Environmental impacts - biomass
|
Greenhouse gas emissions for biomass production
are significantly lower than those for fossil fuel. Perennial biomass crops
use less fertilisers and herbicides than food crops and can help biodiversity
by increasing the heterogeneity of landscapes. Much of the biomass going
into co-firing facilities is imported but transport has very little impact
on GHG balance. Soils are vulnerable when biomass is harvested.
Natural England
|
949
|
Environmental impacts - management for lowland
gamebirds
|
Many hedgerows, field margins, small woodlands
and planted game cover are maintained for their sporting value but also provide
food and shelter for wildlife. However in woodlands excessive ground feeding
can adversely affect flora. Game management also involves predator control
including foxes, mustelids and corvids but research shows that whilst killing
predators frequently increases breeding productivity of the game species this
does not necessarily translate into an increase in the size of the breeding
population in subsequent years. Raptors can benefit from shoots but a number
of dead kites (and water birds) have been found to have ingested lead shot.
Natural England
|
948
|
Manisfesto for rural health and well-being
|
Priority rural health and wellbeing issues
for government include focussing on small pockets of deprivation, rural proofing,
governance which continually improves patient care with imagination and flexibility,
more rural placements for medical students, co-ordination of appointments
with available transport, the rural culture of not asking for help, obesity
(especially more playing fields), impacts of demographic change, healthy environment
in small businesses including farms, rural consequences of the centralisation
of services, community empowerment and better partnership and volunteer working.
The Institute of Rural Health
|
947
|
Alternative pest management
|
Complementary alternatives achieved by encouraging
the natural enemies of crop pests and crop plants’ natural defences are needed
to reduce the use of the pesticides. Integrated Pest Management which
uses combinations of technologies are the most effective approach. Supporting
research, simplifying registration of new products, re-designing agri-environment
schemes to encourage overwintering sites for predators and to bring back crop
management plans which encourage IPM together with the involvement of the
Voluntary Initiative and BASIS training and eventually a pesticide tax could
all have a role to play.
Rural Economy and Land Use Programme |
946
|
Risk and UK farming
|
UK farming is better placed than it was in
the late 1980s and is benefiting from its traditional conservative attitude
to credit. The major sources of risk are reduced payback ability, downward
movement in asset prices, increased counterparty risk, an increasing dependency
on increasingly transparent government subsidies, increased exchange rate
risk, threats to diversification and off-farm income streams, and a new wave
of protectionism. There is a danger that the relative financial stability
of agriculture may make it a target for a combination of tax increases and
spending cuts.
Jeremy Franks, University of Newcastle, National Farm
Management Conference |
945
|
Environmental impacts - drainage and burning
management on moorlands |
Extensive grazing, cool, managed burns on
longer rotations, limited or no burning on blanket peats and a reversal in
the drainage of moorland areas can lead to landscapes which are richer in
biodiversity. They can also make a significant contribution to better
water quality and climate change mitigation.
Natural England
|
944
|
HSBC market view - 2010
|
Most farming enterprises will not show a
margin over their costs next year – so most farm businesses need the Single
Farm Payment to stay afloat. How long can or should the production of food
in the UK be expected to be undertaken at a loss? HSBC calculate that
(with average performance in each case), feed wheat will cost £135/
tonne to produce, conventional milk 25p/ litre and beef 197p/kg liveweight.
HSBC Bank
|
943
|
Coping with regulation
|
Regulation of farmer’s activities has increased
in quantity and complexity but only a relatively small proportion of it
is bad for agriculture. The biggest impact of regulation is the stress it
imposes on farmers. The most effective ways of coping with it is to try
to influence it and the best way to do this is through the public’s interest
in what we do and in where the government is spending its money. We
need to be open and truthful about our practices and engage as individuals
in every way we can including the social media.
Philip Gorringe, National Farm Management Conference
|
942
|
Anderson's agribrief - November 2009
|
The Campaign for the Farmed Environment will
see farming organisations encouraging farmers to get more involved in Entry
Level Stewardship, keep some fallow land and increase their voluntary environmental
management. But some of the targets are ambitious and there is an implied
threat of a compulsory scheme if they are not met by 2012. Cereal prices
are not moving much – store cattle prices have been high – farm borrowing
is rising – farmland bird numbers are increasing – more support for bioenergy
– Hovis bread will be made with 100% British flour – Teesside biofuel plant
takes first deliveries.
Andersons Farm Business Consultants
|
941
|
Let UK agriculture compete
|
UK producers want to compete successfully
with those in other countries to supply our domestic market. We need
to remove impediments to our competitiveness. Reductions in direct support
from CAP must be multilateral, gradual, help to cope with price volatility
and increase the spend on R&D. Environmental objectives should be
rebalanced. R&D needs to encourage researchers to focus on industry problems,
to encourage young scientists and establish a lead research institute for
each sector. The industry needs a unified qualifications framework incorporating
CPD and courses which are focussed on needs, have enough financial support,
accessible at manageable times and better marketed.
Commercial Farmers Group
|
940
|
Environmental impacts - grazing livestock
in the uplands
|
Grazing livestock are an integral part of
English upland agriculture. Animals, plant species, landscapes and husbandry
systems have adapted, or have been adapted, over hundreds of years by both
economic and natural processes. After the introduction of headage payments
hill livestock numbers increased dramatically causing damage through overgrazing.
Since CAP reform there has been substantially less grazing in the uplands,
with particular declines in cattle grazing. If these trends continue
natural processes would replace livestock grazing as the main influence
on the landscape, leading to the development of woodland and other semi-natural
habitats.
Natural England |
939
|
Environmental impacts- grazing livestock
in the lowlands |
High-output forage systems have a high risk
of loss of semi-natural habitat and release of nutrients into surface and
ground water. The drive to produce large quantities of high quality conserved
fodder has resulted in dense, heavily fertilised grasslands, which are cut
early in the season, reducing botanical diversity and displacing or killing
ground nesting birds. There is a case for maintaining grazing in semi-natural
habitats where, without it, there would be a risk to biodiversity. Ruminants
emit large quantities of greenhouse gases which can be managed as a fuel
but, given high capital costs and modest returns, is more commonly not managed
at all.
Natural England
|
938
|
Pubs
|
Legislation, cheap beer in supermarkets,
the recession, changes in rural communities and changing tastes and interests
are closing about 54 rural pubs a month. Some pubs have been re-invigorated
by extending their businesses into shops and post offices, doing school meals
and being taken over by the community but policy changes which recognise
their role as local amenities are needed if they are to have a brighter future.
ACRE
|
937
|
Developing the English uplands
|
A key issue is to achieve a balance between
stability and continuity. There is no shared vision and planning policies
can work against community sustainability. There is a need to engage many
different people and groupings, to accommodate different ways of communicating
and to integrate many different types of knowledge. Monetary valuation, public
debate, multi criteria analysis, assets mapping and ethical approaches all
have a role to play but also there is a need to make progress and deliver
results. The Leader approach offers a promising way forward.
Peter Carruthers, Centre for Rural Research, University
of Worcester & Commission for Rural Communities and colleagues
|
936
|
Visions and nightmares - farm policy in
the 21st century
|
Agricultural policy has been driven by a
succession of visions that have been the political orthodoxy of their day.
Unhappily, the ‘promised land’, when it is reached, or even before, proves
to have serious drawbacks, resulting at least in part from actions taken
to deliver the vision. Eventually these accumulate into ‘nightmares’ that
mean new visions have to be articulated. Sadly some of the nightmares may
continue long after the vision has changed.
Professor Sir John Marsh, 2009 Geoff Alderman Memorial
Lecture, National Farm Management Conference |
935
|
Environmental impacts - nutrient and pollution
management - Intensive livestock
|
Agriculture is the biggest single source
of ammonia in England. Almost all of this comes from livestock farming
much from manures and slurries from intensive cattle, pig and poultry units.
The trend towards polarisation of farming enterprises in different regions,
rather than traditional mixed farming, often leads to logistical problems
around the disposal of manures and slurries. Increased deposition of nutrients
on natural and semi-natural vegetation will result in a change in species
composition and Nutrient deposition into watercourses and groundwater can
affect rivers, standing water and coastal and marine waters.
English Nature
|
934
|
Rural community buildings in England 2009
|
This Report recognises and celebrates the
success of volunteers and the buildings that they manage. Half are thriving
and overall, use of halls has trebled since 1988. Halls appear to cover most
of their running costs from their own local resources. However behind this
success story lays a huge dependence on fundraising. And without the significant
amount of volunteer effort put into managing the buildings and carrying
out essential tasks to keep halls open, most halls would simply be unsustainable.
ACRE
|
933
|
Vital uplands
|
Upland communities and economies should
be vibrant, sustainable and forward-looking but their success will be intricately
linked with a healthy natural environment which provides better understood
and distinctive places and clean water, reduces downstream flooding, provides
health and well-being benefits for visitors, food, wood, stabilised soils,
increasing carbon capture and resilient ecosystems.
Natural England
|
932
|
Resilience and competitiveness of England's
agriculture
|
Farmers need to be more competitive and
because they are increasingly affected by the market they need to be able
to manage risk. Techniques can include diversification; storage, forward
contracts and credit markets; futures and options markets; sharecropping
arrangements; part time farming; insurance; collaboration and co-operation:
increasing competitiveness and skills and reducing barriers to entry and expansion
and facilitating departures. Joint venture farming arrangements need to be
encouraged to facilitate this process and ways need to be found to encourage
more R&D.
Defra
|
931
|
The future is in our hands
|
Food and its production in this country
can only increase in importance in the coming years. It is up to the industry
itself to ensure that we have progressive and viable food production which
makes its contribution to society both for this country and globally. What
we need is an innovative, highly skilled, forward looking and most importantly
a confident industry for the future. The opportunities are there and we
need to take them. We need to be cautious about dietary advice like eating
less meat and dairy products which is based on over-simplistic interpretation
of the science.
Professor David Leaver
|
930
|
Environmetal impacts - nutrient management
- crops
|
Regions where arable farming is dominant
have the highest proportion of river length with excessive nitrate and phosphate
levels. 24% of arable farmers do not have any nutrient management
plan. Rising fertiliser prices mean farmers are looking to use them more
efficiently. Adding nutrients can disrupt semi-natural habitats.
Nutrients not taken up by plants can be diffused to air or water. The pressure
on productive agricultural land for food production will probably lead to
intensification in crop production and pressures to increase the area of cultivated
land.
Natural England
|
929
|
Environmental impacts - plant protection
products
|
Conventional arable farming has a high
economic dependence on crop protection products to deliver the productivity
and quality of crop required. Legislative changes in the EEC restricting
approved products and their usage could result in a reduction in productivity
of approximately 25%. In 2006 pesticide concentrations were higher
than the limit in 6.49% of surface water samples and there were six of the
most severe category of pollution incidents involving pesticides. The Voluntary
Initiative provides advice to farmers on best practice including training.
Natural England
|
928
|
Effectiveness of agri-environment schemes
|
Almost two thirds of the agricultural
land in England is covered by environmental agreements as are 41% of hedgerows
and 24% of stone walls. The schemes have supported over 6,800 educational
visits a year and reduce greenhouse gases from land management by 11%.The
average net benefit per £1 million spent was £25 million as
well as sustaining thousands of jobs. However, among limitations, schemes
have not impacted enough on the declines of farmland birds and the flexibility
of HLS has not delivered enough habitat restoration and creation.
Natural England
|
927
|
Upland farming lives
|
Most farmers interviewed were facing financial
difficulties and relied, often with great resourcefulness, on off-farm income.
There was little evidence of mental health issues. Children were better
educated which led them outside farming. Families were strong but working
and living together could cause tension. Community activity tended to be
a female preserve. Short term strategies to cope with increased input prices
could cause longer term problems. Reduced subsidy and increasing bureaucracy
were worrying and the farmers believe that government has little interest
in maintaining food production
National Farmers Network
|
926
|
Landskills winter training programme
|
In times of recession and financial worry,
training is often seen as an area to slash, but research shows that firms
who do not train are 2.5 times more likely to fail than those who do.
To help farmers and growers invest in skills, LandSkills, which is managed
by Lantra as part of the Rural Development Programme for England, has £4
million funding available this winter to assist with the cost of developing
their workforce for the future.
|
925
|
Environmental impacts - lowland water
level management and drainage
|
Drainage has made huge changes to the
lowlands, providing suitable conditions for intensive cropping and livestock
systems. Ponds have also been widely lost, in part because of reductions
in mixed farming and in part because drainage has made them less reliable
as water sources. Whilst this has seen the loss of the majority of our lowland
wetlands, some habitats have evolved with the activity, and have become part
of our familiar landscapes. It is possible to incorporate habitats within
drainage systems that support some wetland species if designed in and managed
accordingly.
Natural England |
924
|
Valuing the natural environment
|
Restoring growth, financial stability
and creating jobs are critical goals, but they can be achieved in ways which
prepare us for the future challenges. Environmental degradation has the
potential to undermine long-term prosperity and tackling climate change
is actually a highly effective pro-growth strategy. Alongside a new wave
of innovation in science and technology, investment in a healthy natural
environment is a critical part of the solution.
Natural England
|
923
|
Andersons' agricbrief - October 09
|
Entry Level Stewardship agreements which
come up for renewal in 2010 will need to be re-applied for and there may
be delays getting the required maps. Old and new cereal crop price
prospects look poor. Possibly better milk prices are round the corner.
Beef and lamb prices are relatively high because of reduced herds and flocks.
The pig market has been good but has weakened slightly lately because
of cheap imports.
|
922
|
Animal welfare - working out ethical
principles
|
Confidence about ethical conclusions
depends on convincing arguments conducted within an established ethical
framework supported by facts, scientific deductions and reason and if consensus
exists about the validity of the conclusions. FAWC’s view is that
the most useful way forward is to look at the consequences of any proposed
course of action and at any possible relevant intrinsic considerations before
reaching an ethical conclusion.
Farm Animal Welfare Council
|
921
|
Farmer's markets and traditional retail
markets
|
Farmers markets provide an opportunity
for farmers to sell their products direct, and attract new, more affluent
customers into towns. They have helped to rekindle food production skills
such as the development of artisan cheeses, to bring younger entrants into
the industry, to increase local employment, to bring farmers and small
scale producers together and help to bring ‘rural’ to urban areas. They encourage
the purchase of local food. There are tensions between farmers’ markets
and older markets arising out of councils subsidising farmers’ markets,
with market charters preventing farmers’ markets being held and about integrating
farmers’ markets with older markets.
House of Commons Communities & Local Government
Committee
|
920
|
Livestock consumption and climate change
|
Efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
such as campaigns for consumers to eat less meat, have alienated livestock
producers, who are concerned that they are being unfairly targeted, and
who have pointed to potential unintended consequences. It is in the public
interest to address such concerns and involve producers in shaping this
important policy agenda. The framework set out in this report highlights the
fact that livestock production affects not only climate change, but also other
environmental issues, animal welfare and the lives of producers and consumers.
Further dialogue should involve producers, policy-makers and environmental
groups.
Food Ethics Council
|
919
|
Sustainable intensification of global
agriculture
|
There is a pressing need for the sustainable
intensification of global agriculture in which yields are increased without
adverse environmental impact and without the cultivation of more land.
For this to happen a "Grand Challenge" research programme should explore
new methods of crop management. It should support the development of improved
crop varieties by both conventional breeding and genetic modification.
The governance of innovation for agriculture needs to maximise opportunities
for increasing production, while at the same time protecting societies,
economies and the environment from negative side effects.
The Royal Society
|
918
|
Skills assessment
|
Jobs are becoming increasingly skilled
within the Environmental and Land-based sector. Employers have been able
to become more efficient, developing new methods which have led to a
decline in the number and proportion of lower-skilled roles. This will
present a significant challenge in up-skilling the existing workforce.
A high proportion of the workforce will retire over the next ten years.
The sector will need to attract and develop new blood to replace their
skills.
Lantra
|
917
|
Environmental impacts of cultivations
|
Almost half of the agricultural land
in England is used for arable production. Crops are predominantly raised
with the help of chemical sprays and fertilisers. Whilst there are ways
of producing crops without recourse to some or all of these, there is
a cost in terms of level of production, or adequately proven alternatives.
Cultivations generally reduce soil organic matter, which has a negative
effect on soil structure, and potentially growth enhancing microorganisms,
as well as carbon emissions. Use of minimal or zero tillage systems over
an extended period has not been fully researched in this country, but could
bring major benefits.
Natural England
|
916
|
Save our countryside: Why we are all
killing off our rural idyll
|
The future for many of Britain's farmers,
especially in our uplands, is gloomy and rural villages and market towns
are failing. The current system of reward for environmental management
will never be enough to support British agriculture. Our smallest farmers
in particular need help. A group of business leaders, under the umbrella
of The Prince's Rural Action Programme, is determined to throw a lifeline
to Britain's most vulnerable upland farmers and communities. And that lifeline
needs to come in the form of readily accessible funding.
Mark Price, Managing Director of Waitrose and
Chairman of the Leadership Team supporting HRH The Prince of Wales’ Rural
Action Programme
|
915
|
Farm animal welfare
|
There have been improvements in livestock
welfare but further progress is needed, such that British citizens can
be assured that each and every farm animal has had a life worth living.
A significant deficiency is the lack of independent information, including
approval and verification of marketing claims about standards. This should
be remedied by the establishment of an independent service that would provide
citizens with authoritative, accurate and impartial information.
Farm Animal Welfare Council
|
914
|
Best practice rural accessibility
|
These case studies include the home
delivery of vegetable boxes, opening an old railway track for cycling,
walking and horse riding and the implementation of demand responsive
transport for isolated settlements. They demonstrate how access to essential
services can be achieved by delivering them more locally. To be effective
consultations need to reach the people who really need the service. Close
partnership working can be time consuming. Research is needed to find better
ways of measuring outputs of similar projects.
Commission for Rural Communities
|
913
|
Succession planning
|
An action list for getting succession
planning underway
Yorkshire Rural Support Network
|
912
|
Environmental impacts of land management
|
The farming, forestry, and game industries
have produced landscapes that favour species dependent on open habitats,
early succession and regular disturbance. Cultivations generally reduce
soil organic matter, worsen soil structure, and increase carbon emissions.
Intensive livestock systems may result in loss of biodiversity, pollution
from manures, slurries and their associated gases. In many instances the
objectives of conservation and game management coincide. Creation of woodland
habitat is generally beneficial in terms of habitat creation and carbon sequestration.
Much of the current evidence is focused on damaging effects of management
activities. Land management that has been successfully integrated with
natural processes and habitats has generally been less closely researched.
Natural England
|
911
|
Rural housing - rural economies intelligence
|
Repossessions have been declining
dramatically both in rural areas and nationally but housing need, demand
for housing advice and numbers on housing register lists in rural areas
has been rising. Private housing construction and affordable housing
remains at a standstill in many rural areas and mortgage finance for
Shared Ownership is difficult to obtain. There is evidence of a downturn
in housing starts and planning applications, lack of future land supply
and worries about future grant availability. The Homes and Communities
Agency has recently revised its rural affordable house building target
in settlements below 3,000 population downwards.
Commission for Rural Communities
|
910
|
Organic farming markets
|
UK organic production is small and
geographically very unevenly distributed, with concentrations in south-west
England and south-west Wales. The top 10% of the largest farms accounted
for over half of sales and are largely working in national markets. The
large number of smaller more locally orientated producers are the type consumers
appear to think they are buying from. Consumers expressed strong health
and environmental reasons for buying organic and are relatively price
insensitive. However, those who do not purchase organic food are
price sensitive. Organic farming is unlikely to make a large contribution
to employment or wealth but the large numbers of small producers should
be beneficial to rural economies in their areas.
Matt Lobley and colleagues from the Centre
for Rural Policy Research, University of Exeter, Countryside and Community
Research Institute, University of Gloucestershire and the Centre for Environmental
Policy, Imperial College, London
|
909
|
Developing a bovine TB eradication
programme for England
|
A range of tools will be needed:
effective diagnostic tests; targeted cattle controls; and vaccination
for badgers and cattle; and to remain open to the possibility of using
badger culling. Recommendations include changes to movement licences
which will reduce bureaucracy and streamline processes for Animal Health.
There will be a new classification of risk areas and changes to the testing
regime within them. From early 2010 there will be more advice for those
affected by breakdowns, dispersal sales will be allowed and ‘unconfirmed’
test results will be seen more as indicative of the presence of TB.
Bovine TB Eradication Group for England
|
908
|
Arguments for hunting with hounds
|
The Hunting Act causes greater animal
suffering when it should have set out to improve the welfare of wild mammals.
The aim of wildlife management is crucially different from pest control.
Hunting with hounds, and those many unpaid “eyes and ears” of its supporters,
are a valuable and natural component of this management process. Hunting
is the natural and most humane method of control. A re-assessment of hunting
with hounds and its place in wildlife management should be made.
Veterinary Association for Wildlife Management
and the All Party Parliamentary Middle Way Group
|
907
|
Making local food work
|
Events such as food riots; the problems
of obesity, hunger and malnutrition, the rising importance of food provenance
are bringing food to the fore in politics. In consequence local food
is now a global movement. Changes to the social clauses of public procurement
contracts would help to increase Government procurement - it is possible
to specify fresh, certified and organic but not local. This summary also
includes case studies of local food practice and a framework for proving
the impact of community food nterprises. The question remains - are local
food initiatives too small and too grant dependent?
Plunkett Foundatiuon/ Rural Enterprise Gateway
South West
|
906
|
Farmers and rural communities must
be supported
|
The countryside is one of the greatest
treasures of our nation and it is in crisis. The Prince’s Rural Action
Programme is engaging business leaders in finding solutions to many of
the problems faced by rural communities. One solution may be a fund
to support farmers caring for fragile landscapes and to sustain rural
communities. The improved provision of services and particularly high
speed broadband will be vital. Worryingly, many of those who are being
left in the Internet's "slow lane" are the very same people who look
after the countryside on our behalf – Britain's livestock farmers – and
they are struggling as never before.
HRH The Prince of Wales
|
905
|
Indicators of poverty and social
exclusion in rural England
|
A few very useful facts and figures
Commission for Rural Communities
|
904
|
Impact of vision of CAP on UK agriculture
|
The CAP Health Check changes are
predicted to depress UK milk prices but to have little effect on beef,
sheep meat, pig, poultry and crop prices. The Doha Reforms would also
push milk, beef, pig, and poultry prices down but would reduce sheep production
to a degree where sheep numbers in the EU would fall and prices would
rise. There would be little impact on the crop sector. Further liberalisation
would slightly increase milk prices and drive beef, sheep, pig and poultry
prices down but would not have much effect on the crop sector. Ending the
Single Farm Payment would increase milk prices slightly, reduce beef and
sheep numbers significantly but would have a negligible impact on the pig,
poultry and crop sectors.
Joan Moss et al, Queen’s University Belfast,
AgriFood & Biosciences Institute and FAPRI, University of Missouri |
903
|
Andersons agribrief
- Sept 09
|
Exchange rates should mean 2009
Single Farm Payments will be up by 15%. Global wheat production
is on the increase so little increase in prices is likely. Only 1.2%
of food samples were above the (very safe) Trading Standards limits on
pesticides content. Milk prices seem stable but dairy, beef and
sheep numbers continue to fall. Beef and sheep margins have improved but
livestock farms still depend on the SFP for profit.
|
902
|
Why farming matters more than ever
- environmental improvement
|
Farmers’ enthusiasm is key to environmental
improvement. Almost half of farmers are cutting their hedgerows only
every two to three years to encourage wildlife. Almost two-thirds of the
agricultural landscape is in Government-run conservation programmes. Since
the mid 1990s the population of farmland birds has remained level and
plant species richness on arable land has increased by 30%. The industry’s
Voluntary Initiative, the Campaign for the Farmed Environment and the ‘Tried
and Tested’ management plan are all working to reduce farming’s impacts
on the environment. Greenhouse gas production from farming is going down
steadily and farmers are involved with a wide range of bioenergy technologies.
Farmers are increasing carbon stored in soil by using practices such as
reduced tillage and by recycling organic wastes.
NFU |
901
|
Soil strategy for England
|
There will be reviews of soil protection
under CAP cross compliance and of the need for soil options under Environmental
Stewardship, of thresholds for pollutants entering soil through recycling
materials to land and of the effectiveness of the existing planning
policy in protecting important soils. There will be a new goal to reduce
the rate of loss of stored soil carbon, a commitment to developing a
new framework for action for peat protection, a new code of practice
for soil use on construction sites, a new toolkit for planners on how
to take account of soil functions through the planning system and there
will be new best practice guidance on decision making for contaminated
land.
Defra
|
900
|
Spotlight on livestock
|
The number of grazing livestock
on UK farms is at a historically low level. The importance of the liquid
milk market and relatively low elasticity of demand leaves the best UK
producers in a better long-term position compared with other countries.
Increasing scale lowers the cost of production and of milk collection and
it makes the cost of compliance more manageable although it introduces a
range of other problems. Small scale production and little collaboration
makes the supply chain inefficient for beef and sheep production. Opportunities
exist in some arable areas where grass is effectively free. Many producers
have developed very low input beef and sheep enterprises which run alongside
other occupations
Savills Rural
|
899
|
A sustainable Post Office
|
The Post Office® should be
transferred into a small business hub with a dedicated business desk
at each branch, with specially trained staff and mobile Business Link
services. There should be dedicated advertising facilities to help
small businesses reach other small local businesses and potential customers,
Wi-Fi, meeting rooms and a full range of financial services, including
business banking. The Post Office® network is also a community
hub essential for the Government’s sustainable communities’ agenda,
the only national network that encourages intergenerational contacts
and generates footfall for surrounding small businesses.
Federation of Small Businesses
|
898
|
Why farming matters more than ever
- the challenge
|
The world must feed itself and
British agriculture must be in a position to play a part in the growth
in production. Population growth, urbanisation and improved diets
will increase the demand for food by 50% by 2030. Limited land, levelling
off of global productivity increases, climate change and energy constrain
the ability of farmers everywhere to respond to the need for more food.
Commitments to agricultural research in developing countries should be
supplemented by equivalent efforts in developed countries. For the UK the
wisdom of continuing to rely so much on imports is questioned. Solutions
like eliminating meat from our diets or somehow transferring overeating
in the developed world to feed developing counties are unworkable.
NFU
|
897
|
Post - Chernobl monitoring results
- 2008
|
Monitoring reports on sheep at
farms remaining under post-Chernobyl restrictions in England, Scotland
and Wales indicate that none of the farms under survey were considered
to be suitable to have their restrictions lifted.
Food Standards Agency
|
896
|
Aging
|
For the first time pensioners are
now less likely than others to be in poverty. Over 1.3 million people
over State Pension age now have a job. Their life expectancy has continued
to grow by around 2 years a decade, and three quarters of these extra years
are spent in good or fairly good health. The rural population is ageing
faster than other areas of the country and many rural areas will face challenges
delivering services to them. Timely and responsive transport is
key to accessing local services. Policymakers should not create silos
for rural areas – but additional support and guidance can be appropriate.
ACRE
|
895
|
Energy crops' land use
|
There is real interest in growing
biomass crops but profitability and clear policy support would be essential
elements in their large-scale adoption in the UK. There is sufficient
land available to meet production up to the UK government Biomass Strategy
objective without significantly impacting on food production. Widespread
public opposition to planting of these crops on aesthetic grounds seems
unlikely Both willow and miscanthus crops are biodiverse, especially willow,
but could benefit from plantation design and management protocols that
are sympathetic to wildlife
Rural Economy and Land Use Programme
|
894
|
Investment prospects for British
dairy farmers
|
The importance of EU supply in
meeting global demand will probably ensure that in future prices will
be at a level that will reward efficient European dairy farmers. Although
we are currently at the bottom of a volatile price cycle at present, this
situation should reverse in the next 12 to 18 months. Dairy farmers should
also have confidence that they will generally be supplying an increasingly
efficient, dynamic and competitive processing sector.
DairyCo and Dairy UK |
893
|
Why farming matters more than ever
- the economics
|
Farming employs over half a million
people with another 24,000 working in the agricultural supply industry.
Farmers are increasingly involved in long term trading relationship and
over half have diversified beyond core farming. The agri-food industry
employs 14% of the UK workforce and without a healthy farming base there
is a risk that domestic food and drink manufacture could be eroded. Farming
has a good record of reducing its energy use but the continued use of nitrogen
fertiliser is justified by its energy multiplier effect of 6:1. Many farmers
are involved in tourism directly but also through the upkeep of the landscape
and public access to almost a million hectares of mountain, moor, heath,
down and common land.
NFU
|
892
|
Reducing emissions from livestock
|
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from
livestock has become a topic right at the heart of the climate change
debate. The Royal Agricultural Society of England has commissioned a
report which demonstrates that while there is a case to answer, livestock
farmers and researchers supporting them are making real progress in reducing
emissions, managing cattle waste and developing technologies that will
enable livestock to be farmed sympathetically with the environment. The
report is too large a file to attach to this email but you can access
it at:
http://www.rase.org.uk/what-we-do/publications/Reducing-Emissions-From-Livestock.pdf
|
891
|
State of the Countryside Conference
- any questions?
|
Among the views: worries about
how more localism and reductions in public spending will impact; we need
to be more imaginative about building sustainable settlements in rural
areas; we cannot build our way out of unaffordable housing; the scale
of rural communities lends itself to inventiveness and they could be
in the vanguard of social change; banks should encourage more manufacturing
and service jobs in rural areas; we need to shift the debate from disadvantage
to releasing potential; worries about tourism being seen as a panacea;
we need community led solutions to the impacts of climate change.
State of the Countryside Conference
|
890
|
Transition farms - after fossil
fuels run out
|
In the future, fertility building
(manure, anaerobic digestion, legumes), food production and processing,
waste processing (anaerobic digestion and/or composting), energy and
fuel production and delivery to markets and communities will all play
a significant role in the sustainable farming model. For maximum benefit
it would be necessary to start planning and act now to implement the necessary
changes required.
South West Rural Update and supported by
the Royal Agricultural College |
889
|
Restoring the balance - managing
wildlife in a busy landscape
|
The decline of Britain’s wildlife
continues partly because the current system fails to find practical
solutions to specific wildlife problems and does not reward conservation
success. A new wildlife conservation law should allow for greater flexibility
to manage species and Natural England to tackle wildlife problems that
affect land-uses. A payment-by-results scheme would allow farmers to focus
more closely on species rather than habitat.
Stephen Tapper, Game & Wildlife Conservation
Trust |
888
|
Web techniques to boost your
business
|
How to create an online strategy
that works by targeting specific audience types and getting them to
engage with your website. How to spot niche markets and exploit them
online; whether the recession has affected visitor behaviour; creating
a website that search engines will love and how you can improve your online
presence by using social media tools.
Rural Enterprise Gateway
|
887
|
Farmers and environmental assessments
|
The number of small agricultural
businesses carrying out environmental assessments doubled in the two
years since the last survey. However most farmers had a poor
knowledge of environmental regulations about activities like storing
waste, chemicals and fuel and emitting smoke and fumes. NetRegs is
campaigning for all businesses to nominate a ‘Green Ambassador’ responsible
for reducing the firm’s effect on the environment and has a simple
online self-assessment checklist which is free and can help identify
green measures that will save most businesses real cash
NetRegs.gov.uk
|
886
|
Rural lives - challenges for
social policy
|
Shortage of personal advisers
and reduction in job centres may impact more on rural than urban people.
Also job creation is focussed mainly on larger firms and so rural may
miss out. Under-employment and low pay are much more of a problem than
unemployment in rural areas. More affordable housing provision is needed
despite the recent increase in government funding. Public spending will
fall. The effectiveness of Government in delivering rural policy must
be improved including a more nuanced approach which encourages community
pubs for instance. After the recession there is a danger that immigration
policies and conditions in rural areas will be inadequate to attract the
numbers of migrants the rural economy needs.
Lisa Harker, Institute for Public Policy
Research |
885
|
Franchising farm systems
|
The Agrarian Renaissance aims
to reconnect people, land, and food. Tim Waygood has devised a
plan for a campaigning organisation and for franchising diverse farming
systems based on sound agrarian and business principles.
Policy Foresight Programme
|
884
|
Farm practises survery 2009
|
Among the statistics; 89% of
holdings were aware of the Cross Compliance Guidance on soils; soil
mapping is used by 26% of cereal and general cropping holdings; 51% of
all holdings have completed a nutrient management plan; forward contracts
are used by 37% of cropping farms and 10% of livestock farms; 47% of
purchases were bought through a co-op or farmer controlled business. 20%
of holdings practice Integrated Farm Management; 70% of holdings using non-packaging
plastic products have at least three quarters of it removed from the farm
for recycling; 66% of sheep and 67% of cattle were vaccinated against bluetongue;
78% of holdings with livestock have a farm health plan; 66% of livestock
enterprises were members of a farm assurance group and 10% of holdings were
aware of proposals for a new independent body to manage animal health and
disease
Defra |
883
|
Rats - option for controlling
infestations
|
Rats can transmit human and
livestock diseases, damage buildings, create fire hazards by gnawing
electrical wiring and contaminate foodstuffs and stored crops with
droppings and urine. This technical note is intended primarily for farms
and for other commercial premises. It provides general information on
brown rats and describes how to control infestations.
Natural England
|
882
|
The future of farming - whole
system biology
|
Natural ecosystems depend on
spatial and temporal diversity. Agricultural ecosystems need to mimic
these. Complex crop mixtures of varieties tend to yield better than
monocultures, are more resistant to disease and produce more stable yields
year by year. A publicly funded breeding programme for sustainable
agriculture is needed with objectives like weed control, efficiency
of nutrient use and resistance to seed borne diseases rather than yield
and response to artificial fertilisers. Increasing the proportion of
small mixed farms will make ecosystem farming possible.
Professor Martin Wolfe, The Organic Research
Centre – Elm Farm at Wakelyns Agroforestry |
881
|
Andersons agribrief - August
09
|
Defra has joined the debate
on food policy but it is unrealistic to expect a ‘Dig for Victory Mark
2’. Boosts to R&D and business skills are more likely. Chances
of a Supermarket Ombudsman have increased – but perhaps only slightly.
There have been increases in the area of organic land in 2008 but a
fall of land in conversion. Bankers still see farming as safe to lend
to and borrowings have gone up to record levels. |
880
|
Economic well-being in rural
areas
|
The period to 2001 was characterised
by a shift from subsidies towards investment support and attempts to
integrate economic development, social and community development and
conservational enhancement. A much wider range of organisations became
more actively involved in helping to shape the evolution of the common
agricultural policy including environmental, social and community groups
and local authorities. Our analysis and understanding of economic
wellbeing in rural areas has moved on immensely but there are still key questions
to answer especially to help cope with the economic downturn.
Professor Neil Ward, University of East
Anglia |
879
|
Scrapie
|
Scrapie is a notifiable and
fatal brain disease of sheep and goats – this paper describes the symptoms
and outlines what to do if you suspect you have a case
South West Rural Enterprise Gateway
and Defra
|
878
|
Fresh lamb - a local opportunity
|
Fresh lamb sales are increasing
especially stewing and diced lamb. Even though the recession is causing
consumers to hunt out bargains there has been a substantial increase
in the number of saying they want more locally produced foods. Opportunities
exist to differentiate based on the breed of lamb, the farmland on which
it has been raised and feeding regimes to give distinct quality, flavour
and texture to the final product. Time spent on understanding shopper
behaviour and looking at new ways to sell the product could pay dividends
to those farmers who try and set themselves apart from the rest.
South West Rural Enterprise Gateway
and Eblex |
877
|
Food security as I see it
|
We must embed economic, environmental
and social sustainability into agricultural policies, practices and
technologies. We must address today’s hunger problems with appropriate
use of current technologies, emphasizing agro-ecological practices, coupled
with decreased post-harvest losses. Advanced biotechnologies may be
needed to address future demands for increased productivity and emerging
issues such as climate change and new plant and animal pests – but the
risks and benefits must be fully understood. We must work out how to provide
payments to the farmer for maintaining and enhancing ecosystem services
Professor Bob Watson, Chief Scientific
Advisor, Defra and Director of the International Assessment of Agricultural
Science and Technology for Development
|
876
|
Crop protection
|
The new hazard based approvals
process is expected to remove a number of pesticides currently used
in UK agriculture and horticulture from the market, though the exact
number and hence the impact on the industry is still unknown. Integrated
approaches to crop protection which require pesticides to be used less
are being developed and adopted by many farmers and growers. Biological
control, plant breeding and GM crops offer alternative solutions although
each has benefits and disadvantages.
Parliamentary Office of Science and
Technology |
875
|
Farm carbon accounting
|
Carbon accounting enables farmers
and land managers to estimate the emissions of carbon dioxide methane
and nitrous oxide produced from farm operations and land, as well as
estimate the carbon locked up through soil and woodland management. This
paper outlines what is needed to produce a carbon account and gives links
to tools to do the job.
Farming Futures |
874
|
Food scenarios
|
Four sets of different but
equally plausible outcomes help to identify future challenges and
show that constraints of fuel and water etc could force a radical reconfiguration
of the food system. By valuing the cultural and social dimensions of
food more strongly people may be more willing to pay for climate change,
animal welfare, health and labour rights. The consequences of the impact
of the world’s fastest growing economies on Europe are scarcely considered.
Planning policy needs to take into account how to steer changing shopping
habits so they are sustainable. New food technologies like laboratory
cultured ‘meat’ may overturn assumptions about what is or is not sustainable.
Food Ethics Council
|
873
|
Post Office network update
|
There is only half the number
of Post Offices that there were in 1965. Change has been necessary
to reduce the average subsidy per branch of around £20,000 per
year. Mobile, partner, hosted and home delivery outreach services
are going well and the PO Essentials service with local retailers is
currently being trialled. Getting the account for pensions, benefits
and tax credits from 2010 will help and proposals for a ‘Post Bank’ may
yet come to fruition if private backers can be found. There may also
be scope to develop other services with local government for example.
ACRE
|
872
|
World agricultural priorities
and plausible ways forward
|
The world will need 50% more
food, 30% more water and 50% more energy by 2030. People will also
demand better standards of living. We will need to use no fossil fuel
by 2030. There is major over-exploitation of aquifers all over the world.
Crop protection is crucial to reduce losses estimated at more than 40%
worldwide. Biotechnology can help provide solutions with both GM and
non-GM plant breeding improving yield, quality, resistance to pests and
diseases. Better infrastructures are also needed in developing countries.
Professor John Beddington, Government
Chief Scientific Advisor
|
871
|
Veterinary expertise
|
There is no shortage of vets
for farm animal practice but more needs to be done to prepare graduates
for full time work. There is a lack of differentiated veterinary services
on offer to farmers and vets need to market their services better particularly
to add value beyond the farm gate. Business skills need to be embedded
more clearly into the veterinary curriculum. The profession needs to develop
training and career structures. Government needs to focus on improving
its relationship with practitioners in tackling threats to animal health.
Professor Philip Lowe for Defra |
870
|
Climate change - a really
brief and simple guide
|
The UK is likely to see hotter,
drier summers and warmer, wetter winters coupled with more frequent
extreme weather such as flooding, heat waves and droughts. By the 2050s
summer rainfall in SE England could decrease by one-fifth and average
mean temperatures are likely to rise by more than 2C across the UK. These
changes will impact on many areas, e.g. farming, flora and fauna, investments
in roads, housing and flood defences, the cost and availability of house
insurance and house prices in areas subject to increased flooding. The
article also contains links to further information.
Jan Drozd
|
869
|
UK food security assessment
|
Openness to trade makes the
UK very resilient in terms of disruptions to food supply. Globally,
the availability of food has improved but there are very significant
distributional problems. The UK food supply chain may be vulnerable
to interruptions in energy supplies. We should produce as much food
as possible, as long as that is driven by demand and increases in production
are achieved as sustainably as possible. We need to know more
about how to promote behaviour change in consumers.
Defra
|
868
|
Algae - the ultimate biofuel?
|
There are many potential
benefits from using algae in biofuels production, particularly because
they do not need to compete with land used for food crops. But there
are still many obstacles before it can be developed on a commercial
scale. There is a lot of investment in research which is driven by
the conviction that economies of scale, improvement in yields and output
are achievable. Future profitability may depend on using co-products
for nutrients, pharmaceuticals, animal feed or other bio-based products.
EurActiv
|
867
|
Future of upland communities
|
People living and working
in the uplands have a strong desire to stay there and improve the
quality of their lives and that of their children. The lack of employment
opportunities leading to young people leaving and being unable to afford
housing and lower levels of service provision were seen as being the
primary ‘links’ in a chain threatening the future of the uplands. Addressing
these concerns will require greater degrees of self determination
for the communities because they are complicated and often contradictory
– bad targetting of support could destroy community spirit and indiscriminate
relaxation of planning controls could destroy key assets of landscape
and tranquillity.
Commission for Rural Communities
|
866
|
Stress and loss - the impact
of bovine TB on farming families
|
20% of farmers interviewed
were either panicked or devastated by the news of their latest outbreak
and a further 50% were upset or worried. Everybody in the family becomes
emotionally involved– they were often upset by the loss of their cattle
many of which they would know individually, worried by the financial
strain resulting from cattle being culled, by the consequent restrictions
and by the extra work which this caused. 95% of farmers thought that the
TB regime would not contribute to the eradication of TB. Official
communication with farmers about TB leaves much to be desired.
Farm Crisis Network
|
865
|
Food security and sustainability
|
Recent falls in the value
of sterling and worsening balance of payments may make affording
imported food more difficult. Farmers need confidence in a
long-term policy framework. Europe will be morally bound to produce
more food for areas which are more affected by climate change. Defining
what food production we expand and how is a priority. A new EU Common
Sustainable Food Policy, skills-building for food production at various
scales, a Sustainable Agriculture and Food Advisory Service, renewed
efforts to cut out food waste are all needed and a sustainability dimension
needs to be added to advice on diet..
Sustainable Development Commission |
864
|
Environmental impacts of
UK food
|
The global warming potential
arising from production of tomatoes and strawberries in Spain, poultry
in Brazil and lamb in New Zealand were less than from those foods produced
in the UK. The key factors affecting the environmental burdens of food
are yield, the need for refrigerated storage and distance from the
consumer. It may be better, when considering the global warming potential
of food production, to accept that imports from countries where productivity
is greater and/or where refrigerated storage requirement is less,
will lead to less total global warming potential than local produce.
Defra R&D
|
863
|
Anderson's agribrief - July
2009
|
A voluntary approach has
been adopted to retain the environmental benefits of set-aside.
There are likely to be more incentives for renewable energy – price
guarantees, tariffs for producers who feed electricity into the grid
and there will be new support for renewable heat. The EU has suggested
that superlevy may be allowed to be charged to individual producers
who are above quota to finance a retirement scheme but the UK is unlikely
to adopt this. They also recommend extending intervention, allowing
more types of cheese to have subsidised export new promotion schemes
and an examination of the retail chain. |
862
|
Market town - rural economies
recesision intelligence
|
Almost 11 million people
live in approximately 1600 market towns and larger villages across
rural England. Market towns have seen steeper rises in unemployment
than the national average. Amongst the hardest hit are middle
class and professional groups. In most market towns the number of vacant
shop units has increased. There are examples of local partnerships and
councils taking action to address these issues – but changes in funding
priorities mean that numbers of town centre managers have decreased.
Details of the Government’s Town Centre Initiative Fund have not yet been
made public and no funds have been released.
Commission for Rural Communities
|
861
|
Implementation plan for
anaerobic digestion
|
The economic framework
for AD should encourage all potential users by developing tariffs
to feed electricity into the national grid, collection systems for
waste food and confidence in the digestate. Regulation needs include
an effective quality protocol for digestate, environmental permitting
arrangements and better understanding of planning issues. AD technology
must to continue to improve requiring good R&D and there needs to
be effective demonstration and communication to achieve greater awareness
of the benefits of AD among all those who should have an interest.
Defra Anaerobic Digestion Task Group
|
860
|
The health of honey bees
in England
|
Beekeepers are reporting
an increasing frequency of losses. There are four notifiable bee
diseases and pests in England and Wales and cold, wet weather may
also be a factor in colony death. Defra has given little priority to
bee health. It has announced an extra £2.5 million for research
but this will be diluted by the inclusion of other pollinator insects.
Regular inspections of colonies identify nearly 80% of cases of notifiable
disease but the effectiveness of inspections is hampered because around
half of the beekeepers in England have not joined the voluntary register.
House of Commons Public Accounts
Committee
|
859
|
Control of bovine TB
|
Defra is not enforcing
the cattle testing regime rigorously. They are unable to confirm
whether there is a causal link between the growth of the badger population
and increased incidence of the disease in cattle. They have
made little progress in setting out standards for bio-security and
in sharing the costs of tackling disease with those farmers who do not
maintain proper farm bio-security or who fail to practice good animal
husbandry. Working more openly and effectively with farmers and
local veterinarians might help.
House of Commons Public Accounts
Committee
|
858
|
Older people in rural areas
|
The population in rural
areas who are aged 65 and over is projected to increase by 62% between
2009 and 2029. The paper takes stock of the social exclusion experienced
by rural older people, reviews the problems of delivering public
services to them and gives some case studies with innovative solutions
which improve transport options, improve access to health and social
care, tackle fuel poverty and increase their engagement in public life.
Cabinet Office Social Exclusion
Task Force
|
857
|
Rural action - a Conservation
agenda for rural communities
|
Rural communities will
have more power to decide their own future and regulation will only
be brought in when self regulation fails. Funding will take account of
increasing rural deprivation and the higher cost of delivering services.
European funding will be devolved to local authorities. There will be
an opportunity for the repeal of the Hunting Act. There will be measures
to incorporate social value in government decisions, to facilitate new
business opportunities for post offices, to encourage school visits
to farms, to provide more affordable housing, to reduce taxation for small
rural firms and to incentivise local authorities to promote local economic
growth.
Conservative Party
|
856
|
GM pipeline
|
Currently there are around
30 commercial GM products cultivated worldwide, the forecast is that
by 2015 there will be over 120. Insect resistance and herbicide tolerance
dominates GM traits at present and still are expected to in 2015.
However there are a wider range of traits coming through over the next
few years including pest and disease resistance and tolerance to factors
like drought.
European Commission through its
Joint Research Centre, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies
|
855
|
Migration and rural economies
|
Overseas migrants are
having an increasing impact on rural economies particularly supporting
agriculture, food processing and hospitality. They are nowadays
coming from more countries than ever before. The recession may mean
that supplies of migrant labour will fall but any shortages are not
expected to be chronic. The UK should continue to facilitate the movement
of agricultural workers, make more effort for affordable housing for
them, review the role of recruitment agencies, extend the remit of the
Gangmasters Licensing Authority to cover all ‘vulnerable’ employment’,
examine migration issues more at rural events and embed migration issues
more in planning and policy making.
Institute for Public Policy Research
|
854
|
Farming succession
|
Farming remains almost
exclusively an inherited occupation. One survey shows only 8% of
farmers were new entrants. Farms lacking a successor may be gradually
wound down and de-capitalised to produce an easier life and funds for
retirement. Having a successor can act as a trigger for business development.
There is not much evidence to support concerns about the sustainability
of family farming – one survey showed that only 5% of farmers who expected
to leave farming in the near future had not identified a successor.
The succession question then is mainly about achieving a better balance
between the valuable contribution of farming families and the benefits
of the ‘new blood’ effect of new entrants.
Matt Lobley, Centre for Rural Research,
University of Exeter
|
853
|
New blood
|
RASE has commissioned
a report on the issues surrounding new entrant recruitment into farming
and related sectors.
|
852
|
Environment - greenhouse
gas emissions, climate change and waste
|
Greenhouse gas emissions
from agriculture account for around 7.0% of total United Kingdom
emissions. Agriculture accounts for 38% of total methane UK emissions
and 68% of nitrous oxide. Agriculture can help to reduce emissions
by reducing its own emissions, replacing fossil fuels, by producing
heat and power from wastes and by growing crops for pharmaceuticals,
fibres and oils which can substitute for mineral sources.
|
851
|
Rural money matters -
a support guide to rural financial inclusion
|
Policy makers and programmers
need to use low level spatial analysis to identify the relatively
small pockets of financial exclusion in rural areas. Around 200,000
rural people in England do not have access to a bank account of any
kind and the number of mainstream banking facilities in rural areas
is declining. Poor public transport systems and long travel times
make physical access to mainstream financial services difficult and
more costly. Higher service costs in rural areas, due to a widely dispersed
client base and poor economies of scale, is also a challenge when delivering
debt advice and credit union outreach services. New technologies, like
video-link and the Credit Union Current Account, can make
rural outreach more cost effective,
but high set up costs can be a barrier to their use.
|
850
|
Keep trade local
|
The first priority must
be to businesses such as rural post offices, village shops and pubs
to ensure that they not only survive but also continue to act as
the heart of rural village life for generations to come. Then we need
to ensure that we can deliver a framework that will allow our rural
economies to flourish for the benefit of business, the environment
and communities alike by addressing the fiscal framework, by unlocking
the huge potential of the tourism industry and, more than anything
through a planning system that reflects the potential the rural economy
has to offer.
|
849
|
Environment - resources
|
Farmland bird populations
declined by about half between 1978 and 1993, and have since remained
stable. Over the last 10 years agricultural emissions of methane have
fallen by 12% those of nitrous oxide by 18% and of ammonia by 13%. Nitrate
levels in rivers in England fell between 2000 and 2003 but have since
remained relatively level. Phosphate levels have fallen slightly between
2000 and 2007. Total energy use by agriculture has fallen by 22% over
10 years. Over the last 10 years, the use of nitrate and
phosphate fertilisers has declined
by 28% and 45%.
|
848
|
Sub-national review -
key policy outcomes
|
The Review proposes an
economic assessment duty for upper tier and unitary local authorities,
ways for authorities to collaborate, new regional strategy and governance
structures and the delegation of decision making more locally.
|
847
|
Uplands and other less
favoured areas - farm practises survey 2009
|
60% of upland farmers
classify their business as full time. Almost 64% were long established
family farms. Only 7% of upland holdings were farmed by under-40 year
olds. Only a quarter of farm
households got all their income
from farming. About half the farms were debt free. In the last
4 years, 36% of upland farmers have reduced or stopped grazing
moorland. For 27% of farms there are no succession arrangements mainly
because the family are not interested. Only 2% of upland farmers
plan to move on to another career. 95% of farmers think maintaining
the upland way of life is important. 38% regard maintaining the environment
as vital to the future of upland farming. Low market prices are seen
as the greatest challenge to the future.
|
846
|
Anderson's agribrief
- June 2009
|
Rents for Full Agricultural
tenancies decreased between 2006 and 2007 but for Farm Business
Tenancies they increased by 1%. The wheat and barley markets have seen
some big falls this month and are likely to stay volatile until the
size of this year’s harvest becomes clear. Oilseed yields are likely
to be down because of poor establishment last autumn but lower yields
do not look likely to be compensated for by higher prices. Fertiliser prices
are likely to be lower for 2010
|
845
|
Planning for prosperous
economies
|
Cities and towns are
the key economic drivers. Rural areas also have an important contribution
to make but there is no such thing as a separate ‘rural economy’.
Planning authorities should seek to protect and strengthen village
and local centre shops, services and other important small scale economic
uses; should support the conversion and re-use of existing buildings
in the countryside and sustainable rural tourism and leisure developments
which enrich the character of the countryside, its towns and villages.
Major developments should not take place in National Parks, the Broads
and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, except exceptionally
.
|
844
|
Environment - habitats
|
Agricultural activities
cover about three quarters of the land area in the United Kingdom.
In 2006, around one fifth of United Kingdom habitat Areas/Sites
of Special Scientific Interest on agriculturally managed land were
in a favourable condition and one fifth were recovering.
|
843
|
Rural labour markets
- rural economies recession intelligence May 2009
|
For the first time
since the start of the recession, the numbers in April newly claiming
unemployment benefit and those ceasing to claim in our most-rural
districts are almost in balance as more rural people find work. More
people are also coming off benefits in urban areas and going into
government approved training schemes but new ways must be found to
give rural people better access to support for job seeking and training
particularly for young people not in education, employment or training.
New funding, announced in the Budget, is not reaching rural areas despite
some good local and regional initiatives.
|
842
|
Environment - land
use
|
A simple overview of
UK land use with links to further information
|
841
|
Regional rural land
use - a time for fresh thinking?
|
The image of rural
land needs a makeover. We cannot go on regarding it simply as
a means of food production, with the environment as an expensive
by-product. We have to realise its potential as a tool for economic
recovery and growth, capable of delivering a range of products and
services needed by society.
The new regional strategies
need to take this into account and set the framework for greater
innovation in land use and its governance, better integration between
economic and environmental agencies plus stronger links to science
and technology. We also need further changes to the delivery of European
policy, including developing the regional dimension of the CAP.
|
840
|
Uplands
|
The ageing population
and loss of young people is significant in the uplands but they
have a more balanced age profile and a more stable population than rural
areas generally. There are proportionately more deprived areas in the
uplands though. The number of service outlets has fallen. Only 49% of
households have an internet connection and broadband speeds tend to
be slower. Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing is only the 7th largest
employment sector in the uplands. The average income of an upland
grazing farm has decreased from
£17,400 in 2003/04 to £10,400 in 2007/08. Woodland
and trees cover 12% of the land area.
|
839
|
Science, belief and
rational debate
|
This is a well written
article which sets out succinctly how the scientific method works
and should work. It is useful reading especially to help understanding
of complex issues like climate change and genetic modification which
stretch the capabilities of science – but there isn’t a better way!
Scientific Alliance
|
838
|
Digital inclusion
|
In total, about three
quarters of rural internet users say they use the internet for
transactions; this is higher than the UK average of 69%.
Only 1.5% of homes in villages and hamlets can access cable-based
broadband services, compared with almost 60% of urban homes.
26% of Broadband users in rural areas receive broadband speeds less
than 2Mbps, compared with 12% in market towns and 6% in towns of more
than 10k inhabitants. Only 54% of rural households have a public internet
access point within 2 km, compared to 90% in urban areas. 813,000 rural
homes may not be able to receive a 2Mbps service on a commercial basis
Commission for Rural Communities |
837
|
The food chain
|
Food inflation was
10% in December 2008. This was a decline from its highest annual
rate in 30 years of 13% in August. In 2007 the agri-food sector accounted
for 6.5% of the total economy; 20% of the total consumers’ expenditure
in 2008 was on food, drink and catering; the farmgate share of a basket
of food staples was 37% in 2008, little changed since 2007 even though
agriculture commodity prices rose by 20%; the agri-food sector provided
a total of just over 3.6 million jobs in the third quarter of 2008,
14% of all employees in Great Britain. Over the year to December 2008;
retail meat prices rose by 15%; milk prices by 11%; the price of bread
by 10% and the price of potatoes by 15%.
Defra |
836
|
Biofuel from grass
|
The ‘Grassohol’ project
aims to make ethanol from perennial ryegrass. It could provide
an economic boost for rural communities and contribute to renewable
energy targets while also reducing carbon emissions. The dried
residue from the process would be high protein animal feed. Local
refineries could be established on farms at a similar scale to wine
co-operatives. |
835
|
Direct Payments
|
In 2008 direct payments
made to farmers totalled £3.27 billion, an 8.9 per cent increase
on 2007 Payments not linked to production, including the Single
Payment Scheme, are expected to increase by 9.0% to £3.21
billion. Payments linked to production totalled £56 million,
which was similar to 2007 and a 30% decrease from 2006.
‘Agriculture in the United
Kingdom 2008’, Defra |
834
|
Prices
|
In 2008 compared
with 2007 the average producer price of agricultural products
rose by 20%; crop products rose by 14%; livestock and livestock
products rose by 26%; agricultural inputs rose by 24%; fertiliser
more than doubled; energy and lubricants rose by 59%.
‘Agriculture in the United
Kingdom 2008’, Defra |
833
|
The structure of
the industry
|
77% of the UK land
area is farmed. 35% of the farmed area is croppable. Since 1997/99
there have been falls in the areas of most crops except wheat, oats
and oilseed rape and in the numbers of all the main types of livestock
except table poultry. The number of agricultural holdings below 20
hectares is increasing. 531k people work in farming but the
numbers of everyone but salaried managers and part time farmers is
falling. The age of landholders is rising and 77% of those managing farms
have no training. Agriculture’s total capital stock has fallen by 12%
since 1997/9.
Defra
|
832
|
Regional rural landuse
- a time for fresh thinking
|
We cannot go on
regarding rural land simply as a means of food production, with
the environment as an expensive by-product. We have to realise
its potential as a tool for economic recovery and growth, capable
of delivering a range of products and services needed by society.
To do this we need greater innovation in land use and its governance,
better integration between economic and environmental agencies plus
stronger links to science and technology. We also need further changes
to the delivery of European policy, including developing the regional
dimension of the CAP. The production of regional strategies is ushering
in an era of significant change in both devolution and governance.
Local authorities are seen as key agents of economic progress and the
new legislation will give them a duty to produce local economic assessments
and greater freedoms to act.
Frances Rowe, RELU
|
831
|
Andersons agribrief
- May 2009
|
News soon on compulsory
environmental management to replace set- aside. 100% capital
grants on the way? EU grain yields may be affected by dry
weather. Milk prices down, beef firm but the beef herd still declining,
lamb and pig prices better. Farm borrowings are up. The Enterprise
Finance Guarantee Scheme has been extended to farming. New environment
scheme options.
Andersons, the Farm Business
Consultants
|
830
|
Future of the English
beef industry
|
There is a risk
of sleep walking towards the irretrievable decline of the beef
industry. Low profitability is damaging business confidence and
constraining investment. There is a continuing need for Knowledge
Transfer work to encourage producers to take up and apply best technical
and business practice but also the beef supply chain is convoluted and
opaque an there is a need to improve working relationships and to share
margins more fairly. Beef production is a significant source of greenhouse
gases but cattle graze land that itself stores carbon. Beef is an important
part of a balanced diet.
EBLEX
|
829
|
Climate change,
landscapes and habitats
|
Natural England’s
four ‘Climate Change Character Area reports’ show how England’s
landscapes, their wildlife and habitats, will experience wide-ranging
changes in the face of climate change.
|
828
|
Making local food
work
|
The project is
showing that communities taking control of their food can save
money and eat well in spite of the Recession and global price
increases. By coming together and linking directly with local producers,
community members can benefit from economies of scale, the freshest
produce and knowing exactly where their food comes from and how
it was produced.
Plunkett Foundation
|
827
|
Honey bees
|
Honey bees are
important pollinators of farm crops but the number of beehives
is declining and there has been a range of bee health problems.
The 2008 UK honey harvest was more than 50% down on normal levels.
The Varroa mite is the main problem because in addition to direct
damage it also vectors secondary pathogens. Wild honey bee populations
in the UK have been wiped out by pests and disease so all the honey
bee pollination activity is undertaken by managed bees. There is
a risk that the money set aside for bee research will be targeted
more widely. There is no evidence that pesticides have poisoned
honey bees
NFU
|
826
|
Farming Income
|
In 2008 Total Income
from Farming rose by 36% in real terms. Total Income from Farming
per full-time person equivalent also rose 36% in real terms, to
£18,200. Agriculture’s share of national gross value added
is about 0.5% of national employment was 1.7%. Average Farm Business
Income for all types of farms in England is expected to be around
£44,300 in 2008/09, about 11% lower than in 2007/08 - incomes
for cropping farm types are expected to have fallen while incomes for
livestock farms are expected to have increased. These averages mask a
large variation in individual farm performance. Around 12% of farms fail
to recover their costs.
Defra
|
825
|
Key events in
2008
|
Total income from
farming rose by 36% in 2008. The economic downturn should
make exports easier, increase the 2008 single payment for farmers
and help them with lower interest rates although banks are tightening
lending conditions. World prices of agricultural commodities boomed
in the first half of the year but fell back later. But input prices
went up too. The CAP health check included the end of set-aside, the
decoupling of direct aid payments and the abolition of milk quotas
by 2015. The single payment scheme paid out £1.63 billion to
106,500 claimants and the Uplands Entry Level Stewardship will replace
the Hill Farm Allowance.
|
824
|
The politics of
plants
|
Food security
depends on the use and management of global biomass resources,
and specifically the push to develop a ‘bio-based economy’ -
the growing focus on plants as a source of innovative solutions
to food security, energy security, climate change and global environmental
health. Plants are a renewable but finite resource, so this enthusiasm
is resulting in increasingly complicated competition for limited land
and biomass resources. Plants are a common thread across agriculture,
energy, environment, health, and industry, and as so they might provide
a focal point for joined-up thinking and governance.
Springer Science
|
823
|
Farmland and woodland
birds
|
Populations of
farmland bird species counted have almost halved since 1970 though
the rate of decline has levelled off. Populations have increased
slightly between 1994 and 2007 in the North East and Yorkshire and
Humber but have gone down further south with a 27% drop in the South
East. However, apart from in the East and South East, the numbers of
species declining and the number increasing is similar. Woodland
bird numbers have fallen less and the North West has seen an increase
of 42% since 1994 but again the picture is not so rosy further south.
And the number of woodland species declining and increasing is similar,
Defra and RSPB
|
82
2
|
Feeding Britiain
- perspectives of UK food security
|
An overall perspective
needs to be supplemented by work at individual supply chain
level to manage specific risks and highlight important linkages
to food policy objectives such as healthy eating. Government has
rejected self sufficiency in favour of resilience and proposed a framework
for international action which involves maintaining economic stability;
promoting openness; encouraging co-operation; supporting innovation
and investment; ensuring fairness; and mitigating the effects of climate
change. The relative comfort of the UK’s current position is not a reason
to ignore the fundamental challenges to the present operation of the
food system that await in the decades ahead.
Andrew Jarvis, Chatham
House and GHK Consulting
|
821
|
Feeding Britain
- the EU food context
|
The open single
market in food and agricultural goods is a key benefit of UK
membership of the EU - the majority of the UK’s food imports come
from other EU member states. The UK and the EU could both ensure
food security by higher levels of imports but to do so would exacerbate
food insecurity elsewhere, particularly in poorer countries. The
real question that needs to be asked is what the potential economic
contribution of Europe could be to world food production. The biggest
constraint on production is the lack of agricultural research and development.
Martin Haworth, NFU
|
820
|
Feeding Britain
- the global food context
|
High agricultural
commodity prices will not fall to previous levels because changing
diets, urbanisation, economic growth and expanding populations
are driving food and feed demand. Prices may also be more volatile
than in the past. Humanitarian aid for the poor in net food-importing
developing countries is urgently needed. In the longer term they
need to develop their agricultural supply base, improve governance
and administrative systems, macroeconomic policy, infrastructure,
technology, education and health, and to enforce property rights. Trade-restrictions
have undesirable and often unintended impacts, especially in the
medium and long term.
Wifrid Legg, OECD
|
819
|
When badgers
meet cows
|
Contact out
in fields between badgers and cattle happens more often than
previously thought. More sociable cattle in a herd are
likely to be more curious about badgers but also to mix more with
other cattle and are therefore more likely to catch and pass on TB.
Mike Hutchings, SAC,
Piran White, University of York
|
818
|
Farm profitability,
efficiency & investment
|
Increasing the
scale of their operations and increasing efficiency will remain
paramount in determining farmers’ future investment.
It will be a tougher financial environment and increasingly more
difficult to predict. However farming is a strong industry
and the production of food has, to date, been pretty recession proof.
Philip Wynn, Wynn Business
Partnerships
|
817
|
Feeding Britian
- poultry meat
|
Poultry meat
accounts for nearly half of all meat sold in the UK but more
than a third is imported. R&D has reduced the feed and water
consumed for each unit of meat by more than 30% over the last 40 years.
Modern genomics allows selection for more than 40 traits without losing
the variation which makes future improvement possible. Switching
to eating indoor reared poultry meat achieves a 75% reduction in the
impact on global warming from meat eating. The long term viability
of the industry is threatened by discriminatory legislation which is
not required in non-EU countries.
Peter Bradnock, British
Poultry Council
|
816
|
Rural Economies
Recession Intelligence- Rural Financial Inclusion
|
Demand for financial
services such as face to face debt advice and affordable credit
is outstripping supply in rural areas. Financial inclusion is
often not considered a priority by local strategic partnerships
because there is no single government indicator for it. Government
should establish a fund to support new delivery mechanisms like
the Credit Union Current Account and video links for debt advice, should
work with the Post Office to expand its financial services, should
facilitate the development of credit unions in rural areas and increase
face to face debt advice there.
Commission for Rural
Communities
|
815
|
Feeding Britain
- pig meat
|
Under favourable
economic, commercial and policy conditions, there is considerable
potential to increase production and productivity in the UK’s
pig industry. Government needs to maintain or increasing
funding of research and development, better regulation, a more
effective EU regulatory regime for GM animal feed ingredients, to promote
a labelling regime, which helps consumers to understand the quality
attributes of British product better and to facilitate a more efficient
supply chain.
|
814
|
Feeding Britain
- beef and sheep meat
|
Despite relatively
firm cattle and sheep prices during 2008, the marketplace
does not provide a return to producers that adequately covers
costs and allows for investment. Better relationships across supply
chains and a legal, economic, policy and regulatory framework that
fosters fair competition and a strong infrastructure are also needed.
The government can also help to sow the seeds for future improvements
in production efficiency through increased spending on R&D but
effective knowledge transfer is a key factor too.
The Smith Institute,
Richard Lowe, Chief Executive of EBLEX
|
813
|
Biomass - carbon
sink or carbon sinner
|
Greenhouse
gas emissions from energy generated using biomass are generally,
but not always, less than from fossil fuels. How a fuel is produced
has a major impact on emissions – eg fertiliser use and transport
distance. Land use change can negate any emission savings especially
planting on permanent grassland. Co-firing biomass is a good short
term measure to reduce emissions, but unless carbon capture and
storage can be deployed and preferably the heat utilised, it does
not have a long term role. There should also be a strong presumption
in favour of combined heat and power for new plant.
AEA for the Environment
Agency
|
812
|
Ruminant and
greenhouse gases
|
Total UK agricultural
GHG emissions have decreased by 17% since 1990. Methane (CH4)
emissions have decreased by 52% since 1990, through a combination
of reduced livestock numbers and more efficient feeding of dairy
and beef cattle and sheep. UK emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O) may
be lower than previously thought. Livestock in upland and marginal
areas may be associated with high CH4 emissions per unit of output
but low emissions per hectare. Many of these areas also have a role in
carbon capture and storage, and their management via low intensity
beef and sheep grazing is important in achieving wider agri-environmental
objectives.
‘A Scientific Review
of the Impact of UK Ruminant Livestock on Greenhouse Gas Emissions’,
a report for the NFU by Alan Hopkins and Matt Lobley, Centre for
Rural Policy Research, University of Exeter
|
811
|
Rural responsibilities
for mental health
|
The mental
health charity, Mind have identified farmers and farm workers,
black and minority ethnic populations, lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender populations, women with children, children and young
people, older people, refugee and asylum seekers, travellers and
migrant workers as groups that warrant particular attention in rural
communities. The issues they face are not necessarily unique to
rural communities but they can be experienced in different ways
to urban areas so different solutions may be required. Culture,
isolation, work, distance, time and stigma may mean that people are
reluctant to even recognise that they may be unwell, let alone actually
seek help and support from friends, family or health services. The
whole community has a role to play in tackling rural mental distress.
Mind
|
810
|
Nutrition-driven
food policy
|
If we ate
a healthier diet with less meat and dairy products and more
cereals, fruit and vegetables regions dependent on beef and sheep
production including the uplands could be hard hit. Intensive
horticulture would expand in the east and southeast of England
with more poly-tunnels and increased water consumption.
‘Implications of a
Nutrition Driven Food Policy for the Countryside’, Rural Economy
and Land Use Programme
|
809
|
Feeding Britain
- dairy
|
UK milk production
is declining. The key to British dairy farmers wanting to increase
productivity is improving confidence. This requires more stable
profit margins and improved relationships within the supply chain.
The traditional family farm is being replaced by bigger units requiring
external labour. In these businesses dairy farmers need to have
good management and technical skills
The Smith Institute,
Ken Boyns, Chief Executive of DairyCo
|
808
|
Feeding Britain
- potatoes
|
The main challenges
for the sector will be to maintain production as the constraints
on potato production increase, whilst encouraging younger consumers
to eat potatoes. A significant increase in production could
come from increased investment in research and development and
innovative knowledge transfer, access to new technology (such as
GM) and to existing pest and disease control methods (and consumer
acceptance of these), reducing wastage in packing and processing
plants and by addressing consumers’ behaviour (varietal preferences,
rejections on aesthetic grounds, and in-home wastage).
The Smith Institute,
Helen Priestley, The Potato Council
|
807
|
Bovine TB
- the facts
|
Questions
and answers
Final Report of the
Government’s Bovine TB Advisory Group
|
806
|
Bovine TB
|
Bovine TB
can be eradicated but it will take at least 20 years. All practical
measures need to be used to break the cycle of transmission.
Cattle controls are not sufficient in the absence of measures
to address infection in the wildlife reservoir. There may be over-reliance
on future vaccination. The current TB testing programme should take
a different approach in high risk and low risk areas. It is in the
public interest and in line with the responsibility and cost sharing
agenda that costs are shared. More financial, business and social
support is needed to help farmers living under disease restrictions.
Final Report of the
Government’s Bovine TB Advisory Group
|
805
|
Feeding Britain
- fruit and vegetables
|
The industry
could supply UK consumers with a higher proportion of the
vegetable crops that can be grown in our climate and also indigenous
fruits during our season extended by protected cropping techniques
for soft fruit and cold storage for top fruit. The increases would
be limited by the availability of labour, investment confidence, the
lack of central government funding for R&D and the lack of government
strategic policy for horticulture and agriculture.
The Smith Institute,
Martin Beckenham, Chief Executive of the Horticultural Development
Company
|
804
|
Feeding
Britain - cereals
|
Grain prices
will remain volatile for the foreseeable future. Increasing
yields over the past 60 years have tailed off over the last 10 years.
More research and knowledge exchange could increase production
again but more investment is needed to achieve this. Molecular
biology has a role and we need to capture public support for GM.
Precision farming using satellite positioning can help the grower
use fertilisers and pesticides more effectively. Set-aside
areas could be cultivated to provide a buffer stock – mainly for
fuel but for food in years of poor harvests
The Smith Institute,
Jonathan Cowens, Chief Executive of HGCA
|
803
|
Livestock
assurance schemes
|
A brief
primer on livestock assurance schemes
John Thorley OBE,
FRAgS, Director of the National Sheep Association’s Pastoral
Alliance
|
802
|
Taylor review
- government response
|
The Government
agrees with nearly all of the Taylor Review’s recommendations,
and particularly sees them in the context of the creation and
maintenance of sustainable communities, and the need to plan
for economic recovery. Also that a “one size fits all” approach cannot
do justice to the diversity of rural experiences and emphasises
that sustainability is not about choosing the environment over development
but about recognising both and striking a balance.
Department for Communities
and Local Government
|
801
|
Leading
the fight against TB
|
The strategy
for coping with bovine TB in Wales depends on breaking all possible
links of infection, exploiting new technology, adapting behaviours
and attitudes, achieving responsibility and cost sharing, honesty
and co-operation between all involved. The programme includes
an Intensive Action Pilot in North Pembrokeshire which includes
all possible cattle and badger measures including a badger cull.
Dr Christianne Glossop,
Chief Veterinary Officer for Wales at the Annual General Meeting
of the Arthur Rank Centre
|
800
|
Natural
England’s draft policy on Biotechnology in the Environment
|
Consultation
on the potential opportunities and risks presented by use
of biotechnology products including implications for natural
and semi-natural habitats, agriculture, forestry, fisheries,
bioremediation, greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation to climate
change
|
799
|
The State
of the Rural Housing Market - Rural Economies Recession Intelligence
|
Despite
the continued fall in rural house prices, sales and demand
for land with housing potential rural affordability remains
a problem and is exacerbated by credit limitations There is a lack
of affordable housing for the increasing number of rural residents
made homeless and rural repossessions are rising at nearly double
the rate for England. Many housing associations are unable to take
full advantage of falling prices and unable to secure bank funding.
Developers appear reluctant to undertake housing schemes in rural
areas, due to higher capital costs and difficulty in securing planning
permission.
Commission for Rural
Communities briefing for Hilary Benn
|
798
|
Animal
health cost sharing
|
A new independent
body for animal health would have responsibility for all animal
health policy and delivery including Defra‟s public funding.
Funds will come from levies paid by livestock keepers who will
be required to register and have insurance cover for part of the
costs of dealing with exotic disease outbreaks.
Defra Consultation
|
797
|
Faith
and fodd conference - making the connections
|
Agriculture
needs to be designed to feed the world by moving away from
maximising profit and moving back to more traditional diets
and labour intensive agriculture with the aid of science to
aid productivity. The power of ’local’ cannot be overestimated.
Trade liberalisation has encouraged developing countries need
large food imports because they have been encouraged to focus on
one or two products. The Amazon feeds Europe but leaves its people
hungry.
|
796
|
Health
care in remote areas
|
In remote
rural areas per capita NHS funding formulae should give
greater weighting to ‘additional needs’ relating to deprivation
rather than to age profile. Proposals which have been developed
to address peripherality include improved recruitment to key posts
in rural areas if students have placements in rural areas, consultants
visiting GPs who are caring for patients with acute illnesses and undertaking
‘ward rounds’ and class room seminars, outreach clinics used to treat
cancer and deliver renal care.
‘The challenges
of health care in peripheral and remote rural areas’, Commission
for Rural Communities Rural reference bulletin 2
|
795
|
Helping
farm biodiversity adapt to climate change
|
Biodiversity
provides essential services for agriculture including pollination,
fresh water, clean air, fertile and stable soils and natural
pest control. A range of wildlife and attractive landscapes
also encourage tourism and recreation. Farmers can help by talking
to relevant agencies, farming experts and conservation organisations
about their wildlife and habitats, by looking after protected sites,
by buffering the edges of wildlife areas to protect them, by restoring
neglected habitats and enhancing the variety of vegetation; also
by improving nutrient use, good water management, reducing spread
of invasive species, avoiding monocropping and conversion of meadows
to silage fields, and spraying crop protection products near sensitive
habitats.
Farming Futures
Fact sheet 22
|
794
|
Environmental
standards for farming - 3
|
Consolidating
four GAEC standards on soil will give farmers greater responsibility
for its management. It will also remove the need for derogations
in wet weather. A new standard requiring cross compliance with
England’s domestic abstraction licensing scheme will be introduced
in 2010. Changes are also proposed because set-aside has
been abolished – they will give farmers more flexibility and responsibility.
It is proposed to clarify the requirement for protection of
hedgerows to facilitate management of hedgebanks. Comments are sought
on ways to increase understanding of the rationale behind cross
compliance standards.
‘Consultation on
proposed changes to standards in cross compliance Good Agricultural
and Environmental Condition (GAEC) and related measures in
England, March 2009’, Defra
|
793
|
Re-introducing
beavers
|
It is
feasible to reintroduce beavers into England and benefits
are likely to accrue, not least the potential of beaver to
assist with river and floodplain restoration. The success of
reintroductions elsewhere in Europe has demonstrated the feasibility
of putting in place measures to deal with any possible adverse
consequences.
‘The feasibility
and acceptability of reintroducing the European beaver
to England’, a report for Natural England and the People’s
Trust for Endangered Species
|
792
|
Environmental
standards for farming – buffer strips next to watercourses
|
EU Member
States are required to introduce a new Good Agricultural
and Environmental Condition on buffer strips next to watercourses
to tackle water pollution. The preferred approach is to use guidance
to encourage farmers with arable land to site 6 metre wide grassy
buffer strips in higher risk locations where they will be effective.
In addition farmers would be required to adopt the Nitrate Action Programme
no-spread zones all agricultural land. The success of this approach
would be monitored and further action would be taken if uptake is
not sufficient.
Defra
|
791
|
The Impact
of Developments in Genetics and Genomics on Livestock Breeding
and Animal Health
|
Farm
animals have changed greatly since domestication, mostly
because of selective breeding. The basic principles of breeding
remain unchanged, but we have become more sophisticated in how
the best animals are identified. Modern quantitative genetic tools
have delivered substantial improvements in animal productivity
but are being increasingly supplemented by molecular genetic tests,
so the degree of control that animal breeders can exert will increase;
enabling improvement of a wider range of traits. In addition, growing
knowledge of the genomics of pathogen species will improve our capabilities
to combat animal disease.
Chris Warkup,
Genesis Faraday Partnership
|
790
|
Food
security
|
Defra
suggests that the UK enjoys a high level of national food
security. We are not self-sufficient but we can access the food
we need on the global market. Recent increases in food prices have,
however, focused attention on short- and long-term challenges
and others have emphasised the need for a robust agricultural sector
to cope with these. Also there is concern about cheap imports produced
to lower standards that would put domestic producers out of business.
Recently it has been argued that food is a ‘public good’ along with
environmental benefits and, as such, worthy of continued CAP support.
SAC
|
789
|
Precision
technology in farming
|
Arable
farmers can use precision technology to reduce overlapping
on cultivations, spraying and combining and by managing
in-field variation in soils and yields and targetting fertiliser
rates to fit the crop. Livestock farmers are using CT scanning
to measure carcase composition, automatic feeding which to fit
individual animal requirements and for monitoring parasite egg
counts to determine worming tactics. However investment in equipment
may be high and the use of available technology may not always be
justified.
Farming Futures
|
788
|
Rural
change, housing and fuel poverty
|
Rural
populations are growing faster than urban and on average
people are older and live longer. They travel further
than urban people and more by car. 18% of rural people live in
poverty. Local authorities and planners need to be more proactive
in meeting rural affordable housing needs. Rural households
are vulnerable to fuel poverty if they are off the gas grid supply
because they cannot get dual supply discounts and because the domestic
heating oil and LPG prices are unregulated.
Commission for
Rural Communities
|
787
|
Environmental
standards for farming: replacing set -aside
|
Abolishing
set-aside will lose its environmental benefits unless additional
action is taken. Two approaches are considered to address
this: a combined mandatory and incentive-based scheme; and an
industry-led voluntary scheme building on incentives.
Defra
|
786
|
Dairy
industry
|
Prospects
for dairy are good. Global demand is rising. The
main challenge in the short term is greater price volatility.
Low producer confidence is the single major structural issue
within the industry. A climate of pessimism has been exacerbated
by sustained negative messaging about the sector’s prospects. This
is not justified and needs to change. Dairy farmers and dairy companies
are following a clear strategy. They are becoming more efficient
and consolidating; they are innovating and adding value.
‘The White Paper-
a report on the UK dairy industry’, Dairy UK
|
785
|
Resilience
and opportunity
|
Most
of rural England is well-connected with strong links to
nearby towns and cities and good access to local markets and
job opportunities but peripheral rural areas often have poor economic
prospects. Economic performance of rural areas is better
than urban for all but the most rural areas once the effect of
London is removed from the urban figures. Defra and CRC are working
together to recognise the potential of rural areas, improve rural
proofing, knowledge transfer, business support and investment
Defra
|
784
|
Food
futures - the new dynamic
|
Government
needs to set a clear agenda, support research better and
help in developing the private-public partnership frameworks
needed for technology transfer. Policies on waste, land utilisation,
water and energy conservation and new technologies will need
consumer buy-in. New business models which include carbon reduction,
resource utilisation and social and environmental impacts will
need to be adopted. Retailers will need to build long term relationships
with suppliers. There are likely to be tensions over competing goals.
‘Food Futures:
Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
783
|
Rural
economies recession intelligence
|
Unemployment
rates are lower in rural than urban areas but there have
been some of the steepest rises in unemployment in several
sparse and peripheral rural districts. The number of people
chasing every unfilled vacancy in many peripheral rural districts
is far higher than the average across Britain. Some rural
local authorities and Job Centre plus offices are struggling
to provide retraining and support because of distances to centres
and the lower numbers involved.
Commission for
Rural Communities
|
782
|
Food
futures - UK response
|
Food
will become a component of a new ‘bio-economy’ that will
see government increasingly managing resources. There is a risk
that the policy framework for delivering environmental benefits
will be too narrowly focused and the social aspects of sustainability
are far from fully developed. The UK needs to invest in more R&D
to support a more regenerative system. There are concerns about
the food system’s ability to continue to function if uncertainties
like the availability of basic resources are not recognised. Promoting
global food security as the means to guarantee domestic food security
may not be enough. Reliance on a single consumer ‘voice’ to direct the
market towards sustainable behaviour patterns seems misplaced and a degree
of selection of more sustainable products for the consumer will be more
fruitful.
‘Food Futures: Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
781
|
Delivering
integrated land management
|
Rural
land use policy is often fragmented, inadequately targeted
and dominated by short term thinking. Greater responsibility
could be devolved to the regional agencies, local authorities
and the voluntary sector to work with local communities to prioritise
ecosystem services. Collaboration across boundaries is vital. Agri-environment
schemes may need to put more funding into knowledge exchange and
training. Ecosystem services need to be valued financially in
their own right, rather than in comparison with food production. There
may be a stronger role for the market in securing ecosystem services.
‘Securing integrated
land management: issues for policy, research and rural
communities’, RELU
|
780
|
City
Food Lecture - Sir Terry Leahy, Tesco
|
A
selection of the views expressed: - Free markets have
created the food industry and we need to hold fast to them
through the global recession. Consumers know best but they think
short term and so regulation needs to set the framework. We need to
educate consumers but make attractive choices possible for them
to make the right decisions. An ombudsman and a strengthened code
of practice are needed to make retailers think longer term. The
industry should be investing more in R&D in comparison with
government. It is the responsibility of the supermarket to pay
prices that ensures they get a supply. If a foreign supplier is
more competitive there is the possibility that production will cease
at home. We need a doubly green revolution to produce more food at less
environmental cost. To achieve this we need every technological tool
at our disposal including GM.
|
779
|
Working
in 21st century rural Britain
|
Vulnerable
groups are young people, those in low paid employment,
those with low skills, the self‐employed and employees of
small businesses especially those living in sparse rural areas.
Inadequate access to transport and to informal networks is also
a factor. Poor quality of employment, low pay and a lack of opportunities
to progress at work are important issues so Government policies
are particularly important. But almost none of the larger
employment and skills programmes targets rural areas. The
most effective provision is likely to be through sub-regional and
local programmes but these often find short‐term funding difficult.
The Institute
of Employment Studies
|
778
|
Food
futures - implications for UK & EU
|
High
oil prices and high input costs for fertilisers and animal
feed are likely to continue to be important drivers of
food prices in the coming decade. More environmental regulation,
impacts of the economic downturn, possible stagnation for those
serving premium markets are additional pressures. A major food
crisis in the UK is highly likely. Price volatility and climate
change will increase uncertainty. More sustainable production
is necessary but there is concern about falling productivity in uK
agriculture and the longer term capacity of some sectors to reinvest.
There is widespread concern that governmentsdo not fully comprehend
the challenges to be faced.
‘Food Futures:
Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
777
|
The
Great North Meet
|
Lack
of understanding about the future challenges of energy,
food and water supplies are hampering strategic thinking,
the story of four farmers who have moved their businesses forward
in very different ways, the future role of food production in the
rural economy, getting organised to cope with global warming, changes
and difficulties insuring flood damage and how 1000 acres of maize
could power 2,000 homes.
Mike Keeble
for the Royal Agricultural Society of England
|
776
|
Governing
integrated land management
|
Identifying
the potential for land to deliver different ecosystem
services is easy compared with determining priorities for
any area. Decisions will be contested and priorities may change
over time. Consultation fatigue and cynicism, the right mix between
science and local experience, using familiar tools, using intermediaries
with no vested interests, getting a fair balance of influence
among different groups all need to be taken into account to produce
projects which are ‘owned’ by everyone concerned.
‘Securing
integrated land management: issues for policy, research
and rural communities’ Relu
|
775
|
Managing
our water footprint
|
By
2030 two-thirds of the world’s inhabitants may experience
moderate to high water stress. Between 1953 and 1986 around
half of the increase in agricultural production came from irrigated
land but with the associated problems of groundwater and water
quality reduction and waterlogging. Water footprints,
whether determined in terms of nations, organisations or individuals
are governed by consumption, particularly of animal derived food
products, climate variations and food production practices. Individuals
in the US have an average footprint of 2480m3/capita/yr, whereas the
average footprint in China is 700m3/capita/yr. Long term, water security
will only be addressed by facilitating change at all levels using a
structured, measured approach.
Prepared
for RuSource by Louise Manning PhD, MIFST, NSch
|
774
|
Biomass heating guide
|
Biomass fuel can come from wood, straw, energy crops,
sewage sludge, waste organic materials and animal litter.
Its moisture content is a key characteristic, affecting its
calorific value. The equipment is best suited to continuous operation
so a heat store and/or back-up plant are useful ways of regulating
demand. The guide includes an introduction to the rationale, a
technical manual and how to conduct a feasibility study and implement
a project.
Jane Housely,
University of Plymouth for the REG (Rural Enterprise
Gateway) Knowledge Network taken from a publication by the
Carbon Trust, ‘Biomass heating - A practical guide for potential
|
773
|
Food futures - the global context
|
Among the pressures on world food supplies: over 95%
of the increase in world population will be in the developing
world - demand for meat in developing countries doubled between
1986 and 2007 - producing a tonne of maize in the US requires
160 litres of oil, compared with 4.8 litres in Mexico - world agricultural
land per capita is declining worldwide - we could use 90%
of the world’s freshwater supply by 2025 - climate change is responsible
for widespread crop losses - as people move to urban areas they
become reliant on the reduced rural population to produce their food.
‘Food Futures:
Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
772
|
Farm diversification
|
Around half English farms have diversified activities,
a proportion which has been stable for the past five years.
However the percentage which are carrying out activities other than
letting buildings has increased from 18% in 2003 to 28% in 2007.
Diversified enterprises averaged 15% of the total income of farm
businesses. A lower proportion of smaller farms diversify than
larger farms but farmers on smaller farms supplement their income
to a greater extent than larger farms from off-farm employment and
self-employment.
‘Farm Diversification
in England: Results from the Farm Business Survey, 2007/08’,
Defra.
|
771
|
Objectives for integrated land management
|
The pattern of land use might change to provide a wider
range of services but it is difficult to decide what the
new balance might be because there is no easy way to compare
the value of objectives like food and energy production, water
management and increasing biodiversity. The result is that a mixture
of market forces, legislation and subsidy is used in a fragmented
way. The appropriate value to place on any ecosystem service could
be the cost of bringing the change in behaviour required. Different
spatial scales are required to evaluate different situations and
the mismatch between administrative areas and the natural environment
means better collaboration is needed between all the interests involved.
Rural Economy
and Land Use Programme, Dr Alan Woods
|
770
|
UK's food system - a simple overview
|
Four major retail organizations control around 75% of
food sales. The food services sector now accounts for up to
half of expenditure on food. Food manufacturing works to rigid,
retailer-led specifications, with the emphases on food safety
and delivery flexibility. Farming is highly fragmented, and
so farmers have low bargaining power. Livestock and arable products
are predominantly channelled through short-term, transactional
trading. The dairy and horticulture sectors have more integrated
chains. Over 50% of food is wasted.
‘Food Futures:
Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
769
|
The land use challenge
|
Land use is affected by the market in goods and services,
the economic situation, World, European and UK policies, environmental
shocks, climate change, housing and infrastructure needs, concerns
about biodiversity and pollution and technological developments.
These are all changing and land managers also have diverse motivations
set by business and family needs. An ecosystems services
approach can value and integrate all these pressures for policy-
and decision- -making but it will be challenging to change present
mechanisms which often focus on just one interest regardless of
others.
Rural Economy
and Land Use Programme (Relu) by Dr Alan Woods
|
768
|
Rethinking UK food strategy
|
The global food system is coming under pressure from
population growth, people eating better, energy, land, water,
labour and climate change. If action is not taken, growth in
demand may outstrip increases in production. EU/UK food supply arrangements
will need to operate profitably around a significantly higher price
that reflects the true cost of resources and incorporates wider
social and ecological considerations. Domestic production has
an important role in the UK food supply. But it will need to become
more productive and sustainable. A consortium of government, supply
network interests and societal groups should start to build this
vision.
‘Food Futures:
Rethinking UK Strategy’, Chatham House
|
767
|
Farm incomes
|
Total Income from Farming in the UK is estimated to have
risen in the calendar year 2008 by 41.9% in current prices
(36.3% in real terms) over 2007. Increased input costs were
outweighed by an increase in the value of output of 25.6%.The
Farm Business Income of grazing livestock, dairy and specialist
pig farms in England is forecast to rise while that on cropping
farms is expected to fall in the year March 2008 to February 2009.
Defra
|
766
|
Theology of the land
|
Old Testament teaching is that the Earth is seen to
be ‘good’ and humans have been given Dominion to cultivate
and protect it. The New Testament assumes this relationship
is so. People need a sense of place and a sense of God and
this has been lost in the global community. The Church
has done a good job in times of crisis. However, rural clergy are
being given more and more parishes, and their visibility is reduced
as a result. We need to consider how we reconnect with the Land
in a realistic way for both modern urban and rural communities and
how we build rural community.
Revd Margot
Hodson, at “Cherishing the Earth – challenges in food,
farming and climate”, the Agricultural Christian Fellowship
Conference
|
765
|
Climate change, agriculture and food
|
Climate change is real and is caused by human activity.
There will be quite major impacts on agriculture this century.
Probably agriculture has been having an impact on climate for
thousands of years. Agriculture remains one of the major contributors
of greenhouse gases (they divide roughly - one third agriculture
and food, one third from housing and one third from industry).
Although the agricultural sector needs to look into decreasing
emissions, this is not the only sector that needs to do so.
Dr. Martin
Hodson, at “Cherishing the Earth – challenges in food,
farming and climate”, the Agricultural Christian Fellowship
Conference
|
764
|
Securing integrated land management
|
The future for UK land managers lies in delivering the
full range of ecosystem services in a sustainable and integrated
way’. Centralised policymaking needs to be complemented by
local action to achieve this but new approaches and tools are needed
to engage people in the process. The appropriate value to place
on any service is perhaps ‘that which brings about the desired
change’ Integrated research is needed to ensure that opportunities
are not missed and to avoid unintended impacts and farmers’ skills
need to be developed to deliver agri-environment objectives.
|
763
|
Rural economies recession intelligence
|
Rural businesses are facing increasing closures, job
losses, reduced working, lower consumer demand, and difficulty
in securing bank funds. Many rural businesses will need help
to convince lenders of their viability and to exploit opportunities.
The impact of major retail closures in market towns is very visible
and could either allow independents to flourish; or consumers
may no longer be attracted to towns and go instead to urban centres.
Local authorities and economic agencies should tackle the smaller
closures and job losses as well as large-scale closures.
|
762
|
Eating biodiversity
|
Extensive grazing practices are having an identifiable
and beneficial impact upon the floristic composition of
pastures and producing lamb with more Vitamin E, less skatoles
(which tend to spoil flavour) and higher levels of healthy fatty
acids. Traditional beef breeds like the Longhorn were better suited
to biodiverse pastures and yielded higher quality meat. Producers
were engaging in alternative outlets like local shops, farmers
markets and web sales and in a number of instances this has permitted
increases in on-farm employment
|
761
|
Food research in Australia
|
Australia has reorganised its research to achieve specific
deliverables through nine multidisciplinary National
Research Flagship programmes. The Food Futures Flagship is
working on high amylose grains to tackle Type II diabetes and
colorectal cancer, improving the levels of omega-3 fatty acids
in oilseeds, gluten free grains (with a coeliac friendly beer
being one of the first products being tested) and crops which will
need less nitrogen fertiliser. Adding value to waste streams such
as bran for fish food and producing pharmaceuticals from waste
from hide processing are also on the programme.
|
760
|
Green supply chain
|
Feeding the world’s population will require cultural
adjustments and industry change to displace fossil resources
and make better use of ‘total plants’, improving yields and
quality of crops and reducing pesticide use. It is less wasteful
to produce heat from biomass than converting it to electricity.
Ammonia Fibre Explosion may develop to improve the calorific value
of roughages for animal feed. Hemp based bio-composites could have
a large impact on the building industry and anaerobic digestion
can reduce waste going to landfill and produce soil conditioner.
|
759
|
Ten big numbers
|
9.7 million
people live in rural England in 2007. There were
87,200 incomers in 2006/7.
695,000 rural households
live more than 2 km from a Post Office.
700,000 rural households
live below the poverty line.
The full-time rural weekly wage was
£404
. 672,000 rural
households live in fuel poverty. The average rural house cost
6.8 times the
average annual rural household income.
499,000
rural businesses were registered for VAT in 2007. There
are 93,000
second homes in rural England. Between 2001 and 2007 the number
of people in rural areas aged over 60 rose by
406,600
Commission for
Rural Communities
|
758
|
Future of farming week
|
Linking Environment And Farming (LEAF) is coordinating
Future of Farming Week between from March 16-22, 2009 to increase
the impact of Integrated Farm Management in the UK.
|
757
|
Food and Environmental Security: why, what, and how?
|
The world must double food
production during the next four decades and with minimal
environmental impact, a challenge which is heightened by
Climate Change. The CAP must evolve
to a policy for Food and Environmental Security with a budget
adequate to the scale of the task faced.
ProfessorAllan
Buckwell, Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of
England
|
756
|
Farm retail conference
|
The recession may lead to a
return to wholesome food for home cooking. Talking with
customers and continuous promotion is vital.
Prices compared to supermarket
competitors are important to consumers. They don’t want to
hear about supporting the poor farmer - now it’s poor everyone.
Pick Your Own businesses face challenges including climate change,
legislation and labour.
But new varieties which extend the growing season, integrated
pest management and having green footprints can all contribute
to cost saving and a satisfying experience for the customer.
The paper contains case studies of creative energy-saving.
Paula Heath, University
of Plymouth, REG Knowledge Network
|
755
|
Turning the tide - farming public relations
|
Farming uses the language of
the victim rather than the victor. We have allowed archetypes
to go unchallenged and allowed others to steal our value
in every sense. The Army, Teaching and the Royal Family are examples
of institutions which have listened and changed what people think
of them by finding an honest and straightforward way of speaking.
Farming has the greatest store of words and imagery of them all.
The task is achievable and it is in the interests of the country
that we succeed.
David Yelland,
Oxford Farming Conference
|
754
|
Open Farm Sunday - Get Involved
|
If you want to improve sales, learn new marketing
skills, build staff morale and sense of pride, gain new contacts,
or simply just want to improve your neighbours and friends understanding
of why farming matters … then get involved with Open Farm Sunday
on 7th June 2009.
LEAF
|
753
|
Farming prospects
|
Higher world commodity prices likely are on the
cards over the next 10 years but farmers will have to cope
with greater market volatility. Nearer home price prospects
for the rest of the 2008 wheat crop are not looking buoyant
but prospects for the 2009 harvest look better. Prime lamb prices
have remained relatively bright throughout 2008 and these conditions
look set to remain into 2009. Beef prices could lose ground if
consumers buy less. Farmgate milk prices in the UK have risen throughout
2008, and the rolling 12 month average should reach 26p/litre by March
2009 (but recent price decreases are worrying.
Oxford
Farming Conference and Andersons Outlook
|
752
|
EU Agricultural policy & trade - what next
|
The Director of the EU department which is responsible
for the CAP believes that in future it will still be important
that the CAP gives farmers some kind of safety net, so that
occasional crises don't inflict serious long-term damage. Direct
payments will still be needed too because there is no point
in talking about "public money for public goods" from farming in
regions where the basic conditions are not met to ensure an agricultural
presence to which this can be attached. Also we still
need a deal in the Doha round of world trade talks.
Jean-Luc
Demarty, Director General of DG Agriculture and Rural
Development, European Commission, Oxford Farming Conference
|
751
|
A new approach to rural public transport
|
By using a range of transport types including taxis
it should be possible to develop a more flexible and co-ordinated
rural transport network that is more cost and environmentally
efficient and meets rural people's needs better. There are some
barriers that need to be resolved by local authorities and taxi
firms including licensing and types of public subsidy. There should
be a large-scale demonstration scheme to evaluate the costs
and benefits.
Commission
for Integrated Transport
|
750
|
Consumer perceptions of farmers
|
There is strong support for British farmers among
the general public. Demand for more British food is strong.
Farmers are considered to be hard-working but not well paid
and are given credit for being business oriented. Food is considered
expensive and some think farmers can do more to help Farm hygiene
perceptions are very good, animal welfare less so. Views about
GM are diverse Farmers have ‘an approval rating to die for so now’s
the time to be louder than ever before about your special values.’
Joanne
Denney-Finch, IGD, Oxford Farming Conference
|
749
|
Rural economies recession intelligence
|
Lower consumer and business spending and difficult
borrowing conditions have led to further job losses, business
closures and restructuring confirming a deepening economic
downturn in rural areas. House prices are falling but levels of
sales are low and the number of affordable housed completed has
gone down. However some private owners are renting their houses
instead of selling. There have been examples of new jobs, new contracts,
new businesses and new workplaces together with new support measures,
ranging from help-lines and local initiatives to new lending
and taxation.
Commission
for Rural Communities
|
748
|
Upland funding
|
The Hill Farm Allowance (HFA) will continue
until 2010, after which support will come from a new uplands
strand to the entry level Environmental Stewardship scheme,
known as Uplands ELS. Farmers will be able to enter
an Uplands ELS agreement from 1 July 2010. There will be transitional
payments for upland farmers in the Countryside Stewardship Scheme
payable until the end of their existing arrangements and broadly
similar to HFA rates.
Defra
|
747
|
International food responses
|
December 2007 was the end of cheap food and all over
the over the world they are talking about a new era with
focus shifting to greater sustainability, more local, much
greater emphasis on environment and a mix of high technology
and improved traditional practices. But the degree
to which this all will be achieved is doubtful
David
Hughes, Emeritus Professor of Food Marketing, Imperial
College, London and International Food Business Consultant,
National Farm Management Conference 2008, Institute of Agricultural
Management and British Institute of Agricultural Consultants
|
746
|
Regional food - opportunities with supermarkets
|
Tesco sales of locally sourced products were up
by 40% in 2008. Most consumers think that local food is better
quality and the more specific the local origin the higher quality
they think it is. Despite this, whilst local producers expect
a premium, consumers don’t expect to pay more for it.
Alistair
Robertson, Tesco Senior Buying Manager, North of England
National Farm Management Conference 2008, Institute of Agricultural
Management and British Institute of Agricultural Consultants
|
