Map queries going in wrong direction (From Gazette & Herald)

Map queries going in wrong direction

SEVERAL weeks ago James reported in his article Robert Wainwright's battle with the Rural Land Register regarding digital maps and yet again I have to highlight concerns over the capabilities of the Rural Payments Agency's Mapping Sector.

Digital maps have now been with us for almost two years and although at the time it would appear that the RPA had started their mapping exercise in good times, two years on we find there are still delays in sorting out mapping queries.

As you can imagine, there were many errors on the initial maps which was to be expected as many farmers took land on a temporary basis etc.

We were then instructed to make the necessary amendments and return the plans for remapping.

Due to what can only be blamed on a lack of organisation many farms still find that their maps are incomplete and that IACS 22 forms completed earlier this year detailing field changes are still to be processed.

Over the past month I have desperately been trying to complete the maps for an estate we manage.

After receiving several sets of maps during the course of the year, none of which were correct, I enquired whether we could have what the RPA perceive as an up-to-date set of maps.

I was informed to speak to the Reading RPA who were very helpful and they duly sent the set of maps running into 30 pages on a scale of 1:1250.

I therefore asked for a further set on a smaller scale to try and help with the problem of cross referencing a large acreage.

To my horror fields that were originally registered were now missing and totalling more than 300 acres!

After further correspondence and enclosing more plans, the RPA contacted me to inform me that some of the land missing was now regarded as white space and not registered according to their computer. The RPA are now remapping these areas.

In another case, a smaller area of land had again been missed off after initially being registered and the RPA duly sent a map of what they perceived to be under the control of that holding number.

Again, a map was sent showing that this farm had now expanded from just under 300 acres to well over 1,000. The usual excuse - the computer!

Along with many others, I am concerned that with the entitlements to claim the Single Payment shortly to be confirmed, there are still cases of incompleted maps.

I assume that where there are these outstanding queries, the RPA will be unable to confirm the total area of entitlements.

This must therefore mean payment will be delayed due to what we are told is the incompetence of the computers.

I can only stress that when your statement of entitlements does arrive please take the utmost care in checking that the area granted is correct.

As a follow on to the subsidy regime I have read over the weekend that the 2003 CAP forms are difficult to defend according to Lord Bach (Junior Defra Minister).

He focused on four areas on how European agriculture should look in 10 to 15 years.

Progression to an internationally competitive industry driven by market forces through removal of subsidies and trade barriers.

Greater emphasis on protecting the environment.

More responsive to the needs of rural communities.

Food produced with high regard to animal health and welfare.

In my opinion, we are already performing on three of the above points. Lord Bach did stress that these changes had to be Europe-wide and not the UK going it alone which was a relief.

The above is all very well and I am sure the majority of the farmers in this country would welcome farming without subsidies and all the dreaded paperwork and costs associated with it, but we have to look clearly at how the price is determined at the farm gate.

Feed wheat - UK and EU prices have eased as consumer buying and export interest has not been evident. Quite significant amounts of wheat have also been carried from December to the New Year.

In the New Year, the next tranche of TRQ import licenses will be available totalling 592,000 mt.

Wheat from The Black Sea and from Brazil will be bid for. Black Sea wheat undercuts UK wheat to Spain by up to 10 Euros at present.

UK exports in October totalled 121,275 mt. To the end of December, we estimate this figure will be between 1.1 and 1.25 mln t.

This leaves 1.4 to 1.5 mln t to be exported in the period January to June 06.

New crop prices have eased slightly as first estimates of 2006 EU 25 production indicate a higher wheat crop.

In the UK, Strategie Grains estimate the crop at 15.2 mln t - virtually unchanged versus 2005.

This indicates that better yields will compensate for a slightly lower UK wheat area in their view.

There has been much talk on the above subject - so here are some points to consider:

Not one extra tonne of crush capacity has been built - or is forecast to be built - in the UK for production of biodiesel using rapeseed oil.

All the plants currently under discussion are blending operations whereby rapeseed oil (or cheaper palm oil) can be blended with mineral oil to produce biodiesel.

The contracts currently being offered to farmers to grow Miscanthus (or elephant grass) is, on current estimates, going to return a margin equivalent to a poorish second wheat crop for a crop that is far from guaranteed to relish growing conditions in the UK north of Watford.

Funding, and the financial health, of many of the new "renewable" companies is worth investigating.

Forward 136 cattle including 60 bulls and eight cows. 1,235 sheep including 370 ewes. Heavy steers to 115p Charity Farms, Thornton-le-Dale, ave 108.5p; light heifers to 136p GI Marwood, Harome, ave 111.8p; heavy heifers to 140p GI Marwood, Harome, ave 109.9p; medium bulls to 119p MT Bulmer, Salton, ave 109.3p; heavy bulls to 123p J & AM Craggs, Ebberston, ave 106.2p; black and white bulls AM Avison Black Bull ave 81.2p; OTM heifers to 70p Charity Farms, Thornton-le-Dale, OTM cows to 62p R Temple, Sawdon, ave 51.3p; light hoggs to 110p FB Brown, Lockton, standard hoggs to 100p FB Brown, Lockton, ave 97.4p; medium hoggs to 111.1p FJ Hodsman & Sons Ltd, Eddlethorpe, ave 98.3p; heavy hoggs to 109.1p T Midgley & Sons, Painsthorpe, ave 96.4p; overweight hoggs to 92.7p DB Wass, Sinnington, ave 89.5p; ewes to £38 CB Jacklin & Sons, Yatts ave £23.21.

Updated: 16:04 Wednesday, January 11, 2006