Cash injection to back farmers’ bio-energy bids

9:33am Thursday 12th June 2008

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Whatever you may think of the heated debate as to whether our agricultural land should be producing food or energy crops, the Government has taken a very positive leap onto the side of the bio-energy support groups. This week it has announced grants of up to £200,000 for farmers to invest in biomass and this will be a cash injection at the point of production. The main stumbling block seems to be one of timing as the deadline for applications is put at August 5 for individual businesses and September 5 if you are a producer group – so you need to get your skates on. The scheme will fund the following investments:

• Administrative set up costs for producer groups including office accommodation, staff costs and overheads
• The purchase of capital items such as machinery including chippers and specialist trailers
• The money can go towards training staff.
• The scheme will apply to all short rotation coppice such as willow and poplar and all grasses such as miscanthus and canary grass and wood fuel from forestry. Although the announcement has been made, I have had a look on the Defra website this morning and there are still no further details available. There is a contact address if you want to pursue it at industrialcrops@defra.gsi.gov.uk.

Total government inaction

As the months drift by Hilary Benn has given new poignancy to the phrase “masterly inactivity” and presumably he sits playing his fiddle while our livestock industry burns. I have heard on the grapevine that a decision on badger culling is now imminent and that all the state vets have been told they must not breach Defra’s party-line whatever it may be. I understand a lot of vets within Defra are very unhappy about this as the vast majority agree that there is no other way to control bovine TB unless one takes action against badgers. I am afraid the whole problem stems from not having had a minister of agriculture who has the remotest connection with the industry and one only has to look at three recent incumbents to understand our plight – Hilary Benn, Margaret Beckett and Nick Brown. In the meantime those that have fallen victim to the disease are being forced to accept the grossly unfair compensation according to the Government’s table of valuations, which is just a joke. This week a Devon farmer David Partridge is taking Defra to task over the compensation he received for a number of high value pedigree animals in March 2006. His payment was based on the average values compensation table and as such he claims to have received 25 per cent of their full value. David Partridge has told Defra they have “stolen” his cattle and the NFU is backing his case which goes to the High Court for what we hope will be some justice.

Bluetongue update

The release of a further four million doses of BT vaccine was delayed last week because it had failed to pass one of the tests and although the production company Intervet were confident that the batch would be cleared, it has not yet been released for sale. So far Intervet is well ahead of its schedule having delivered nine million doses in May which was four times its original target. Our problem in Yorkshire is that Defra will not now make an announcement about moving the protection zone boundaries until tomorrow (Thursday) and it makes planning for markets extremely difficult. We are doing our best to persuade Defra to give the whole of the surveillance zone the status of a protection zone and this would make the movement of animals and marketing much simpler. However, simple commercial judgements are not Defra’s strong point! You do need to keep an eye on your website. In the meantime as the actual vaccination process gets closer to us you need to be aware that its effectiveness is nullified if you use other vaccines, flukicides or injectable wormers at the same time.

Pigs in crisis

I have warned in recent weeks of the impending crisis in the British pig industry which is currently in freefall and last week figures were published to show that 4,000 breeding sows are being slaughtered every week. This represents a 40 per cent rise in the last six months and since January we have culled 102,000 sows compared to a total of 77,000 for the whole of 2007. It isn’t many years since our UK breeding herd comprised around one million sows but by this December it is forecast to fall below 400,000 for the first time and yet profitability has still not returned with forecasts of £22 being lost on every pig produced. British farmers have led the global pig industry for the last 200 years and now like many of our other national resources looks like vanishing down the plug hole of supermarket greed. They do have a lot to answer for.

Irish referendum

It will be fascinating to see on Thursday how the Irish vote in a referendum on the EU Treaty which this country was denied by Gordon Brown. Ireland has traditionally been one of the strongest supporters of the EC having discovered early on how to milk the system. Nevertheless as I go to press, there are genuine concerns that the vote hangs in the balance. Seventy per cent of EU citizens would like a referendum on the treaty but our political masters have made it a closed shop.

Housing market in severe pain

It may be good for those wanting to buy houses but those wanting to sell or with high mortgages are suffering with the current moribund housing market. My professional institution of chartered surveyors has reported the worst sales over the past month since they started keeping records 30 years ago. House prices have been steadily falling and some agents feel that as much as 20-25 per cent might be knocked off the high spots of two years ago. One can but feel sorry for those that took out 100 per cent mortgages and are now landed with a negative equity and little chance of escape. Every cloud has a silver lining and if you are a buyer there are good deals to be done. Market still in balance We have yet another meeting this week at the council offices to hear a report from the Highways Authority on our road infrastructure should a new market be put on the Showfield site, or heaven help us, a superstore on Wentworth Street car park. As ever we shall put in strong representations from market users, but please keep up the pressure on your own councillors.

Brian Glaves – President of Smithfield

With their unique butchery business at Brompton, Brian Glaves and family are very special to Ryedale and the rural community. He not only supports the livestock market and local farmers but produces some of the best meat in the area. This year Brian has been recognised for his outstanding successes in the show ring with his much loved flock of sheep and the Royal Smithfield Club has made him president for 2008. Hopefully this will be a year when the Smithfield Show will be held – bluetongue permitting. To entertain the club members, Brian hosted a magnificent barbecue last Saturday which was enjoyed by everyone and must have impressed his southern guests.

Bits and pieces

• The students at the Anglia University have been warned by the health and safety officer not to throw their mortar boards into the air at their graduation ceremony this year in case they should fall on somebody’s head. Perhaps the addition of builder’s helmets would allow the tradition to continue.
• My Sinnington correspondent has come up with this week’s offering – A ship carrying red paint collided with a ship carrying blue paint in the Pacific Ocean. Both ships sank but the crews managed to swim to a nearby island where they were marooned for three weeks!
• My seven-year-old Kiwi grandson, Finn, came up with this conundrum – How do you kill a blue elephant? Answer – with a blue elephant gun. How do you shoot a pink elephant? Answer – If you think the answer would be with a pink elephant gun you are wrong; the proper way is to squeeze its trunk until it goes blue and then shoot it with a blue elephant gun!

Market report

Forward 108 cattle including 38 bulls and 10 cows, 1,120 sheep including 599 spring lambs and 366 ewes, light steers to 159p, O J Barker, Snainton, ave 151.2p; heavy steers to 177p, J & R Waind, Brawby, ave 159.5p; medium heifers to 178p, TFW Morley, Fylingdales, ave 158.8p; heavy heifers to 180p, C F Beal, Yedingham, ave 168p; medium bulls to 170p, L W Aconley & Son, Cropton, ave 132.8p; heavy bulls to 183p, M T Bulmer, Salton, ave 156.2p; OTMs to 128p, T F W Morley, Brock Hall, ave 140.9p; standard lambs to 189.4p, F J Hodsman & Sons Ltd, Eddlethorpe, ave 179.9p; medium lambs to 188.7p, D T Sowersby, Etton, ave 172.9p; heavy lambs to 180.4p, R Green, Pickering, ave 172.08p; overweight lambs to 157.5p, M T Bulmer, Salton, ave 147.2p; standard hoggets to 105.7p, W Story & Son, Hunmanby, ave 95.2p; medium hoggets to 130p, S Hunter, Hunmanby, ave 108.6p; heavy hoggets to 100p, C T Arnott, Acklam, ave 92.4p; overweight hoggets to 90.2p, R V Southwell, Thorpe Bassett, ave 86.7p; ewes to £87, N Hall & Son, Easingwold, ave £50.80.