I AM afraid this week’s column has a couple of pieces on the relentless role of regulation and animal identification, mainly driven by the blessed supermarkets as ever.

Gone are the days when it was accepted that stockmen knew the history and parentage of every animal on the farm; only to be replaced by the demands of the faceless Tesco buyer for individual traceability from farm to shop shelf.

In the case of sheep, I have long argued it is a waste of time and money to put individual identification tags into the ear of every lamb born when what is really important is being able to trace any problems back to the flock of origin.

Sadly, the principles of having a flock tag only have been pushed aside and we are now faced with imminent introduction of single electronic tags.

Although it is not compulsory until the 2015 lambing season, I would urge all shepherds to consider using electronic tags for 2014. It is perhaps not vital if you are lambing early and intend to sell them all direct to slaughter before the end of the year.

However, if you are going to sell store lambs in the autumn or keep hogs over winter, then electronic tagging is pretty important.

In preparation for the new rules coming in on January 1, 2015, we as auctioneers are obliged to start reading electronic tags of sheep coming in to Malton or York as from April 1.

We are prepared for this and have got two electronic readers at each market which we can use to scan all the sheep with EID tags.

Please let us know if you want any help or advice but we shall be operating the system as required.

 

Another cattle register

I DO fear that the ultimate goal of the big retailers is to totally control their own supply chains and led mainly by Tesco and Waitrose, they are pushing to only accepting cattle that have Farm Assurance status for their whole lives.

For the lay person, the current ground rules are that cattle have to be on a Farm Assured holding for at least 90 days prior to slaughter in order to qualify; and bluntly this is more than sufficient to ensure that both feed and welfare standards have been applied.

Unfortunately, it is not good enough for the big boys and rather than be accused of not co-operating, the livestock auctioneers, together with the NFU’s Red Tractor label, are proposing a relatively simple “cattle rearing register”. I would immediately emphasise that the new scheme only applies to those cattle farmers who are currently not Farm Assured as those already with FA status are compliant.

The new “cattle rearing register” is a half-way house and will simply ask the farmer to complete a self-certified registration form confirming such matters as welfare, medicines, feed and housing.

It is a sensible and practical gesture, which hopefully will get approval from the various industry stake holders with a view to being introduced this autumn. For further information have a word with me.

 

News of the RSPCA boss

WITH being away for a few days I missed the news announced a fortnight ago that Gavin Grant is stepping down as chief executive of the RSPCA with immediate effect. I am sorry that it is said to be for health reasons, but his two-year reign has been nothing short of disastrous, leading the RSPCA into ever extreme campaigns and unsuccessful but expensive prosecutions.

On the badger cull he suggested that farmers should be named and shamed, adding that “those who care will not want to visit areas or buy milk from farms soaked in badgers’ blood”; he proposed that those convicted of fox hunting should be given five-year jail sentences; and he spent £326,000 on prosecuting the Heythrop Hunt. Although the animal rights brigade will be disappointed, he leaves the RSPCA with a demoralised staff, fewer subscriptions and an unpopular public image.

I, for one, am delighted to see him go and hope the trustees can get back to their remit of animal welfare.

 

New market location update

I HAD a word with Pat Foxton and he tells me that everything is still on course for a relocation to Eden Camp; but progress is only steady, in Yorkshire parlance.

Most of the necessary surveys have now been carried out and the planning application will, hopefully, get presented shortly and then it will be up to our councillors to decide our future.