Less Favoured Areas – Delivering for Scotland
By Robert Macdonald
Livestock farmers across the country can now take advantage of a leading liquid feed range directly from Brinicombe Agri and its one-of-a-kind delivery service, TransAg. Neil Ashwell, head of agriculture at Brinicombe Agri, explains that for over 30 years the company has offered a range of top-quality liquid feeds through a bespoke metered delivery system and is now offering a price match guarantee so customers can buy quality with confidence in the cost. “The unique direct to farmstore pumping equipment on Brinicombe’s TransAg lorries means farmers will receive a precise, measured amount of their chosen liquid, only paying for the exact volume they receive,” he says. “This format of delivery takes away the hassle of disposing
IBCs after the liquid has been consumed, playing a part in helping the industry reduce plastic waste.” Why use liquid feeds? Neil explains the challenging weather this cropping year has led to increased concentrate feed prices. “This is where the use of competitively priced liquid feeds can help keep winter feed costs down. “Our range of protein, mineral and energy liquids are tailormade to maximise performance from forage, and make up for any shortfalls, allowing farmers to utilise forage and feed already available on farm,” he says. “We can also offer ball or wheel feeders for livestock to lick, meaning liquids can be fed with minimal mess, regardless of whether or not a Total Mixed Ration (TMR) is being supplied through a diet feeder.”
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NFU Scotland
livestock Take advantage of precision liquid feed service
Farming and crofting in Scotland’s Less Favoured Area is the glue that holds the rural economy in Scotland’s fragile areas together writes NFU Scotland’s LFA Committee Chair Robert Macdonald. Accounting for 86 percent of Scotland’s agricultural land, 90 percent of its sheep and 83 percent of its beef herd; LFA agriculture is the backbone of Scotland’s world-famous red meat industry. In addition, our precious LFA is critical in the delivery of local jobs, outstanding landscapes and biodiversity, carbon sequestration and storage, thriving communities and cultural heritage. The importance of agricultural activity in Scotland’s LFA has never been more apparent than during Covid-19, where it has underlined the resilience of remoter communities as well as the contribution it makes to Scotland’s overall food security. Yet huge question marks remain over future funding levels for farmers and crofters in the LFA. The Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme (LFASS), the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) and the Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme (SUSSS) all provide lifeline funding to LFA farmers and crofters, in addition to the mainstay of support via the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and Greening. In our flagship policy document “Less Favoured Areas – Delivering for Scotland”, launched in October, we state that to safeguard and enhance the significant contribution of
active farming and crofting in the LFA, the Scottish Government must act with urgency to: ¬Retain LFASS from 2021 with a £65 million budget and rebase the scheme to better reflect current activity Reinstate LFASS 2020 payments made in Spring 2021 to 100 per cent of 2018 payments Retain SUSSS with the added safeguard on the number of ewe hoggs claimed limited to 20 per cent of the ewe flock to ensure better targeting to those most reliant on Region 3 land. The Union believes that only by securing and targeting vital support in the short to medium term will active farming and crofting be properly underpinned to enable the continued delivery of the many valued outcomes it provides. The Union wrote to Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy Fergus Ewing outlining our priorities and provided him with an advance copy of the document ‘Less Favoured Areas – Delivering for Scotland’. As a committee, we have been privileged to have the Cabinet Secretary attend in the past and we are certain he knows how important a profitable and vibrant LFA is to Scotland’s future. The importance of LFASS payments through what will be a turbulent period for LFA farmers and crofters cannot be overstated. The full reinstatement of LFASS support until at least 2024, moving away from the disruption and uncertainty we have seen around LFA support in recent times is the key ask.
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