August 2014 Farming Monthly National

Farming

MONTHLY National

August 2014

Inside this issue...

Slurry | NVZ advice

Buildings

Tillage Tillage Show preview |

| Look out for CE Marking

On Topic | Yara Grass Prix 2014

Arable | Keep up with CAP Also Inside: Renewables | Livestock | Security | Education | Fencing | Tyres | ATV | Motors

Contents

31

26

August 2014

12 46

FMN

Features

FMN

Regulars

10 16 30 42 44 46 50 53

Livestock

06 12 14 26 57 60

News

Livestock Event & news

Slurry Slurry handling, NVZ’s and more

Arable Latest blackgrass news, CAP and grower information

Security TER discuss the why’s & how’s of equipment theft

Tyres Michelin launch Ultraflex trailer tyre

Tillage Show preview

Buildings

All the latest need to know commentary

On Topic Yara Grass Prix 2014

Education Making agriculture cool

Renewables This month we focus on wind

ATV 0% on Gator, Polaris at SALTEX, Can-Am 6x6...

Motors Latest models

NEXT MONTH

Look out for the CE Mark

Diet Feeders

Groundcare SALTEX preview We welcome feedback and encourage readers to air their views. Have an opinion on a story or something you want to get off your chest? Write to us at the address below or email letters@farmingmonthly.com Whilst every attempt is made to ensure accuracy, the opinions expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the Editor. The Editor also reserves the right to alter or edit material as necessary and no responsibility is accepted for inaccuracies. Full copyright applies. All rights reserved 2014.

Andrew Poulton EDITOR

Connect with us: Published in the UK by Farming Monthly Ltd, 15-17 Dugdale Street, Nuneaton, Warwickshire CV11 5QJ Tel: +44 (0) 2476 353537 Editor Andrew Poulton Editorial Assistant editorial@farmingmonthly.com Advertising Director Shona Beedham s.beedham@farmingmonthly.com Advertising Sales Jessica Hopper j.hopper@farmingmonthly.com Advertising Sales Oliver Shorrock o.shorrock@farmingmonthly.com Accounts Manager Cheryl Arnold c.arnold@farmingmonthly.com Production studio@farmingmonthly.com Subscriptions subscriptions@farmingmonthly.com For editorial and general enquiries or to advertise please call Tel: +44 (0) 2476 353537 or email sales@farmingmonthly.com

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| News

Spaldings introduce new MEPs commit to Euroshare M7 Fast-Fit backing British farming Point Save up to 75% downtime when changing plough points with the new M7 fast-fit point system exclusive in the UK to Spaldings Ltd. paldings Ltd is excited to announce the arrival of the new Euroshare M7 fast-fit point to their already extensive product range.

These exciting new points from Mølbro are available exclusively from Spaldings, and will enable farmers to spend more time working the land rather than spending hours in their workshops.

The M7 is designed to minimise downtime by providing a quick and easy bolt-free system of changing plough points in the field. Being a fast-fit system will allow farmers to have an extra set of points in their tractor ready to change immediately with minimum downtime. The assembly of wearing parts has never been easier, the only tool required is a hammer.

The conical shapes of the point and the adaptor allow the quick assembly without the need for bolts resulting in a self-interlocking effect exceeding all previous solutions by far.

Manufactured from high quality boron steel to ensure a long working life the new point and

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adaptor work together perfectly providing optimal soil flow and reducing machinery wear. This exciting new system enables the point to give extra protection to the adaptor extending its life to more than six points. The points are completely reversible on the adaptor as well as fitting both the left and right hand side.

The M7 fast-fit point adaptors are available to fit Kverneland plough bodies with an extended range becoming available from autumn 2014.

The M7 is designed to minimise downtime by providing a quick and easy bolt-free system of changing plough points in the field.

NFU President Meurig Raymond was in Strasbourg today to rally support from MEPs to sign the ‘Back British Farming EU pledge.’ By signing the pledge, 33 MEPs have committed themselves to using their position in European Parliament to champion the cause for British agriculture. r Raymond said: “I am delighted to see that MEPs from all over the country were so keen to sign our Back British Farming pledge.

“By putting their name to it, we know that we’ve got vocal champions for British farming on our side in Brussels.

“Our members and staff will be making sure that our MEPs live up to their promises, holding them to account on the many vital issues affecting the farming industry such as delivering rewarding trade deals, securing an easier path towards sustainable growth, building fairness in to the supply chain, ending the current paralysing approach to crop protection and finally, taking the earliest opportunity to review the CAP and its misguided greening measures.

“This pledge goes beyond just

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those MEPs who sit on the Agriculture Committee – this is a wider commitment to deliver for British farming and we will make sure they do that.”

The pledge has five calls to action: Fight for fairness: Ensure fair contracts, fair returns and fair play in food supply chains; Encourage farmers: Create the conditions that underpin long-term sustainable growth, not stifle it; Boost trade: Secure balanced agreements with other countries that recognise high quality British production standards; Focus on science: Base decisions which affect food production on robust scientific evidence; Improve the CAP: Review greening; make the CAP simpler and fairer, helping farmers become more competitive.

For details on this product or any other products supplied by Spaldings, contact 01522 507 600 or from Republic of Ireland 1800 255 455, email: agsales@spaldings.co.uk or view the product range at www.spaldings.co.uk

06 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

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| News

CLA and Farage clash over CAP UKIP’s plans for taking UK farming out of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the European Union are “unrealistic and uncosted” – according to CLA Deputy President Ross Murray. r Murray clashed with UKIP leader Nigel Farage during a debate on the first day of the CLA Game Fair at Blenheim Palace, accusing him of promoting a “little England” approach to support which lacked logic.

The debate titled The countryside would be better off if we left the EU saw the two lock horns over the issue of restricting payments to farms over a certain size. “There is no logic to capping,” he said. “We have the most efficient farming industry in Europe and part of that comes with scale.”

It would, he said, be madness to bolt from Europe and Britain needed to stick with the European Union – but should seek to reform its ways of operating.

Mr Murray told an audience of more than 300 people packed into and around the Game Fair Theatre the argument that British farmers could survive without support from Europe is a fallacy.

“If we opt out of the EU our exports will be cut to shreds and we will be completely at the mercy of the supermarkets who will always buy

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on price. Quite simply, we will not be able to compete against other farmers in Europe who will still be receiving public funds.”

The value of being in Europe, he said, amounted to 25 billion Euros over the next seven years which came, not just in the form of direct payments to farming, but also as investment in the wider rural economy. He said: “All power to the Government if they can reform the EU – that would have my total support – but my head tells me that we are better off sticking with a European framework of support for the countryside – at least for the time being.”

However he did not let the Government off lightly, questioning whether we could ever totally rely on a UK Government to support the countryside saying:”We countrymen have to look after ourselves and be grateful for the support that membership of the EU brings to our businesses.”

The UKIP leader said: “We should run our own country and run our own agriculture; there will be a referendum in the next few years and you’ll have your say in it.

“The effects of leaving the EU in the short term would be negligible, but in the long term there is a big benefit to us being outside the EU. We can get the Great British public onside and interested in farming and understand what we are doing – currently the debate on agriculture has reached an all-time low.”

The debate was chaired by Charlie Brooks and also featured the Chairman of the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Ian Coghill, and former Telegraph countryside reporter Robin Page.

Mr Coghill summed up the debate saying there was no “perfect method” of governance, but that we needed to make the most of what we’ve got.

“Is the EU bad for the countryside? Yes. But you can substitute any government for the EU and the answer would still be the same,” he said.

Farmers are optimistic about expansion but....

The second in a series of agricultural surveys conducted this year by MHA, the UK-wide group of accountancy and business advisory firms, reveals that the majority of farmers are optimistic about future growth and are planning for expansion where possible. he MHA Agriculture Insight Survey was first conducted at LAMMA in January and re-run at Cereals 2014 in June.

Collectively these surveys take into account the views of more than 200 farmers nationwide.

Key findings include: • Despite falling prices, optimism for growth is high – 69% of those who responded were expecting growth.

• Expansion is an aspiration for many with 51% planning to increase their acreage.

• Succession planning is a concern which is moving up the agenda for many respondents.

EU predictions earlier this month, that the European cereal harvest is set to beat the average for the second year running, may be part of the reason for the optimism amongst

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those surveyed, outweighing the impact of recent drops in commodity prices. However, many sounded a note of caution around profitability as the squeeze on margins continues to bite. There is also a shortage of available land for those looking to expand their businesses.

David Missen, head of the MHA Agriculture Group commented: “Although the recent falls in the price of both cereals and meat was a key topic of conversation, it is encouraging that there is an underlying optimism as we go into harvest.

For those looking for expansion however, the availability of the right land at the right price remains a barrier to expansion as land prices continue to rise while supply remains static.”

Aside from the concern about available land, planning for the future of the business is a worry for many. 17% of those surveyed at Cereals felt

that succession planning was a “great concern” and an additional 39% acknowledged that this was of “some concern”.

Missen continued: “Planning for the business is essential if anticipated levels of growth are to be achieved. In this business more than any other, a long term view must be taken and advice should be sought. For many of those we spoke to succession seems to be creeping up the agenda and planning for this essential. The earlier this can be done the better.”

Of those surveyed by MHA, 54% would consult their accountant as a first port of call when making decisions about their business.

Sound financial advice is essential – whether you are planning to expand or looking to hand over the reins to the next generation.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 07

| News

CaseIH TRACTORS Quantum 65c Two Wheel drive, 16x16 mechanical shuttle, 2010, 3770 hours.

JXU1100 PowerShuttle, 2005, 3100 hours, 16.9 x 34 tyres, air cond. cab with air seat.

JXU105 PowerShuttle, 2010, 1500 hours, air cond.cab, 16.9 x 34 tyres.

JXU75 PowerShuttle, 2012, 590 hours, 16.9 x 34 tyres, front weights. 856XL Plus 4wd. 3994 hours, one owner & very genuine.

FARMALL TRACTORS Ex Show, Farmall 55A two wheel drive, only 15 hours, Roll bar tractor, CaseIH Warranty.

Farmall 105A PowerShuttle, Air conditioned Vision cab, passenger seat, 16.9 x 34 tyres. Case Warranty & Finance.

Farmall 115A PowerShuttle, Air conditioned Vision cab with passenger seat, 18.4 x 38 tyres. Case Warranty & Finance.

Farmall 105U PowerShuttle 40kph. Comfort cab, weights, bigger capacity hyd.pump. Case Warranty & Finance.

Farmall 115U PowerShuttle 40kph. Comfort cab, weights, push back hitch, Transport pack, 16.9 x 38 tyres, Case Warranty & Finance.

Farmall 115 Pro PowerShuttle, 40kph. 100 litre p/m hyd.pump, 540/1000 pto.Case Warranty & Finance.

MAXXUM TRACTORS Maxxum 125 EP Suspension 50kph. 2012, 2065 hours, trailer air brakes.

Maxxum 125 EP Suspension 50kph. 2012, 2193 hours, trailer air brakes.

Maxxum 125 EP + Quicke Q65 loader, 2012, 887 hours, 40kph.

Maxxum 125 + Quicke loader, 2011, 1600 hours, 50kph. air brakes.

Maxxum 125 + CaseIH loader, 2009, 2921 hours, 40kph.

Suspension.

Ex show Maxxum 110 c/w Q46 loader, cab suspension, Case Warranty & Finance.

Ex show Maxxum 110 c/w Chillton U10 loader, cab suspension, Case Warranty & Finance.

NEW Maxxum 125 EP Suspension, large hyd pump, Case warranty & Finance.

PUMA TRACTORS Puma 125 + LRZ loader, 40kph. 2011, 2423 hours, Air cond. cab.

Puma 140 Suspension 40kph. 2011, 570 hours, 650/65 x 38 tyres.

Puma 140 Suspension 40kph. 2011, 570 hours, 650/65 x 38 tyres.

Puma 140 Suspension 40kph. 2010, 700 hours, 520/85 x 38 tyres.

Puma 145 EP Suspension 40kph. 2012, 800 hours, trailer air brakes.

08 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

Puma 145 EP Suspension 40kph. 2012, 660 hours, trailer air brakes.

Puma 145 EP Suspension 50kph. 2012, 2822 hours.

Puma 155 Suspension 50kph. 2008, 5000 hours, 650/65 x 38 tyres.

Puma 155 Suspension 50kph. 2009, 2611 hours, 650/65 x 38 tyres.

Puma 160 PowerShift 40kph & Creep, Front Linkage, 3 speed pto.

2014.

Ex show Puma 160 Full Powershift, front linkage, Case Warranty & Finance.

Puma 165 Suspension 50kph. 2010, 1400 hours, trailer air brakes, 710/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 170 EP Suspension 40kph. 2012, 1517 hours, weights, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 180 Suspension 50kph. 2012, 561 hours, trailer air brakes, 710 tyres.

Puma 180 Suspension 50kph. 2012, 1088 hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 180 Suspension 50kph. 2011, 2554 hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 185 PowerShift 50kph. Front Linkage & PTO. 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 195 MultiController 50kph. 2008, 976 hours, 710/70 x 42 tyres.

Puma 210 Powershift 50kph. Front Linkage, 2010, 4183 hours.

Puma 215 EP 40kph. 2013, 253 hours, front weight, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 215 EP 40kph. 2013, 503 hours, front weight, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

Puma 215 Front Linkage & pto. 2012, 2824 hours, trailer air brakes.

Puma 215 Front Linkage, 2012, 2265 hours, 710/60 x 42 tyres.

Puma 215 50kph. 710/60 x 42 tyres, front weights, 2011, 1659 hours.

PUMA CVX TRACTORS Puma CVX 145 EP Suspension 50kph. 2012, 3600 hours, Full Accuguide.

Puma CVX 160, 2012, 950 hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres, 50kph.

Puma CVX 160, 2012, 1010 hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres, 50kph.

Puma CVX 160, 2011, 1975 hours, 580/70 x 42 tyres, 50kph.

Puma CVX 160 Front Linkage & pto. 2013, 1426 hours, 650 tyres.

Puma CVX 180 c/w Front Linkage, 2010, 2524 hours, 50kph.

Puma CVX 185 + Front Linkage, 2012, 2661 hours, 50kph. trailer air brakes.

Puma CVX 230 Front Linkage, 2013, very low hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres

MAGNUM TRACTORS MX230, 2003, 5120 hours, 650 tyres, front weights.

MX225 Suspension 50kph. 2007, 2418 hours, weights.

MX225 Suspension, 2011, 3120 hours, trailer air brakes.

MX270, Creep gears, 4760 hours, front weights.

MX260 Suspension 50kph. Full Accuguide, 2011, 1795 hours.

MX310 Suspension 50kph. Full Accuguide, 2011, 2255 hours.

MX310 Suspension, 2010, 2632 hours, 800/70 x 38 tyres.

MX310 Suspension 40kph. 2010, 1480 hours, 540/1000 pto.

NEW Anniversary MX340 in Silver livery, 710/70 x 42 tyres.

MX340 Suspension, Accuguide ready, 50kph. 2011, 588 hours.

MX340 Suspension, Front Linkage, Pro 700 screen, 2011, 1746 hours.

MX340 Suspension, Full Accuguide, 2012, 747 hours, trailer air brakes.

CVX TRACTORS 1155 Suspension 50kph. 2004, 3338 hours, front weights.

150 Suspension 50kph. 2009, 2900 hours, Front Linkage.

160 Premium Suspension 50kph. Chillton T12 loader, 2010, 4317 hours.

160 + Quicke Q75 loader, 2010, 7260 hours, 650/65 x 42 tyres.

160 Suspension 50kph. 2011, 2369 hours, trailer air brakes.

160 Suspension 50kph. 2009, 3568 hours, Front linkage.

160 Suspension, Front Linkage & pto. 2009, 3265 hours.

COMBINES Axial Flow 2388 AFS. 22’ header & trolly, 2001, 1692 Rotor hours.

Axial Flow 9230 on TRACKS, 35’ Vario header & trolly, 2013, 216 hours.

Axial Flow 9230, 35’ Vario header & trolly, 2012, 175 Rotor hours.

Axial Flow 9120, 40’ header & trolly, 2010, low hours.

Axial Flow 7130 FOUR WHEEL DRIVE, 25’ Vario header & trolly, 163 hours.

Axial Flow 2166, 18’ header & trolly, 2100 hours.

New Holland CSX 7080 c/w 20’ Vario header, chopper & spreaders, 829 drum hours.

New Holland TF78 Elektra Plus, 24’ header / Cheval extension, 2002.

John Deere 9780 CTS Hillmaster, 2002, 1555 rotor hours, chopper & chaff spreaders.

Website with photographs : www.startintractors.co.uk Finance offered subject to terms & conditions.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| News

An Affinity for agricultural cleaning Kärcher announces new partnership with NFU. his June the world’s leading cleaning technology provider and the champion of British farming jointly announced Kärcher as the newest member of the NFU Affinity Scheme. Under the scheme all NFU Farmer and Grower members are entitled to receive a 5% discount on Kärcher professional machines, accessories and detergents including Pressure Washers, Vacuum Cleaners, Scrubber Driers and Sweepers.

Commenting on the news, Craig McKay, Professional Sales and

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Marketing Director at Kärcher said, “We are proud to be a member of the NFU Affinity scheme and provide NFU members with a helping hand when purchasing Kärcher.”

Against a backdrop of rising costs and catastrophic weather, farmers nowadays have had to adapt to continue to thrive. As Colin Whitehead, Kärcher’s Target Market Manager for Agriculture explains, “Many have diversified in new entrepreneurial ventures and it’s been fascinating to hear firsthand about the cleaning challenges these pose - from a

Somerset microbrewer who was pleased to discover Kärcher’s barrel cleaning solution, to the gourmet cheese and sausage makers who found a simple hard surface accessory could convert their existing pressure washer for use on kitchen floors. We’re continuing to develop our offering into the Agricultural sector and an ever-growing show programme has enabled us to introduce our extensive range to a much wider audience.”

At the recent Royal Bath and West Show Kärcher was elected the cleaning manufacturer of choice, supplying a range of pressure washing equipment to facilitate livestock vehicle cleaning, thus helping to reduce the risks of cross-contamination from vehicles leaving the site. Kärcher understands biosecurity is crucial to farmers and is proud of the work it has carried out with the

British Pig Executive (BPEX) to tackle cleaning issues surrounding swine dysentery, helping to provide farmers with an effective recovery process from the crisis of an outbreak.

“We are proud to be a member of the NFU Affinity scheme and provide NFU members with a helping hand when purchasing Kärcher.”

Kärcher’s efficient and economical cleaning solutions are relied upon to deliver results day in, day out for farmers and rural workers across the country. To find out more about Kärcher’s cleaning solutions for agriculture, please visit www.karcher.co.uk or call 01295 752142.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 09

| Livestock

Livestock Event achieves record attendance, reporting figures up 6% A record 17,000 visitors attended the Livestock Event staged at The NEC, Birmingham on 2 and 3 July. The figure was up 6% on the year. he event continues to evolve and goes from strength to strength,” said RABDF chief executive, Nick Everington. “The main trade halls buzzed throughout as visitors explored the latest technology, discussed new business and placed orders, while the technical demonstrations proved a huge attraction, in particular the world’s first live robot feeding and milking demonstration at an exhibition.

“Farmers were challenged and inspired by presentations in the speaker areas with the Farm Health Planning Seminars in particular packed out over the two days, whilst outdoors, over 150 visitors seriously considering investing in the latest 4x4 and UTV models took the opportunity to test drive then around The NEC’s off

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road track. Feedback from exhibitors was very positive with good quality leads received over the two days which is testimony to our strict exhibitor policy.

“Livestock continued at the heart of the event. Cattle entries were up 31% on the year and relocating the main judging ring to the genetics zone proved to be a huge success enabling them to be even more prominent and enhance the experience for both visitors and exhibitors who enjoyed our very modern air conditioned facilities. Once again, we had a clean show.”

He added: “We look forward to continuing to build on the event’s success in July 2015 and creating the opportunity for all livestock farmers to get away from their farms to gain more technical knowledge and do business.”

10 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

More at www.livestockevent.co.uk

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| Livestock

Forage Field - seven steps for forage success Poor optimisation of forage yields through simple losses in field, clamp and at feeding out could be causing dry matter (DM) declines upwards of 40%, farmers were told at the Forage Field demonstrations held at the Livestock event. ptimising growth and keeping losses to a minimum were the key messages from experts across a series of seven practical demonstrations designed to help farmers make more from their grass and forage.

“Grazed grass costs around £35 per t/DM and silage £80-£150 per t/DM to grow and feed,” explained Dr George Fisher of British Grassland Society (BGS). “So when we consider that replacing losses with concentrate can be £250 per t/DM, it is essential that farms are ensuring they have robust systems and plans in place to prevent unnecessary waste as much as possible.”

Organised by the BGS and RABDF with technical support from DairyCo, Sil-All, Dow Agrosciences, Germinal Seeds and Volac the demonstrations gave an insight into how on farm systems can be evaluated to further improve productivity.

“Soil health is very important to successful growth, noncompacted soils are able to hold

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at least three times more water resulting in an increase of grass growth of 20– 30%,” Dr Fisher explained. “In addition healthier soils utilise nutrients more efficiently, maximising investment.”

In addition to soil health, farmers were encouraged to evaluate their grass management decisions in terms of variety, weed management and ensuring efficient grazing practices to ensure that all are helping a farm reach its potential. Other steps addressed management of silage at ensiling, the clamp and feed out.

“The use of an inoculant, containing one or more bacteria or a biological agent, can dramatically improve the rate and efficiency of fermentation.” explained Louis Hurdidge, Ruminant Specialist at Sil-All. “This will reduce dry matter losses and result in more stable silage that has retained digestibility, nutrients and proteins from the original forage.”

“Each system is different,” Mr Hurdidge concludes. “However quality forage will drive profits in all

Charlotte Evans BGS Soil compaction

Louis Hurdidge

systems so thinking carefully about the process and aiming for success at each stage can

improve feed intake, live weight gain and increase milk yields from grass and forage.”

Beef Shorthorn Society and Morrisons Suckler Herd of the Year Award launched The search is on for the UK’s top suckler herd, an annual award organised by Beef Shorthorn Society and supported by Morrison with £1,500 at stake. ll producers using a registered Beef Shorthorn bull on 30 or more suckler cows within their herd will be eligible to enter the award. The top entrant will receive £500 cash plus a £250 voucher towards the purchase of a Beef Shorthorn bull at a society sale while the three runners up will also receive a £250 voucher.

Assessment criteria will include technical and financial management, genetics, herd health, marketing and particularly the performance and impact of Beef Shorthorn within the suckler herd. Entries close on 11 August and those short

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listed will be judged during September by EBLEX’s Mary Vickers and the Beef Shorthorn Society’s Mark Holmes.

“Once again we’re offering top UK commercial producers the opportunity to be recognised and rewarded for the performance of their suckler herds using Beef Shorthorn bulls to produce a functional suckler cow with natural foraging ability and the effect that these have on their enterprise,” says the society’s Frank Milnes.

Further information and entry forms can be obtained from Frank Milnes on 02476 696549 or online at http://www.beefshorthorn.org

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 11

| On Topic

On Topic

Yara Grass Prix competition: First cut results in First stage results from the new Yara Grass Prix competition - now in – have clearly demonstrated the rewards to be gained by livestock farmers of treating grass as an arable crop.

Terry Clarke

he competition, which focuses on optimal grass nutrition, sees ten beef and dairy farmers from the UK and Ireland compete to achieve the highest combined energy yield (ME/ha) across two silage cuts.

The leading competitor at this stage, Welsh dairy farmer Terry Clarke, achieved a huge fresh weight yield of 36.61t/ha with equally impressive feed values of 10.46tDM/ha and ME of 110,834MJ/ha on a first year ley. Results from a ley in its sixth year were lower with yields of 27.06t/ha, and feed values of 5.41t DM/ha and ME of 54,127MJ/ha.

All Grass Prix competitors, however, performed extremely well when compared to the UK industry grass yields average of 6-10t DM/ha/year*.

“In general fresh weight yields have been very high,” says Jez Wardman, Agronomist at Yara UK and Ireland, “and analysis has provided some valuable insights. The most distinct at this stage has to be the benefit of reseeding. Of all four of the leading competitors three had first year leys, one ley was in its second year.”

Rewards of reseeding The productivity of a grass ley will reduce as the most productive perennial ryegrasses start to die back confirms Richard Robinson, Agronomist at Countrywide Farmers. “Stock damage also allows weeds such as docks and nettles to reduce the area

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Grass deserves at least the same attention to detail as any arable crop

12 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

of quality grazing. Whilst you may get a reasonable yield from an older ley, quality will be the real issue.

Meadow grasses may fill the clamp, bale – and stomach – but will not offer the same nutritive value and palatability as quality fodder varieties such as tetraploid and diploid ryegrasses. Independent dairy specialists Kingshay have shown the cost of producing milk to be as much as 2ppl less when grazing a new ley compared to an old sward.”

Grass repays attention to detail The key message for farms from Yara’s Grass Prix competition is that grass deserves at least the same attention to detail as any arable crop.

“Grass, whether grazed or fed as silage, is virtually always the most cost-effective feed any livestock farmer can use,” explains Mr Wardman “so making the most of its yield and quality is essential, especially as it both improves profitability and reduces reliance on costly, unpredictable imports.”

Grass yields in the UK and ROI on average are delivering 6-10t/ha of dry matter a year, according to a recent Defra report this is less than half of its biological potential.

“One of the main reasons for this is poor or incorrect use of nitrogen (N) fertilizer in terms of rate and times of application, says Mr Wardman “and we are constantly expanding the use of our precision tools and apps for grassland and other forage crops.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| On Topic

On Topic

Donal Callery

BASF's Jonathan Ball

The leaderboard as it stands

Preparing for second cut Yara’s regional sales teams are working closely with the 10 competing farmers advising on all aspects of grassland management from seed variety and soil and tissue analysis to recording inputs, application rates and timings. With the first cut safely in the clamp they have been offering advice on preparing for a second cut: • Ideally apply fertilizer the day following first cut • For every 7 days delay yields are reduced by 68% • Treat grass as any other crop, assess what the offtakes are and, as a minimum, replace those in terms of N,P and K • Take into account slurry values when calculating nutrients • Sulphur deficiency in grass is increasingly common. 2014’s British Survey of Fertiliser Practice recorded that only 16% of silage fields are getting a sulphur dressing. Sulphur deficiency, especially in second cut silage, can affect yields.

• Yara recommend applying 40kg/ha SO3 per cut for optimum yield. YaraMila Sulphur Cut (22-4-14 + 7.5 SO3) applied at 475kg/ha will supply 105kg/ha N and 36kg/ha SO3 Finland - 193% yield increase “The first Yara Grass Prix, staged in Finland in 2012, was won by a dairy farmer who achieved an

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energy yield of 148,000 MJ/ha over three cuts,” said Mr Wardman, “taking his dry matter yield from 4.5t/ha to 13.2t/ha – a staggering 193% yield increase which led to an increase in net profit of over €1,000/ha.”

ABOUT YARA “Grass, whether grazed or fed as silage, is virtually always the most cost-effective feed any livestock farmer can use so making the most of its yield and quality is essential, especially as it both improves profitability and reduces reliance on costly, unpredictable imports.”

“There are obviously significant climatic differences, however, the farmer at the head of our ‘leader board’ has already achieved 110,834 MJ/ha.

With DairyCo figures showing that a 10% increase in yield from forage resulted in an 8p/litre reduction in feed costs when compared to imported soyabean meal we are keen to see the final results and how they will translate into real financial benefits for UK and Irish farmers,” concludes Mr Wardman.

For the current Grand Prix Leader board, and further information about Yara Grass Prix please log on to www.yara.co.uk

Yara UK Limited is the UK & Ireland operating business unit of Yara International ASA, headquartered at Grimsby in NE Lincolnshire. www.yara.co.uk Yara UK Ltd – the only company to market and distribute the complete range of plant nutrition products for agricultural, horticultural and amenity and protected (greenhouse) crops for farmers and growers. Our fertilizers all supported by a FACTS qualified regionally based team of advisors and a number of precision tools and apps.

Yara International ASA has 10,000 employees worldwide, operating in 120 countries with facilities in more than 50 and with a turnover in excess of £6.5 billion. The head office of Yara International is in Oslo, Norway.

* Source: Defra Report No IS0210

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 13

| Education

Making agriculture cool WNSC apprentices work in France Agriculture has an image problem. Simply put, for the majority of the world’s youth, agriculture simply isn’t seen as being “cool” or attractive. Most think of it only as backbreaking labor, without an economic pay-off—and little room for career advancement. ith an ageing population of farmers, it’s clear that agriculture needs to attract more young people. This is a global challenge: half the farmers in the United States are 55 years or older, while in sub-Saharan Africa, the average age of farmers is around 60 years old.

“The exodus of rural youth means fewer small-scale farmers tomorrow, potentially drastically changing the profile of farming,” according to a recent report by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

The U.N. International Labour Organization predicts that, globally, there will be 74.2 million unemployed young people this year, an increase of 3.8 million since 2007. Youth unemployment is both a threat and an opportunity.

The agricultural sector offers huge potential for job creation. Realizing this can radically change the image of agriculture among young people.

And agriculture’s image among young people is changing—from Brooklyn, New York to Nairobi, Kenya—where youth are now turning to farming and the food system as a viable career path.

“Increased access to education and new forms of agriculturebased enterprise mean that young people can be a vital force for innovation in family farming, increasing incomes and well-being for both farmers and local communities. Young people can transform the agricultural sector by applying new technologies and new thinking” said Mark Holderness, Executive Secretary of the Global Forum for Agricultural Research (GFAR).

Agriculture means more than subsistence farming -- today, young people can explore career options in permaculture design, biodynamic farming, communication technologies, forecasting, marketing, logistics, quality assurance, urban agriculture projects, food preparation, environmental sciences, advanced technologies, and more.

Farmers, businesses, policymakers, and educators need to promote agriculture as an intellectually stimulating and economically sustainable career— and make jobs in the agriculture and food system “cool” for young

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people all over the world.

A resurgence of interest among young farmers is happening and it’s vital to support this growth.

And education is changing, too: The Global Confederation of Higher Education Associations in Agriculture and Life Sciences (GCHERA) brings together over 600 agricultural universities, involving around a million students per year. GCHERA is working to change university curricula around the world, to make agriculturebased courses more attractive to young people and more relevant to the skills and opportunities they now seek.

Farmers, businesses, policy makers, and educators need to promote agriculture as an intellectually stimulating and economically sustainable career.

Six students completing their Level 3 Motor Vehicle Apprenticeships from Walford and North Shropshire College (WNSC) and one student studying Agricultural Engineering, have recently completed a work experience placement in France funded through the Lifelong Learning Programme. he students and staff from WNSC were hosted by L’Ecole Superieure des Metiers-ESM (College of Trades) in Muret, Southern France. The students were placed at a number of garages and dealerships in the town, namely Renault; Toyota; Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot.

President of the Chamber of Trades and Crafts of the Haute Garonne Department, Louis Besnier, told the students prior to their departure home ‘you displayed a professional attitude during your stay here and you will complete your training as mechanics.’

One of the students, Brenden Pratt, commented, ‘it is something

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that I have really enjoyed, I have learnt new skills since I have been here,’ another apprentice, Alexander Bagnall, commented, ‘I’ve enjoyed the whole experience in France; I’ve picked up lots of new skills in body repairs and learnt a lot about the culture.’

The students also received a cultural tour around the city of Toulouse which included a boat trip and a lesson in French.

For more information on the Lifelong Learning Programme please contact Liz Wilcox, WNSC Enterprise and Development Department on 01939 262154 or for more information on courses please visit www.wnsc.ac.uk.

The Earth University in Costa Rica works to prepare future leaders with ethical values to contribute to the sustainable developent of the tropics. Their courses include both work experience sessions and students developing and running their own agribusinesses through the class.

Wageningen University in the Netherlands has, over the last decade, completely redefined its courses to meet the needs and priorities of today’s young people.

Wageningen now focuses on the theme ‘healthy food and living environment’ and works closely together with both governments and the business community.

And Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) is an international movement of nearly 8,000 young professionals, a vibrant network, both online and on the ground, inspiring young people into a wide range of agriculture careers and to play active roles for innovative agricultural development.

These projects and many other initiatives, programs and people are making agriculture cool again.

Article courtesy of Food Tank (www.foodtank.com) - for the full text including organisations involved in promoting farming around the world visit the Foodtank website.

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| Animal Health

McDonald's Progressive Young Farmer Lindsey Carnell on her host dairy farm

New analysis funded by McDonald’s UK highlights importance of early detection in tackling dairy cattle lameness New analysis from sustainable farming research and development centre, FAI (Food Animal Initiative), funded by McDonald’s UK, shows regular mobility scoring can help farmers detect and tackle dairy cattle lameness earlier as well as reduce associated production losses. he publication of the analysis comes amidst growing concern from the dairy industry about the cost of lameness.

Recent figures show that at any one time around a quarter of all dairy cows are affected by some degree of lameness. DairyCo estimate that the cost to farmers, including the cost of treatment, loss of yield and potentially shorter productive life, could equate to nearly £15,000 for an average-sized herd[1].

The analysis was funded by McDonald’s as part of Farm Forward – its long-term programme to create a sustainable future for British and Irish farming – and used data collected as part of a three-year study on four dairy farms across south-west England, supported by the Dartington Cattle Breeding Trust. It found that a substantial proportion of lame dairy cows remain affected for several weeks, indicating that they are either not treated or are treated unsuccessfully. However, fortnightly mobility scoring can enable detection before cows become severely lame.

To support farmers with mobility scoring, FAI and McDonald’s have produced a Mobility Score Decision Tree, a practical tool to aid mobility score assessment that is available to download for free.

Lindsey Carnell, a student on McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmer training programme,

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is one of the first farmers to trial the tool. She is collecting data on a dairy farm in Staffordshire where she is being mentored by progressive farmers James and Jonathan Pickford to see what impact housing and location have on lameness within a herd.

Lindsey said: “With FAI’s help I’ve been mobility scoring dairy cows immediately after milking. By collecting and analysing data about the farm’s 420 dairy cows in different housing and locations, I want to identify what impact this has on a herd and identify practical ways to improve mobility.”

Ruth Clements, Head of Veterinary Programmes, FAI, said: “Lameness is one of the foremost health and welfare challenges facing the UK dairy industry, but this research shows that regular mobility scoring can help detect mobility problems earlier, while still being reasonably practical for farmers. This enables intervention before cows become severely lame, by which time their welfare and productivity are likely affected.”

Connor McVeigh, Director of Supply Chain, McDonald’s UK, said: “As a big customer of British and Irish agriculture, we know how important it is to create a sustainable future for the sector.

That’s why we are committed to developing and sharing knowledge that will help farmers

improve welfare standards and run more profitable businesses.”

Using data collected by researchers from the University of Bristol (as part of a larger research project funded by the Dartington Cattle Breeding Trust) and the DairyCo ‘0-3’ mobility score system (where ‘0’ indicates good mobility, ‘1’ indicates imperfect mobility, ‘2’ indicates impaired mobility and ‘3’ indicates severely impaired mobility) the study found: • Dairy cows usually transition from being sound to lame over several weeks, with only 1.5% of scores showing cattle got worse by more than one point on the mobility scale between fortnightly measurements. This suggests farmers have an opportunity to identify and address most mobility problems before cows become severely lame.

• 70% of ‘score 2’ animals (impaired mobility) were still lame a fortnight later, suggesting that a substantial proportion of lame animals are either not being treated or are being treated unsuccessfully. This puts them at risk of becoming chronically lame, with a longterm effect on welfare and productivity.

To download the Mobility Score Decision Tree visit: http://www.faifarms.com/resources/assets/fai/p ublication/studies/Fai-Mobility-Score-DecisionTree.pdf

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 15

| Slurry

HSE NI discuss how to work safely with slurry Over the past two years incidents involving slurry have claimed the lives of six people in Northern Ireland. any serious incidents have also taken place; the result of farmers being overcome by gas released from slurry during mixing. Hundreds of animals have been killed in similar circumstances.

Drowning has also occurred where people, exposed to the fumes, have fallen through openings into tanks. Don’t let it happen on your farm.

Before working with or near slurry take a moment to Stop and Think!

Think about the job you are going to do and make preparations to do the entire task safely.

Think about vital preparations: check that the tractor/tanker are in good repair, brakes and tyres in good condition and if they have to be positioned above the tank, make sure the slats can take the weight, particularly if using new, heavier machinery.

Think about ensuring all openings are covered to prevent a fall into the slurry tank.

Think about keeping animals and children well away when working with slurry.

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Remember slurry gas is heavier than air and during mixing will settle in a cloud over the top of the slurry. Bending down into the gas cloud for even a few moments can cause unconsciousness. Covered openings save lives.

Remember the risk is variable and difficult to predict. You may not have noticed any problems until now but the gas is always there during mixing. A combination of conditions can easily result in you and your animals suddenly being in serious danger.

Slurry gases Slurry gas is a mixture of gases including methane, carbon dioxide, ammonia and hydrogen sulphide, all produced by bacteria during the decomposition of slurry.

All these gases are unpleasant; some are also poisonous as well as being flammable.

Hydrogen Sulphide The most dangerous is hydrogen sulphide - extremely poisonous to people and animals.

A high concentration knocks out your sense of smell, causing difficulty in breathing, then disorientation. After only a few

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breaths, collapse and death can occur. This gas rapidly displaces air from the lungs and affects the nervous system.

Toxic release Some gas may bubble to the surface but most remains dissolved in the liquid in a similar way to gas held within a bottle of fizzy drink. As soon as slurry mixing starts, the gas is released rapidly. The addition of other materials such as silage effluent may increase the quantity of gas produced.

Mixing slurry The rate of gas release is variable and difficult to predict, adding to the danger. At high concentrations it is not possible to smell hydrogen sulphide.

The gas is generally given off in large volumes very soon after mixing starts in any area of the tank. The first 30 minutes are the most dangerous. As mixing continues, the quantity of slurry gas released falls off.

However - each time the pump is repositioned to mix another part of the tank, gas concentration rises again. Stay out of the building for at least another 30

minutes or longer depending on the size of the tank.

Exposure and effects Gas concentration is measured, using special equipment, in parts per million of the atmosphere ppm.

• 20 to 150 ppm - irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract.

• 200ppm - headache and dizziness.

• Above 500ppm - very common in livestock buildings during tank mixing, causing nausea, disorientation and collapse. Death is possible if a person remains exposed to this concentration.

• Above 700ppm - breathing stops and rapid death.

Gas Concentration Meters Hand held monitors are readily available and can, if properly maintained and calibrated, provide an additional safety precaution.

However monitors should always be regarded only as a back-up to a safe system of work, never a substitute.

Pocket-sized meters to measure levels of hydrogen sulphide can be a useful guide before entering a building after mixing is complete to

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| Slurry check the gas has had time to disperse. Never rely on a meter at the start of mixing; gas concentration rises so quickly it is dangerous to remain in the building. A meter will not give adequate warning or time to escape.

Some meters need to be calibrated every time they are used and returned to the manufacturer regularly (every 3-6 months) to be maintained and calibrated.

A facemask will not help Anyone who enters a slurry tank must wear breathing apparatus with its own air supply. Such work is a specialist operation and is best left to fully trained competent contractors. The equipment must be regularly maintained and the person entering the tank must be connected by harness and lifeline to two people outside the tank.

Helping someone overcome by gas If possible, stop the pump and get the person to fresh air, but do not put yourself at risk in the process. If breathing is weak or

stopped, artificial respiration may be effective. Get emergency medical attention immediately.

The checklist to the right provides an outline of safe systems of work when dealing with slurry. Use it as a guide and reference to conitinue working with slurry safely and help prevent accidents and emergencies on your farm.

More about farm safety and working with slurry can be found on the HSE NI website at hseni.gov.uk/farmsafe

The STOP AND THINK Checklist Always • Assume hazardous gas is present during mixing.

• Keep all unnecessary openings to slurry tanks covered.

Follow the SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK outlined below to stay out of trouble: • If possible, mix on a windy day.

• Keep children away from the area at all times when working with slurry.

• Take all animals out of the building before starting to mix slurry.

• Open all doors and windows.

• Use outside mixing points first.

• If slats are removed, cover exposed areas of the tank beside the pump/mixer to stop anything falling in.

• Start the pump/mixer and then stay out of the building for as long as possible - at least 30 minutes or longer depending on the size of the tank.

• If you have to go into the building, make sure that another adult who knows what you are doing stays outside and can get help if needed.

• If you have to re-enter to move the pump, or change the direction of the pump, leave the building as soon as this is done.

Do not go back in for as long as possible - at least another 30 minutes or longer depending on the size of the tank.

Never • Rely on filter type facemasks.

• Use gas monitors/meters as a substitute for a safe method of working.

• Rely on meters at the start of mixing.

• Have naked flames near slurry, as slurry gas mixture is flammable.

• Stand close to the pump/exhaust of a vacuum tanker when it is being filled.

Remember There is no safe slurry tank. The gases can kill people and animals almost instantly. Prevent accidents and save lives by always following the safe system of work.

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August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 17

| Slurry

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones, common breaches, concerns and advice

By Tim Bailey, NVZ Technical Advisor. n England about 70% of nitrates found in water come from farming. Where the nitrate is causing pollution, the land draining and contributing to that pollution is designated a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ).

Polluted waters include surface and groundwater that contains at

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least 50mg/l nitrate and waters which are eutrophic (have high plant growth and pose a risk to wildlife by reducing oxygen). Each NVZ rule helps towards a reduction of nitrate pollution, with the closed slurry spreading period and the slurry storage capacity requirement amongst the greatest contributors. Working with the

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regulations provides an opportunity to reduce fertiliser, fuel and other resource costs and improve efficiency whilst helping to protect the water environment.

If your farm is in an NVZ, you must comply with the NVZ rules.

You can find out if your farm is in an NVZ by visiting our ‘What’s In Your Back Yard’ through www.gov.uk/nitrate-vulnerablezones (click on ‘Interactive map of NVZ’). Guidance on how to comply with these rules can also be found on this site.

Common NVZ compliance issues which attract attention from the Environment Agency and the Rural Payments Agency range from insufficient record keeping, (in particular, records of actual applications of organic manure and manufactured fertiliser) to farms without the minimum slurry storage capacity requirement.

When we find issues, we take a proportionate response. In serious cases, this may mean legal action.

For instance, in a recent prosecution, a landspreader was found negligent and fined £14,000 with £14,000 costs after deep injecting mixed wastes into wet silt loam soil and causing pollution of groundwater and surface water (via land drainage). Farmers are also at risk of legal action in these instances, including under NVZ Regulations, but we are keen for all parties to avoid putting themselves and their reputation at risk by working with them to help them comply.

Suitable soil conditions are essential when deep injecting, as with any other spreading method, and to comply with NVZ spreading requirements. These include applying waste in an accurate manner and/or not spreading when there is a significant risk of the nitrogen getting into surface water. It is essential when deep injecting, like subsoiling, that the soil is dry enough (i.e. a soil that crumbles without sticky together)

to enable the soil to lift, crack and allow the liquid to be soaked up by the soil. Wet soil, in particular medium to heavy textures, can gouge and compact as the shank and wings of the injector pass through the soil. Being wet, the surrounding soil is also less able to soak up the liquid. Together this restricts sideways liquid movement and can leave large parts of the soil untreated; increasing the ‘effective’ application rate and the risk of drainage to land drains and/or groundwater where present. There is also a risk of loss, including subsequent leaching, in light soils injected when wet and in particular shallow soils over rock. A simple rule of thumb is: if the soil is too wet to subsoil then it is likely to be too wet to deep inject.

Each NVZ rule helps towards a reduction of nitrate pollution If constructing, substantially enlarging or substantially reconstructing a slurry store you must let us know at least 14 days before the structure is used.

Inadequate construction can be costly and lead to pollution, so we always encourage farmers to contact us early in the process.

Farmers are also encouraged to view the storage capacity requirements, in and out of NVZ, as a minimum and to build what is best for the farm’s business, as a contingency for future expansion and/or to manage in adverse weather conditions.

Guidance on building slurry stores, The Farm waste storage: guidelines for construction (R126), is freely available as a pdf from the CIRIA website: http://www.ciria.org/Resources/Fre e_publications/farm_waste_storag e_intro.aspx This guidance is currently being updated and expected to be republished in early 2015.

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| Slurry

Green bedding from Greencrop Greencrop, the official importer of the Sepcom range of slurry separators for farm and AD, is delighted to be able to offer the new Visscher/Sepcom green bedding separator, manufactured by the Italian Wam Group & Visscher Holland. reen bedding is becoming of great interest in the UK after its popularity in the USA and Europe for some years.

Our neighbours in Holland have been using green bedding for four years and have converted to the system both on mats and deep bedding (80% of all new cubicles in Holland have gone to deep bedding). Visscher have been involved from the beginning, and have developed an automatic separator system and have over 300 working units in Holland (both static and mobile). They also have over 50 in Germany, plus units in Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, Lapland and now the UK. The new Visscher/Sepcom green bedding separator is designed to produce recycled bedding material from the separated slurry. The benefits of this system give cows better comfort in the cubicle, helps keep them cleaner and help to reduce mastitis levels in the heard, whilst also reducing bedding costs. The separator has a lower electrical demand than other machines as it is fitted with a 5.5kw motor.

Due to its larger screen area and auto adjusting head, its power requirement is reduced. The Visscher/Sepcom will produce bedding with a dry matter content of 33-37 per cent.

It is fitted with the unique polymer sectional auger as standard, which has proved itself on other Sepcom separators for its cleaning ability during use. As well as significant advantages in

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keeping the screens cleaner, it aids a higher degree of separation than a steel screw system.

The final part of the separation is by a Visscher screen mounted in the centre of the solid core, this allows the moisture from the inside of the solids out through the centre, thus not trying to squeeze all of the liquid to the outside. This works in conjunction with the Patented Visscher automatic press module head which adapts the counter–pressure to the medium`s consistency.

This allows the module to automatically apply optimum pressing force. The system will continuously adjust itself to the pre-set value and this has a very close relationship with the dry matter percentage and capacity.

The PLC controller can be adjusted to the dry matter content/mass balance desired for nutrients and dryness. Only about 70% of the daily produced slurry is needed for bedding, a simple turn of a dial on the panel decreases the amps, saving energy costs and produces a faster standard separation DM for spreading on to the land. This means you don’t have to climb up and adjust the separator outlet manually every time.

Pumps and agitators The consistency and homogeneity of the slurry helps ensure a good result. It is therefore important to choose the right agitation and pump in connection with the green bedding separator.

Greencrop can provide a range of electrical

mixers for the reception pits, plus for the most efficient installation we would recommend a 3kw Visscher cutting mill and positive displacement pump.

The installation is provided with a cutting mill, which is designed to work with the feed pump and all coarse particles in the slurry are finely chopped. Any coarser particles, such as stone and wood are held in the reception area for the cutting mill. This helps to protect the seals in the pump and reduces the risk of failures in the separator.

The cutting mill is mounted onto the inlet of the positive displacement pump for the supply of slurry to the separator. The capacity is about 12-20 m3 per hour. The worm pump is characterised by a constant flow of slurry, irrespective of its composition.

The rota is hardened to cope with any small hard particles, which would harm a standard positive displacement pump.

Through the control panel the pump and auto-head work together to feed the correct amount of slurry at any one time, and if there becomes a blockage or lack of product, the system will automatically shut down.

For further information on the Visscher/Sepcom green bedding separator or any other Greencrop products, please visit our website www.greencrop.co.uk. Alternatively, please contact Howard Chantry on 07881 787997 or email howard@greencrop.co.uk.

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| Slurry

Digestate and slurry handling made easy Tramspread of Mendlesham, near Stowmarket, Suffolk markets a comprehensive range of digestate and slurry handling equipment throughout the UK and Eastern Europe. ramspread is also involved with slurry and digestate storage using the Albers Alligator low profile slurry storage bags which range in size from 200m³ to 7,000m³. The storage bags are ideal for storing digestate because as a sealed vented store the high fertiliser value digestate is not diluted by rain water. Bags can be supplied with either electric or hydraulic powered mixers and fill and empty points. The company are also distributors for the Danish-designed concrete Agri-Tank, produced in the UK by A-Consult, with sizes ranging from 183m³ to 6,500m³ and with a design life of 40 years.

Tramspread is well known for its range of umbilical equipment.

Bauer pumping units and engines can be mounted on a basic slowtow chassis or a full contractor high speed trailer pumping unit.

The latter unit has now been redesigned to have a drag hose carrying capacity of 1,600m to 2,000m (depending on the drag hose diameter). The hose is carried on two Tramspread

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galvanised detachable spools and over the twin high-speed axles is a 900 litre fuel tank and compressor. All Tramspread engine driven pumps are available with full SIL remote control.

Slurry and digestate applicators have changed considerably over recent years. Slurry is applied to grassland using disc and trailing shoe injectors and the applicator now becoming very popular is the dribble bar as it is a multi-purpose applicator; it applies slurry evenly at low level on grass, growing

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crops and open land. The company’s range of applicators consists of single and twin outlet applicator bars with spread widths from 8m to 24m, dribble bars 6m, 12m and 24m with macerators and a 6m and 7m dribble bar without macerator.

All Tramspread umbilical applicators can be used in conjunction with ISO BUS for monitoring flow, application rates and field mapping. This information can be downloaded from an in-cab monitor via a USB

stick and used in conjunction with the appropriate in-office computer program.

Umbilical Hose reelers – mounted and trailed, Engine driven pump units, slurry mixers from Reck and slurry separators from Nock complete the range of slurry and digestate handling equipment from Tramspread.

Further information is available from Terry Baker on Tel: 01449 766133, by visiting www.tramspread.co.uk or emailing info@tramspread.co.uk

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| Slurry

FLI Energy launches new brand identity FLI Energy , one of the UK & Ireland’s leading AD plant EPC contractors, has launched its new brand identity in conjunction with its parent company FLI Group and other subsidiaries. The FLI Groups rebranding is in response to the growing success of its businesses and demand for its services. eclan McGrath, FLI Energy’s Managing Director commented: “This year, the FLI Group is celebrating its 25th anniversary. This important milestone makes for the right timing for this launch.

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This year our focus is on the decarbonisation of the gas grid, and we will be completing projects to contribute more than 15 million cubic meters of gas to the grid.

Our rebranding exercise also acknowledges the increasing prominence of biogas energy development in the UK and internationally, and the significant growth of FLI Energy over the years. It is a clear message to the industry that we are leaders in this market for AD plant delivery.”

The goal of the rebranding initiative is to reinforce FLI’s

market positioning to reflect its forward-looking business strategy of providing high-quality design and construction services to companies at the forefront of biogas energy deployment.

“FLI Energy is well-positioned for many future successes and we are pleased with our new branding that reflects our outstanding potential. To date our plants have a combined electrical output of 52,000 MWh each year – enough to power more than 6,500 homes, and potentially diverting nearly 100,000 tonnes of biodegradable waste from landfill. This year our focus is on the decarbonisation of the gas grid, and we will be completing projects to contribute more than 15 million cubic meters of gas to the grid. This alone is the electrical equivalent of powering over 8,000 homes” concluded McGrath.

For more information about the rebranding and the FLI Group visit www.fli-energy.com

Traffic is public’s biggest fear of anaerobic digesters, Remarkable Group research finds Traffic is the public’s biggest fear when faced with the prospect of a new anaerobic digester (AD) in their community, national research from communications consultants Remarkable Group has found. he data are the result of detailed analysis by Remarkable Group of media coverage, social media mentions and planning application comments for 14 proposed and operating AD plants across England.

The findings show that the biggest proportion (26 per cent) of objections and fears raised against AD plants and proposals were focussed on an increase in traffic.

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With so much talk of odour, pollution and planning battles it’s no surprise communities often assume the worst when an AD plant is proposed in their area.

Just behind, at 18 per cent, was the fear that local residents’ quality of life might be harmed by odour, noise or dust – odour being the most frequently raised issue.

Ten per cent of concerns related to fears the plant may have an impact on the health and safety of the community, including the potential for accidents and the perceived emissions.

Also at 10 per cent was the concern that the AD plant would have a negative impact on the environment.

However, it was not all negative. Forty-nine per cent of the supportive comments noted

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the positive impact of AD on the environment, and 23 per cent of supportive comments related to a positive impact on the local economy through investment and jobs.

Remarkable Group Managing Director Julian Isaacson said: “All the information we analysed is publicly available and within easy reach of anyone online.

With so much talk of odour, pollution and planning battles it’s no surprise communities often assume the worst when an AD plant is proposed in their area.

“From our widespread experience, we know that communicating early and listening to feedback from communities is vital in developing a proposal that will work. Our research and expertise enable AD developers to anticipate potential fears and design and communicate proposals to help alleviate them.”

Full details of the findings and a guide to explaining AD proposals to communities are available to download on Remarkable Engagement’s blog www.remarkableengagement.co.uk.

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| Slurry

On-farm systems have a key role to play in the future of AD The European Commission estimates that bio-gas produced from organic waste can deliver a quite staggering one third of the EU’s target for renewable energy in transport. n the UK much of this waste is generated by farms which produce around 100 million tonnes of slurry each year; whilst this copious amount of slurry may be suitable for anaerobic digestion, the material’s low biogas yield is a crucial factor in determining the economic viability of the process on a large scale.

On the basis that the majority of the waste material, and the land on which the resultant digestate can be applied, is to be found on farms, these provide the obvious location for an AD facility. However, few farmers have the financial or practical resources or even the desire to invest in large scale AD plants and would prefer a solution that was more appropriate to the needs and capability of their farming operations. With the appropriate technology offered by smaller scale AD plants, farm slurries can be digested on farms with other feedstocks that are available locally and which can be included without excessive additional regulation.

Farm slurry on its own does not

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generate a large amount of energy.

However, co-digestion, whereby the digester is fed with a combination of feed-stocks, can produce a much higher biogas yield as well as increasing the nutrient quality of the solid and liquid digestates. Organic wastes, such as crops, spoiled silage, grass or food processing wastes typically produce between four and ten times as much energy as slurry. Clearly this has a significant environmental benefit as both the nutrients and the energy from these wastes can be fully recovered.

The farm land’s nutrient requirements can even be used to determine the appropriate mix of slurry and organic waste used as the AD feed-stock. In Denmark, the concept of mixing high energy potential waste materials such as food waste with low energy potential animal slurries has been successfully applied to improve nutrient management, mainly by using commercial or industrial sources of biodegradable wastes from food processing and animal slaughter. Whilst, as a single feed-

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stock, food waste can cause longer term stability problems in Anaerobic Digesters, when blended with animal slurry, however, it can deliver a highly efficient process which brings substantial benefits to farm land not least of which are the improvement in soil fertility and productivity and the potential elimination of the farm’s demand for chemical fertilisers.

Research has not only established that the addition of food waste can substantially increase the energy yields of a digester but that this can also have a direct effect on increasing a farm’s income by as much as 50%. Utilising the energy contained within organic matter can, therefore, make a substantial difference to a farm’s profitability, which is now more relevant than ever in these times of escalating energy prices.

Where on-farm digestion is successful in Europe, it has been as a result of subsidies for the energy produced and guaranteed long-term markets for it, allowing investment to be made on the basis of a commercially sound business plan.

This has contributed to a huge growth in farm digesters with, for example, several thousand plants currently operating in Germany.

Such success, however, has been based on the production or import onto the farm of high energy crops such as maize for co-digestion, rather than on the processing of slurry alone. This, of course, then begs the question of whether we should be using our precious land for food or for fuel. In a world where the population is projected to grow by around 2 billion to over 8 billion within the next generation, the global demand for food will inevitably continue to rise and the use of increasingly scant agricultural land for the production of electricity or bio-fuel will most likely be socially and politically unacceptable. In the words of the Government Review of Waste Policy in England 2011, “our aim is to get the most energy out of genuinely residual waste, not to get the most waste into energy recovery.”

One farm that has already recognised the value of co-digestion is Lodge Farm, a dairy farm with over 1000 acres of land and home to a herd of around 650 dairy cows on the outskirts of Wrexham, North Wales. For the last 4 years it has been successfully running its own, ADBA award winning “fre-energy” AD facility which it designed and built to meet the farm’s requirements and which now serves as a template for AD plants that it has manufactured for use on several other farms around the country.

Lodge Farm has recently been granted a permit allowing the plant to accept food which will be sourced from local food producers, hotels, shops, domestic waste, abattoir, waste grains and flour, milk and food production sludge from settlement tanks and grease traps, and will be mixed with cattle slurry and poultry litter generated on the farm. The AD unit currently produces around 160 KW of electricity and 200KW of heat of which circa 30KW electricity and 60KW heat is used on site whilst the remainder is exported to the National Grid. Following efficacious storage to suit the farm’s nutrient requirement, the liquid digestate is spread onto pasture whilst the solid digestate is applied to land used for growing winter crops to feed the dairy herd. The farm does not import any artificial fertiliser to grow grass or crops and is wholly served by the AD output.

Current UK waste management infrastructure, including collection and transportation logistics, contractual arrangements, legislative control and regulatory requirements, is counter-productive to the installation of smaller scale codigestion plants on farms. Without the input of a high energy waste material the bio-gas production from on-farm digesters that are processing solely slurry and manure is unlikely to be economically viable whilst the energy and environmental benefits that co-digesting food and similar waste streams might bring are also lost. Some countries are using approaches to optimise collection systems, others are moving more towards digestion as an approach to bio-waste treatment; few, however, appear to be doing both. The UK, on the other hand, has an opportunity to join up these two practices in order that locally produced organic waste materials can be delivered to local farms for co-digestion and subsequent reintroduction to the land.

On-farm AD has enormous potential to deliver renewable energy from bio-gas and to lessen the carbon footprint of agriculture, whilst at the same time reducing greenhouse gas pollution from organic wastes and returning valuable nutrients back to the land. It is debatable, though, whether the current key drivers and incentives for adoption of the technology in the UK are sufficient and appropriate to ensure its take-up at a scale where it is most needed and where it can deliver most benefit.”

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| Cereals

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August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 23

| Slurry

Updated specification for renewable fertiliser to boost UK farming Pig poo replaces cow pats as stability baseline in biofertiliser tests. he market for certified, safe, high quality biofertiliser for UK farming is set to grow following the publication today of the updated PAS 110 specification. Operators of anaerobic digestion plants that meet the criteria in the PAS 110 can use and trade digestate as “biofertiliser” certified under REAL’s Biofertiliser Certification Scheme (BCS).

Digestate is a co-product of anaerobic digestion (AD), which is the process of converting food waste, farm residues and energy crops into low carbon biogas for electricity, heating and transport fuel. AD has grown quickly in recent years, with 130 on-farm, food waste and industrial AD plants now operational in the UK, and over 340 projects currently under development, according to a report published in April by the NNFCC. Key changes to the PAS 110 that have come into effect include: • changing the digestate stability criteria, so instead of reflecting

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equivalence to cow slurry, it instead reflects equivalence to other organic materials commonly spread to land, such as pig slurry.

This will enable a greater number of AD operators to achieve BCS certification without any negative impact on quality or safety.

• tightening up the limits on physical contaminants (such as plastics) to increase the standards for quality and safety.

REAL Chief Executive Virginia Graham said: “Everyone involved in AD has learned a lot about digestate as the industry has developed.

Working closely with industry, we have used these lessons to improve the PAS 110 for producers, end-users and the environment. The changes announced today mean that more AD operators will be able to use or trade their digestate as certified biofertiliser, whilst environmental protections will be stronger than before.”

Benefits of digestate Biofertiliser brings substantial environmental benefits. It restores

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much-needed nutrients, water and organic matter to the soil; it offsets imports of finite, high-carbon mineral fertiliser; and it helps keep food waste out of landfill, where it would otherwise decay and release methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) recently published a video detailing the benefits of biofertiliser for farmers and the environment.

WRAP also commissioned and funded the review of PAS 110 and the research that underpinned it.

WRAP’s Head of Food Resource Management, Ian Wardle, said: “With the increasing need to deliver sustainable markets for digestate, WRAP has worked closely with the other PAS110 steering group members to ensure that the revised specification continues to deliver a safe, qualitydriven product.”

The main economic drivers for AD in the UK are renewable energy support schemes, such as the Feed-in Tariff and Renewable Heat Incentive, and gate fees, which are the sums paid by local authorities or food businesses for disposal of their food waste.

Similarly, as the digestate market is still young compared to more established soil improvers like compost, AD operators can end up paying farmers to take away their digestate – although it is expected that as awareness, confidence and demand for quality digestate increase, it will increasingly be sold at a positive price that better reflects its value as an environmentally friendly fertiliser. By using digestate on their crops (including from their own AD plant if they have one), farmers can save money as they don’t need to buy as much costly mineral fertiliser.

NFU Environment Policy Advisor Anna Simpson said: “Digestate from AD is a valuable fertiliser and can help meet the nutrient requirements of crops and offset the environmental and financial cost of manufactured fertiliser. The PAS 110 helps farmers ensure that the digestate they accept and use is of a specified standard and ensure the quality of the end material.”

Benefits of certified biofertiliser BCS certification gives a number of commercial advantages to digestate producers. For instance, BCS-certified AD operators are often preferred partners for local authorities in

Scotland and Wales looking to recycle their food waste collections, because BCS certification means food waste AD can count towards their recycling targets. Similarly, farmers tend to charge less to take away certified biofertiliser rather than uncertified digestate, because they know biofertiliser is a high quality product that they can spread to land without having to pay for waste-handling controls or environmental permits.

Additionally, because the BCS is a mark of safety and quality, food retailers and restaurants striving for quality and environmental responsibility tend to prefer produce grown using certified biofertiliser rather than uncertified digestate (or highcarbon mineral fertiliser).

Red Tractor’s farm assurance standards require farmers to ensure that organic materials are applied to land in a way that minimises the risk of contamination or pollution. Red Tractor Chief Executive David Clarke said: “We believe that the new PAS110 provides significant assurances that farmers can use high quality bio-fertiliser to produce arable crops that are safe for use as both food and feed.”

The Renewable Energy Association (REA), REAL’s parent company, is a trade association representing almost 1,000 members across renewable electricity, heating, transport fuels and organics recycling. The REA Biogas Group has almost 200 active members.

REA Chief Executive Dr Nina Skorupska said: “Digestate should be a central element of any AD enterprise. The more value biofertiliser has as part of a bio-based economy, the stronger the economics of AD projects and the less dependent they will be on Government subsidies. Building confidence in the market for biofertiliser is vital for realising AD’s excellent potential for low carbon growth and green jobs in rural businesses.”

15 AD plants across the UK are currently producing home-grown, BCS-certified biofertiliser, from Plymouth in Devon to Dalry in Ayrshire. With the updated PAS 110 now in operation, the volume and quality of certified biofertiliser looks set to increase significantly in the coming months and years.

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| Renewables

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August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 25

| Renewables | LAMMA

The Gilman Family with their Endurance 50kW turbine installed by Less CO2

Public support for onshore wind at record level The Government’s latest Public Attitudes Tracker revealed that 70% of people support the development of onshore wind. his is the highest ever figure since these opinion polls started in March 2012, proving that people strongly recognise the benefits of renewable energy in the UK. Clearly the often prominent voices that oppose onshore wind development do not represent the majority of the population, therefore the farming community should remain confident in their plans to invest in wind turbine projects.

One such example of a farming business that decided to push ahead with the installation of a wind turbine is the Gilman Family.

They installed a 50kW Endurance turbine on their dairy farm in 2012, following a rise in their electricity usage when they changed from two to three milkings per day to increase yields. Combined with a future plan to increase the size of their herd, sourcing their electricity in an affordable way was essential to the long term prosperity of their business.

The installation of the wind turbine has allowed the Gilman’s to diversify their income by producing a supplementary source of revenue via the Feed-in Tariff, as well as the additional price received for any electricity sold to the grid network. Since being installed by local company Less CO2, the turbine has produced over 200,000kWh which has provided two thirds of the electricity used on the farm, resulting in a substantial saving on the annual electricity bill. The Gilman family are delighted with their wind turbine – “it's marvellous to see it going round”.

With Feed-in Tariff rates

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decreasing on a 6 monthly basis, now is the ideal time to install a wind turbine. The average installation cost has decreased by over 10% since 20112 and innovative ways of connecting to the local grid are being actively pursued by the industry. The market offers an extensive range of British built turbines, from the Evance 5kW and Harbon 60kW manufactured in England, to the Gaia 11kW and Kingspan 15kW manufactured in Scotland.

Installing a British built turbine ensures customer confidence of quality and offers a nearby support network if any maintenance is needed on the turbine. Opting for a British manufacturer also has the obvious benefits of supporting UK employment and the local supply chain.

In a recent survey, 61% of farming respondents said they were likely to invest in some form of renewable technology in the next five years.3 And with the Feed-in Tariff set to reduce in October, and again in April next year, it is clear that people should act now if they want to achieve the best rates of return for their investment. What’s more, as electricity prices are increasing at a steady rate, having your own onfarm renewable energy generator will always be a strong investment for the future.

There are many different routes to funding a wind turbine project, from joint ventures with your local community, to part-ownership with your turbine manufacturer. As a result, the upfront investment cost needn’t be a barrier to installing your own wind turbine. Community energy is a hot topic within Government at the moment, and

26 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

as such, resources to kick-start local wind projects are widely available. These include the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme in Scotland and the Rural Community Energy Fund in England. Visit the RenewableUK website for more information on

generating your own power and for a list of farm-scale wind turbine companies. http://www.renewableuk.com/en /renewable-energy/windenergy/small-and-medium-scalewind/index.cfm

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| Renewables

Harbon wind turbines Based in Doncaster, Harbon Wind Turbines, a company formed between electrical engineers H S Harbon & Sons and local businessman Richard Crowe, currently have 21 turbines up and running in Britain from Thurso in the north, to Bude in the south as well as the Scottish islands. he HWT 60 is designed to maximise power output by constantly reacting to varying wind speeds. By altering the rotor speed according to wind conditions, the turbine is able to generate electricity in a wider range of conditions than most of its rivals. Coupled with the high efficiency Siemens generator, Siemens gearbox and Control Techniques drive system, the HWT 60 turbine is an efficient performer.

The design philosophy for the unit has been to produce a high quality turbine with reliable good quality components. Durability, performance and safety were the key driver’s with the HWT 60, and this attention to detail has allowed the turbine to achieve a WTG Class 1 rating.

A further benefit of our HWT 60 turbine is the ease of installation.

Towers ranging from 18m to 24m are hydraulic and this, coupled with the manageability of the turbine’s components, allows installation in remote and difficult locations using agricultural

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machinery and without the need for cranes.

The HWT60L is a next generation turbine from Harbon Wind Turbines that features a rotor diameter of 20.3 meters giving a much larger swept area of 324m2.

This turbine will be a class II turbine ideally suited to lower wind speed locations and will compete directly with other turbines in the same class. The HWT 60L turbine will be available on the current 24M hydraulic demountable tower and a new monopole tower at 30M. Our innovative blades have been developed by some of the leading designers in the field. They are of a 100% composite construction and can tolerate extreme loads. They have also been tested by the Danish National laboratory for sustainable energy.

For further information about Harbon wind turbines please contact 01302 320173 or visit www.harbonwindturbines.co.uk

Host a wind turbine...

Wind Experts search for land for development project. xpert renewable energy system’s installers, Absolute Solar & Wind Ltd are reaching out to landowners across the UK in a bid to find plots on which to install free wind turbines – providing an income stream for proprietors.

The offer is part of a project that could see landowners make up to £14,000 per year with no cost for planning grid connection, installation or maintenance.

ASAW will facilitate the whole process, including assessing the site for suitability and applying for planning permission and DNO grid connection.

Although other companies may offer site hosting, uniquely ASAW will manage and complete the full project cycle from initial introductory discussions, G59 grid connection applications and lease agreement to installation and annual maintenance.

Mark Newall, Managing Director at ASAW, who have been installing turbines for the last decade, said: “As the project will span over 20 years, landowners could make

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approximately £350,000.00£400,000.00 for simply hosting our turbines.

“Landowners will only have one point of contact to liaise with and will be kept informed of the project’s development at all stages.

“It is very rare to see a company take on all up front liabilities such as full cost of the project and full planning, but this is what the scheme offers, at no cost what so ever to the site owner.”

The energy generated by the turbines will be returned to the national grid, although if the landowner would benefit from using a proportion of this themselves, then this can also be arranged.

“This project will also be of benefit to the environment as green energy, and its benefits become more accessible through its inception.”

Anyone who has a site that could be developed and would like more information should call ASAW on 0141 530 7644.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 27

| Renewables

Kingspan Wind formally launches the highly anticipated new Small Wind Turbine - the KW15.

Following an extensive testing and development program, the KW15 has become the first UK-designed small wind turbine to achieve Class 1 certification – the highest rating possible for small wind turbine systems. ingspan Wind General Manager, Richard Caldow commented: “Available for single phase, split and three phase connections, the KW15 offers landowners, farmers and businesses a simple, affordable renewable energy source backed with a comprehensive warranty from a globally recognised company”.

MCS approved and eligible for Feed-in Tariffs, ROC’s and regional incentives, the KW15 incorporates four levels of rotor speed control to ensure that the turbine operates responsibly in all wind conditions.

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The KW15 is a great addition to the options available for those considering smaller wind developments.

Louisa Coursey, Small & Medium Wind Development Manager at RenewableUK, commented: “Renewable UK is delighted that Kingspan have achieved MCS accreditation for their 15kW wind turbine. The accreditation procedure is a robust mechanism providing consumer confidence within the small wind turbine industry, and we are pleased that another model has been made available to this unique market.”

Stephanie Clark, Policy Manager at Scottish Renewables, said: “The KW15 is a great addition to the options available for those considering smaller wind developments.

Kingspan has a strong and innovative track record in small wind and its commitment to renewable energy is providing jobs and

supporting economic growth in Scotland.”

Kingspan Wind working in conjunction with its Accredited Installer network can provide free site qualification and full project feasibility as well as bespoke packages for potential customers nationwide.

With over 4,600 small wind turbines installed globally, Kingspan wind has turbines operating in over 70 countries, demonstrating the product range wide appeal throughout various farming and industrial sectors.

Can wind still offer a return on investment?

Graham Hygate, Managing Director of Fine Energy, developer of sites for small-medium scale wind turbines in the UK, discusses the options. elentless reductions in the feed-in tariff are forcing landowners, developers and manufacturers alike to focus on standout renewables projects which promise particularly high returns on investment.

In the small and medium wind sector this had led many investors to concentrate on the sub-500kW feed-in tariff band, but gaining planning consent for these taller turbines (mostly over 50m to tip) is a longwinded and expensive business almost always requiring appeal, and the chances of success are low.

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Displacing imported energy makes better economic sense than exporting to the grid – as well as being greener.

A well-qualified and professionally presented proposal for a smaller turbine, less than 50m to

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tip, stands more chance with the planners, but the feed-in tariff rates make for lower rates of return on these machines so projects at this scale are now starting to need something special about them in order to work financially.

In our experience this boils down to three factors: Wind resource. Good micrositing and choosing the right turbine – not just the manufacturer but the right blade length - help maximise the available energy. If you are an investor and not tied to a particular site, it is advantageous to work with a developer who works across the UK and can identify sites in areas with the highest wind resource.

On-site usage of energy generated.

Displacing imported energy makes better economic sense than exporting to the grid – as well as being greener. But beware optimistic estimates of how much renewably generated energy you will actually manage to use on site.

This depends on the capacity of your turbine or

turbines, the typical wind resource and your energy demand and how it varies through the year and during a typical day. If onsite usage is a possibility, the onsite usage calculation is an essential ingredient in assessing the viability of the project.

Reduce planning costs and increase the chances of success in planning by embracing community consultation. The requirement to consult local communities on wind turbine proposals was introduced across England in December 2013 but in fact many planning authorities had already been asking developers to do so for some time. In our experience so far, the key points are selecting the consultees fairly and consulting at a formative point in the development process. Neighbouring businesses and residences are more likely to respond positively if they are being given a real chance to influence the proposal.

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| Fencing

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August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 29

| Royal Welsh

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| Arable

Agriculture can resolve our ecological woes In an interview with “The Guardian” recently, the Government’s chief advisor, Sir Mark Walport, advised that we should concentrate less on denying that climate change is happening and focus more on how we can respond to it.

Aerial shot of Lodge Farm

ontributing almost 10% of the UK’s GHG emissions, agriculture attracted comment from Richard Tol, an economics professor at Sussex University who specialises in climate change and energy issues, who suggested that “if you are serious about cutting [GHG] emissions, it means giving up cows’ milk and giving up cow meat.”

As a fifth generation, dairy farmer, I would suggest that agriculture may instead be able to resolve our ecological woes.

Having farmed organically for the past 15 years, I am passionate about my land and, most importantly, the soil that it contains. Soil, in my opinion, is the bedrock of our society yet, I’m afraid to say, society seems to be hell bent on destroying it.

The biological health of our planet is our number one priority, yet we continue to ignore its own biological requirements. Whilst mankind concerns itself with the increasing levels of CO2 emissions, it fails to consider the whole carbon picture, and to recognise that carbon itself is not the problem, rather that there’s too much of it in the air and not enough locked in the ground, where it can lend fertility to the soil.

Indeed soil is our most natural and cost effective carbon sink, with the ability to hold more carbon than the atmosphere and the world’s plant life combined.

I find it incredibly alarming that America’s largest export is topsoil and that Iran has been forced to source much of its wheat this year from that most unlikely of go-to countries, the US. 90% of the world’s cropland is losing soil, largely to wind and water erosion, at 13 times the rate at which soil is being formed. Indeed, one could say that photosynthesis is our only true wealth. Without it, soil becomes so degraded that the food we grow lacks nutrients, rain runs off it, bringing drought and ‘desertification’, and whole societies are uprooted.

Here in the UK, we may think of ‘deserts’ as immense, featureless expanses of sand, inhospitable areas in distant lands, like the Sahara, the Kalahari and Death Valley, where the sun rages incessantly and it never rains.

However, if we acknowledge desertification as the process by which once fertile land loses all of its nutrients, we may begin to recognise that the problem is becoming a very real one at home.

The quality of our soil greatly determines the nutritional value of our food. Over the last 80 years, the calcium content of an apple has

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almost halved, whilst the levels of iron, phosphorous and magnesium have fallen by over 80%; UK Ministry of Health research has shown that the levels of iron in a steak today are around half of what they were 50 years ago.

Both of these facts are a consequence of a dilution of nutritional content in the land, accelerated by years of poor land husbandry and growing crops for maximum yield.

Our soil is not only the prime source of our food, it also absorbs rain and retains vital water, rather than streaming it away as it would if exhausted of organic matter. Every 1% increase in soil carbon has the capacity to hold an additional 60,000 gallons of water in each acre.

Hardly surprising, then, that it is home to over 95% of terrestrial life forms, or that there are as many living organisms in a teaspoon of healthy soil as there are people on the planet, and vitally important when you consider that worldwide demand for water will soon be 40% greater than what is available.

But perhaps most significantly of all, our soil provides a solution to the crisis of excess CO2 in the atmosphere, with its far reaching, global consequences. Ohio State University research has established that soil carbon restoration has the capacity to store around one billion tons of atmospheric carbon per year, enough to offset around 10% of total annual CO2 emissions and around a third of the annual human related emissions to the atmosphere.

We can’t switch off our carbon emissions but we can sequester them to the ground; it’s incredible to learn that if the topsoil of all the land that we currently farm and graze were increased in depth by just 1.6%, atmospheric CO2 levels would be returned to pre-industrial levels. Since around 1850, twice as much atmospheric CO2 has been derived from farming practices as from the burning of fossil fuels and, in the past 150 years, between 50% and 80% of organic carbon in the topsoil has gone airborne. Indeed, the carbon pools of the world’s agricultural soils have reportedly been depleted by between 50% and 70% (up to 100 billion tons of carbon).

The antidote to this rapid oxidation is regenerative agriculture: working the land with the goal of building topsoil. This turns the conventional approach to farming upside down: rather than focussing on growing crops, the intention is to grow the soil.

Every day I walk my fields, frequently moving my cows from one paddock to the next, just as soon as they have nibbled the grass sufficiently to stimulate plant and root growth, and they

Cows at Lodge Farm

have trampled the ground to a level at which water can seep in and seeds can germinate.

And whilst their dung restores much needed carbon to the ground, methane from the dairy slurry is converted into thermal and electrical energy through an Anaerobic Digester, whilst producing nutrient-rich, chemical-free fertilisers for the land.

Soil, in my opinion, is the bedrock of our society yet, I’m afraid to say, society seems to be hell bent on destroying it.

I see soil as the melting pot for our converging environmental, social and economic crises (excess atmospheric CO2, drought, floods, wildfires, food scarcity, desertification, even obesity and malnutrition), enabling us to redress these seemingly insurmountable problems. Since soil is integral to so many biological processes, nurturing it and improving it provides us with many paths towards ecological renewal – with returns far greater than what any of us might see at our feet.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1937: “A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself.”

Richard Tomlinson

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| Arable

Over 270 arable farmers join HGCA Monitor Farm opening meetings This summer, more than 270 arable farmers attended one of eight HGCA Monitor Farm meetings across the country.

he opening meetings held in June and July 2014 launched each of the eight new HGCA Monitor Farms, as part of a major initiative which will eventually see 24 Monitor Farms hosted across England and Wales. The Monitor Farms are a key component of HGCA’s Business Development programme, which will help farmers to understand their cost of production, address key technical challenges and deliver more profitable businesses.

Local farmers attended open meetings held at Monitor Farms near to Colchester, Crediton, Driffield, Hereford, Leamington Spa, Louth, Royston and Wantage.

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“We are very grateful to our Monitor Farmers for opening up their businesses to general scrutiny, and to the local farmers who have joined the project.”

Richard Laverick, HGCA Head of Regional Development said: “This programme is designed to help arable farmers build a more resilient business, based on a sound understanding of their costs of production and by sharing best practice and experience when addressing technical issues relevant to their region. It is underpinned by benchmarking; by looking at and understanding costs of production; and by an openness and willingness to share thinking on how to develop their business and ensure long-term viability.”

Focus points for future meetings at the eight new Monitor Farms will be drawn from the priorities identified by those who attended the first open meetings. In this way, groups of local farmers can share ideas and solutions to common technical and businessrelated challenges. Priority areas include calculating a true cost of production, marketing strategies, the cost and benefits of precision farming, black-grass management and long-term soil health.

Farmers involved in the Monitor Farm scheme will be able investigate full-cost analyses of particular issues through wholefarm or field-scale try-outs. For example, Farm Manager Mark Wood near Hereford will put three fields of poor, lighter land to wheat, triticale and hybrid barley to compare drought tolerance and profitability. Near Louth, Farm Manager Mike Daniells will be testing a strip till drill on approximately 400ac over the three year Monitor Farm project, sharing first-hand his practical experience of the technology and a cost benefit analysis.

Commenting on their takehome message for the day, farmers who attended the opening meetings highlighted the need to understand a true cost of production, and to evaluate and identify risk by taking a hard look at their own production system.

“As one grower said at the end of the meeting in Louth, the more transparent the industry can be, the more progress will be made.

We are very grateful to our Monitor Farmers for opening up their businesses to general scrutiny, and to the local farmers who have

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joined the project. Their input and peer review of decision taking onsite will be crucial to the success of this unique programme,” said Mr Laverick.

These eight Monitor Farms will have their next meetings in

October and November 2014. Any interested farmers should contact their HGCA Regional Manager or go to hgca.com/getinvolved/monitor-farms for more information.

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| Arable

Alpego in the UK Based in the heart of the vegetable growing region of Lincolnshire, Alpego UK is the distributor for England, Scotland and Wales of the Italian manufacturer’s machinery range. est known for its super strong power harrow range, the company also offers other interesting cultivation kit. Alpego UK officially launched its full product portfolio to the UK market in January 2014.

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All Alpego UK products are made using SSAB Swedish Steel and come with a 3 year Driveline Manufacturer’s warranty.

Alpego UK has already sold several of their largest and strongest power harrows; the DmaX-800. This superior 8m ‘Twin Force’ machine will easily handle up to 550hp. Also delivered and working, the DK-500/AS4-500 combination folding power harrow and drill – with its unique vacuum

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seed transfer system and rear metering, weight distribution is improved and the farmer saves seed. Furthermore, the smaller power harrows, rotorvators and mulching flail toppers will suit compact tractor users too.

Other models available include FH rotovators; Puma tined cultivator with levelling disks; ASF Ferti drill; CraKer subsoilers; offset flail mower and front or rear mount side shift flail mowers. To reinforce the strength and reliability of its machines, all Alpego UK products are made using SSAB Swedish Steel and come with a 3 year Driveline Manufacturer’s warranty.

Twin Force Rotor: (patented) Case hardened gears Top Timkin roller taper bearing Paired strengthening plate Bottom Timkin roller taper bearing Stone guard to prevent stone/rock pinching Twin Seals Standard bolt on tines, hard wearing or dropforged quick fit tines Labyrinth to create first line of defence against debris entering the seals and bearings

Standard Rotor: This system uses a very generic rotor design, similar to that of most competitive machines.

Top and bottom bearings Stone guard Standard folded steel tines or quick fit standard folded steel tine

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 33

| Arable

CAP reform changes: What arable farmers need to know The Single Payment Scheme (SPS) ends in 2014 and will be replaced in 2015 by the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). s part of BPS there will be new ‘greening’ rules you must follow to be eligible for a greening payment (which will be worth about 30 per cent of your total payment).

As arable farmers, if you’re going to claim BPS it’s important you start thinking about the greening rules now – in case you have to change anything on your holding.

The rules may cover things that you’re already doing (in which case you won’t need to do anything differently) but it is worth checking now.

You must follow the greening rules in 2015, they are compulsory. If you don’t you could lose some – or all – of your greening payment.

Also you are also more likely to be inspected if the RPA finds you’re not following these rules.

To work out what the greening rules will mean for you, you’ll first need to know the agricultural area of your holding – in hectares that will be eligible for the BPS in 2015. You’ll also need to work out how many hectares of arable land, permanent grassland and permanent crops you will have in 2015. The definitions for all of these are different for the BPS than they were for the SPS. Greening rules There will be three greening rules: Crop diversification: If you have 10 or more hectares of arable land, you will have to follow the crop diversification rules on the number of crops you grow and the areas they cover – unless you qualify for an exemption.

Ecological Focus Areas: If you have more than 15 hectares of arable land, you will need ‘Ecological Focus Areas’ – unless you qualify for an exemption. If you do need Ecological Focus Areas, these will need to be equivalent to at least 5 per cent of your total arable land.

Permanent grassland: In England the overall percentage of permanent grassland – compared to the agricultural area – must not fall by more than 5 per cent.

Arable land Arable land for the BPS is land cultivated for crop production, such as land used for combinable crops, crops grown for fibre, root

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crops, crops grown for animal feed such as forage maize and forage rape, field vegetables, cut flowers or bulbs and soft fruit. Permanent crops don’t count for arable land.

Fallow land also counts however, meaning there can be no crop production or grazing, and no crops can be sown to be harvested outside the fallow period. However you can plant wild-bird seed mixes and nectar sources during the fallow period.

There will be a set period in the year when you’ll need to have the land fallow. The RPA will let you know the dates of this period later in the year. It will include 15 May in the year you apply. The Agency will give you more information on fallow land and what you can do to manage this land later in the summer.

Temporary grassland also counts (including herbaceous forage). This is land that has been in grass or other herbaceous forage for less than five years. Herbaceous forage is any herbaceous plant traditionally found in natural pastures or normally included in mixtures of seeds for pastures or meadows in the UK. These plants include Lucerne, sainfoin, forage vetches and clovers, but not any fodder crops, such as kale, fodder rape (or any other forage brassicas), fodder root crops, forage maize or any other cereals grown for silage or for any other form of forage.

Land used for livestock production as part of a crop rotation should be counted as temporary grassland – if it’s been used for fewer than five years. This includes land used for outdoor pigs.

Permanent grassland Permanent grassland for the BPS is land that has been used to grow grasses or other herbaceous forage for five years or more. It can be self-seeded or sown. If the land has been resown with grass or other herbaceous for age during the past five years, it is still permanent grassland.

If you enter land as grass or herbaceous forage on six SPS/BPS applications one after the other, you must classify it as permanent grassland on the sixth application – unless it’s been used to grow a catch crop in the time between applications.

Permanent crops Permanent crops for the BPS are crops that occupy the land for five years or more (other than permanent grassland) and provide repeated harvests. This includes short rotation coppice and nursery crops.

Nursery crops are areas of young woody plants grown in the open air, on soil in greenhouses or under polytunnels for later transplantation. They include vine and root stock nurseries, fruit tree nurseries, ornamental nurseries, commercial nurseries of forest trees (excluding those for the holding’s own requirements grown in woodland), and nurseries of trees and bushes for planting in gardens, parks, at the road side and on embankments.

You must follow the greening rules in 2015, they are compulsory. If you don’t you could lose some – or all – of your greening payment.

Land used to grow Christmas trees will not usually be eligible for the BPS, as the trees are not grown for later transplantation.

Short rotation coppice means areas planted with those tree species of CN code 0602 90 41 that consist of woody, perennial crops, the rootstock or stools remaining in the ground after harvesting, with new shoots emerging in the following season.

Organic land It’s important to note that any of your land which is certified as organic (including land ‘in conversion’) will qualify for the greening payment automatically – as long as it’s been certified by an accredited body. If you have organic and non-organic land, the RPA will provide more information later in the summer about what you need to do to meet the greening rules on your non-organic land.

The RPA will keep up-to-date information available through the GOV.UK website at www.gov.uk/cap-reform.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Arable

Experts share winning strategies for the black-grass battle Integrated management is the best solution to tackling the increasing threat from blackgrass: the overwhelming conclusion from industry experts gathered at a Bayer CropScience Black-Grass Task Force conference in Peterborough. aking delegates from the theoretical to the practical, the experts shared their knowledge and experience of how best to control this difficult grass-weed.

Craig Knight, a PhD student from the University of Warwick, is in year three of a fouryear study exploring evolutionary dynamics of black-grass herbicide resistance. He explained his preliminary findings.

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“If you don’t hit the target you won’t get the control” “In 2011, resistance to an ALS inhibitor affected 43% of populations tested,” said Mr Knight. “Resistance to an ACCase inhibitor affected 100% of tested populations. In both cases enhanced metabolic resistance (EMR) is the primary mechanism.

Retesting populations annually

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since 2011 has shown that resistance levels haven’t changed much.

“Unlike target site resistance (TSR), which is specific to a particular mode of action, cultural control provides the best method of controlling EMR black-grass.”

The point was echoed by Andrew Cotton who drew on his 40 years of field experience to demonstrate the effectiveness of stacked cultural control.

“A particularly heavy population at a farm in Buckingham demanded a complete overhaul of the rotation.

“Needing something radical, we started with three spring crops barley, oats and Canadian red wheat, back-to-back. All naturally competitive against black-grass, when preceded by multiple stale seedbeds we gradually gained the upper hand.

“By 2013 we were able to return to winter crops: oilseed rape in

2013 and wheat this year.

“Just be careful with spring cropping to consider what chemistry is available,” Mr Cotton warned, “and of course, how it’s applied.”

That was a sentiment that formed the thrust of David Felce’s presentation.

“Up to fifty per cent of a herbicide’s control is down to accurate timing and application technique.

“But with sprayer operators under pressure to cover more acres within short weather windows increasing efficiency is a major challenge.

“It’s important to choose where those efficiencies are made carefully as some actions that improve work rates can drastically reduce application efficacy.

“If you don’t hit the target you won’t get the control,” says Mr Felce.

“Take forward speed. It has

least impact on increasing output but the biggest effect on spray quality. Double the speed and turbulence increases four fold.”

“Equally, reducing water volumes, particularly at preemergence, can jeopardise coverage.”

Instead, growers should focus on logistics, he said. “How can you make your filling stations more efficient, for example?”

Finally, Keith Norman - technical director at Velcourt - tried to give delegates a glimpse of the future, with a summary of the company’s current research.

“Companion cropping, catch cropping and bio-herbicides are all producing promising results,” he noted.

“Avenacin is a chemical produced by oats, which appears to have allelopathic qualities.

When sown alongside a wheat crop, oats consistently reduce the number of black-grass heads. We suspect the avenacin is having a suppressive effect.”

Oats are also the subject of a joint study between Agrovista and Bayer CropScience, which sees black-oats sown in autumn to crowd-out early-germinating blackgrass, and then a spring crop sown in the sprayed-off residue with the added advantage that reduced soil disturbance presents fewer opportunities for springgerminating weeds.

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| Arable

Genetic blueprint of bread wheat genome unveiled to improve world’s most popular cereal crop The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC) played a key part in the generation and analysis of the draft sequence of the bread wheat genome, published last month, in the international journal Science. The work led by the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC) provides new insight into the structure, organisation, and evolution of the large, complex genome of the world’s most widely-grown cereal crop. enerated under the auspices of IWGSC, the Chromosome Survey Sequence represents the most complete version of the wheat genome to date.

A major part of the sequencing and assembly work was performed in the UK by TGAC, where 14 of the 21 chromosomes were sequenced and also generated all of the chromosome assemblies. The data is available in Ensembl Plants site hosted at the EMBL European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBLEBI).

The genetic blueprint is an invaluable resource to plant science researchers and breeders.

For the first time, they have at their disposal a set of tools enabling them to rapidly locate specific genes on individual wheat chromosomes throughout the wheat genome. As of today, researchers in the IWGSC estimate that the full genome sequence will be available within three years.

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With a chromosome-based full sequence in hand, plant breeders will have high quality tools at their disposal to accelerate breeding programs and to identify how genes control complex traits such as yield, grain quality, disease, pest resistance, or abiotic stress tolerance. They will be able to produce a new generation of wheat varieties with higher yields and improved sustainability to meet the demands of a growing world population in a changing environment.

“With the draft gene sequence for each of the bread wheat chromosome and the first reference sequence of chromosome 3B, we have reached a great milestone in our roadmap,” said Catherine Feuillet, IWGSC cochair. “We know now the way forward to obtain a reference sequence for the 20 remaining chromosomes and we hopefully will be able to find the resources to achieve this in the next three years.”

Mario Caccamo, Director of TGAC, added: “We are very proud to be part of this ground-breaking project led by the IWGSC. One of our main research priorities at TGAC is to address the grand challenge of maintaining food security through the application of genomic technologies. It is very exciting to see the impact of the use of Next Generation Sequencing technologies and bioinformatics tools applied to the improvement of wheat, one of the most widely cultivated crops in the world.”

The draft sequence is already providing new insights into the history and evolution of the wheat genome and genes involved in grain development, as exemplified in two additional publications appearing in the same issue of Science.

Wheat is a major dietary component for many populations across the world. Grown on more land than any other crop, more than 215 million hectares of wheat

are harvested annually to generate a world production of almost 700 million tons, making it the third most produced cereal after maize and rice. It is the leading source of vegetable protein in human food, having higher protein content than either maize or rice. The wheat plant is highly versatile due to its ability to grow in a wide range of environments. Wheat grain is easily stored and can be converted readily into flour for making numerous varieties of high quality edible food.

Lloyds Bank unveils enhanced asset based lending for grain and dairy businesses Increased facility provides additional funding secured against assets including stock, plant, machinery and property. loyds Bank is to extend its lending to grains and dairy sector businesses by launching an enhanced Asset Based Lending (ABL) product.

ABL is a cost-effective and flexible way of boosting cash flow for businesses that have capital tied up in stock, plant, machinery or property – typically those in the core manufacturing industries, commodities and whisky sectors.

James Ambrose, director of business development at Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance, said: “Asset based lending can help support businesses’ growth by offering a capital-efficient alternative to traditional debt.

“Working alongside an invoice discounting facility, ABL can use the value locked away in stock or machinery and release cash into a business, enabling it to expand,

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restructure or buy new stock and equipment.

“As the economy recovers, it can also be used in acquisitions and management buy-outs, releasing the value of assets within the company being acquired to help fund the deal.”

Under the enhanced solution, Lloyds Bank will fund up to 85% of the Net Orderly Liquidated Value (NOLV) of a company’s assets in these sectors.

Because ABL can be a revolving facility – meaning the size of the facility can rise and fall in line with stock levels – it is particularly suitable for businesses that are either growing rapidly, or are highly seasonal.

James added: “Asset based lending is growing increasingly popular among companies that recognise that it is a very costeffective means of releasing cash from balance sheets and

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managing fluctuating business needs.

“At Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance, we are committed to delivering working capital solutions that support UK

businesses. Enhancing our ABL solutions for businesses in the grains and sectors is just one of many ways in which we are doing that.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Arable

New fungicide for oilseed rape Adding a new dimension to Autumn disease control. he introduction of the new non-plant growth regulating oilseed rape fungicide Refinzar® (penthiopyrad + picoxystrobin) this autumn adds a vital component to the product armoury, at a time when lack of product choice and limited mode of action could put pressure on achieving appropriate levels of phoma and light leaf spot control.

In addition to its disease control benefits, trials have shown that Refinzar®® significantly enhances oilseed rape rooting – a characteristic associated with crop establishment, better nutrient and water uptake and providing better anchorage of the plants.

Refinzar® applied at a rate of 1l/ha is to be positioned as an early autumn fungicide for taking out phoma infection primarily – from two leaves to GS30 – and will also help ensure light leaf spot is controlled when applied as part of a seasonal programme.

“Until recently growers have principally had to rely on products

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with a triazole mode of action in the autumn so the arrival of Refinzar® adds more choice for growers who now have access to two excellent and proven nontriazole active ingredients,” says DuPont fungicide product manager Mike Ashworth.

Until recently growers have principally had to rely on products with a triazole mode of action in the autumn.

“With light leaf spot spreading out of its traditional area of the north and west and into the oilseed rape heartland of the south and east, there is an increasing need to address this disease. The control of light leaf spot relies on a programmed approach and Refinzar® breaks the reliance on triazole chemistry in this programme. With excellent yield responses as a result of treatment, Refinzar® offers a cost-effective autumn disease control strategy for oilseed rape.”

RL responds to changes in the winter barley market The Recommended List for winter barley will take two key steps to make sure it provides the best possible information to growers. he first is a change to the nitrogen protocol in feed barley trials, the second is a common yield target for 2-rows, 6-rows and 6-row hybrids. These changes are in response to yield gains in feed varieties and the development of hybrid varieties over recent years.

“The new nitrogen regime is a response to the advances made in barley breeding. It will push yields all the way for feed varieties and give us a fair comparison between hybrids and conventionals,” explains Peter Riley, Agronomist on the RL Barley and Oats Committee.

“The fertiliser levels reflect current industry standards so will be familiar to any grower who targets high yields.”

Looking at the single yield target, until now, 2-row, 6-row and 6-row hybrid varieties have been treated as distinct crops and had different yield targets.

The reason for this was that 6row hybrids were a new technology so they were given the opportunity to show how they perform and stimulate interest among growers and breeders – a similar thing was done with hybrid oilseed rape.

“Now that these varieties are an established part of the barley marketplace, it seems appropriate to compare all varieties against the same benchmark so they get to the list on merit,” explains David

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Houghton, Chairman of the RL Barley and Oats Committee.

While growers selecting winter barley varieties for feed will be looking for high yields, yield is not the only consideration in variety choice.

The RL Barley and Oats Committee will take all relevant attributes into account, including quality, disease resistance and agronomic features in recommending a range of different variety types to provide diversity in cropping choices.

“The Recommended List will continue to offer choice for winter barley varieties and we expect the changes to stimulate breeding programmes for conventional 2-row, 6-row and hybrid barleys alike,” concludes Mr Houghton.

“The fertiliser levels reflect current industry standards so will be familiar to any grower who targets high yields.”

For more information about barley varieties and Recommended List protocol, go to hgca.com/varieties.

HGCA’s harvest results service will be starting soon, sign up at hgca.com/harvestresults to receive regular updates of yield results from Recommended List trials.

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| Arable

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| Arable

New Holland Agriculture completes TC Range with new Four Strawwalker model Premium comfort and advanced features for top performer in value combine segment. ew Holland completed its TC combine range designed to deliver a dependable performance in varied crops and conditions, adding the new TC4.90 four strawwalker model which, just like the 5 strawwalker models launched in 2013, significantly increases output without compromising straw and sample quality.

“The entire TC range shares many advanced features with our mid-range combines. It is the answer for owners of TC5000 combines looking for a replacement with more technology and low maintenance costs

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without breaking the bank,” stated Hedley Cooper, Head of Combine Harvester Product Management.

Premium comfort and advanced features for top performer in value combine segment The advanced features and premium comfort of all four models will confirm the TC range as the market leader in its segment, providing mid-sized arable farmers, large-scale livestock operations, cooperatives and contractors the ideal solution for their business.

The Harvest Suite™ Comfort suspended cab offers the best in quiet operation with just 74 dB and comfort with remarkably low

vibrations, suspended seat, CommandGrip™ multi-function lever and ergonomic layout. In addition to the comfortable work environment, the spacious cab provides excellent all round visibility.

The InfoView™ II monitor makes it easy for the operator to keep track of the main harvesting data with software designed to be as user friendly as possible.

The double cascade cleaning shoe increases cleaning capacity and quality. It features a 450mm sloping pre-sieve and the adjustable fan forces air through the grain to remove chaff and short straw ahead of the top and bottom sieves.

The optional SmartSieve™ system with OptiFan™ guarantees a clean grain sample on slopes of up to 25%.

The optional moisture sensing system provides real-time readings to the in-cab monitor so the operator can fine tune the settings in changing crop conditions.

In addition, for Precision Farming applications, yield mapping and the renowned auto guidance EZ-Pilot with RTX correction for the TC range are available from NH dealers.

“The entire TC range shares many advanced features with our mid-range combines.”

New numbering for entire TC range For Season 2015 the TC range introduces the new naming system: it begins with the number of strawwalkers followed by a point and a two-figure number that indicates the sequence, with the biggest model in the range being 90. This intuitive naming system makes it easy to identify at a glance the number of strawwalkers and size of the model. For example, the new model introduced this year is the TC4.90: the biggest model with four strawwalkers.

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| Renewables

Featured Dealers: Sharnford Tractors Ltd Lutterworth, Leics LE17 5EH T: 01455 209300 www.manitou.co.uk Ravenhill Hereford HR4 9QJ T: 01432 352333 www.ravenhill.co.uk

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Farmstar Limited Marr, Doncaster DN5 7AU T: 01302 786786 Market Weighton, York YO43 3GA T: 01430 875900 Brigg, North Lincs DN2 8NF T: 01652 654944 www.farmstar.co.uk

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| Arable

New flexible ARION 400 Recent years have seen CLAAS completely renew its medium to high horsepower tractor ranges, with the launch of the ARION 600/500, AXION 800, AXION 900 and XERION ranges.

LAAS has now turned its attention to tractors below 140hp, and as part of this has completely redeveloped the ARION 400 tractor range.

The new ARION 400 has been totally revised and in recognition of the broad range of tasks that tractors of this size are used for, instead of the three models previously, the ARION 400 range has now been expanded to six models. For each of these models a number of specification, including CIS versions, and cab options are available, including a new unique and striking PANORAMIC cab, which sets a completely new standard for cab visibility.

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Where CIS is fitted to the tractor, this enables additional monitoring and setting functions.

The new PANORAMIC cab features a one piece windscreen, that is joined to the 2.41m2 roof pane without a crossbeam. This gives the operator an unrestricted 90 degree field of vision over a front loader and gives the cab a large feeling of space that is unprecedented.

The new design for the ARION 400 maintains the even weight

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distribution that is a common feature on CLAAS tractors. The ARION 400 also features a ‘wasp waist’ design to the bonnet, which allows a tight turning lock for maximum manoeuvrability and also provides plenty of space above the front axle for the radiator assembly.

The ARION is built around a solid cast frame with integral oil sump. Where the ARION is to be used with a front loader, the brackets can therefore be bolted directly on to the engine frame and transmission, and a front linkage can be fitted to the front chassis, ensuring maximum stability and ease access for servicing.

PROACTIV front axle suspension is also available as an option for models over 90hp. This has a steering lock of 55 degrees and when activated provides independent suspension with automatic height control.

FPT power The new ARION 400 range, which vary from 90hp up to 140hp, is powered by a powerful and fuelefficient 4-cylinder, 4.5 litre FPT turbocharged and charge-air cooled engine. To uses the combination of SCR technology and a diesel oxidation catalytic converter (DOC/Oxicat) to meet TIER 4 emissions regulations, and all the components are housed under the bonnet so they don’t restrict driver visibility.

The engines have no boost, so provide full power is always available at all times, and are governed using a CLAAS engine management system designed to provide optimised engine performance curves.

Drive to the axles is through the well-proven 16 forward/16 reverse speed QUADRISHIFT transmission. The four powershifts and four ranges can either be changed manually without needing to use the clutch or, alternatively on CIS models, there is also the option for QUADRACTIV in which gear and range changes are all made fully automatically.

Multifunction control lever The QUADRISHIFT transmission and other main operating functions are controlled using a new multifunction control lever.

This is designed so that all the gearbox functions can be controlled using a thumb-operated rocker switch.

Depending on specification, the new multifunction control also incorporates controls for the headland and linkage controls, can be used to operate ELECTROPILOT proportional electronic spool valves, or a front loader in either FLEXPILOT or ELECTROPILOT modes.

Hydraulic control options The range of hydraulic options available for the new ARION 400 again reflects the varied uses that these tractors will be used for, with three different hydraulic circuits available for each model in the range.

For general work, a 60 litres/minute (l/m) open circuit

hydraulic system is available.

Where a higher flow rate is required for more demanding work, a 98l/m open centre hydraulic system can be specified which combines two pumps, one with a flow rate of 57l/m for the control systems and a second of 41l/m for the rear linkage, which can be merged if required. Finally a 110l/m load-sensing hydraulic circuit is also available with optional Power Beyond, which is a first for this size of tractor.

Up to three mechanical or four electronic spool valves can be fitted to the ARION 400. Two additional spool valves can be fitted to the front of the tractor for a front loader, operated by FLEXPILOT or ELECTROPILOT. The spool valves are all clearly colour coded and an oil spillage container is also fitted to the tractor.

Two PTO options are available on the ARION 400 – 540/540 ECO or 540/540 ECO/1000. Speeds are selected using buttons on the ‘B’ pillar. There is an automatic PTO function that will turn the PTO on and off according to the height of the rear linkage, which has a maximum lift capacity at the ball ends of 4.5 tonnes on the smaller ARION 410/420, rising to 5.75 tonnes on the ARION 430-460.

For the front of the tractor, a fully integrated 2.8 tonne capacity CLAAS designed front-linkage is available that requires no side reinforcement. A factory fitted front 1000rpm PTO is also available, as are connections for 3- and 7-pin sockets, plus one hydraulic spool and one free-flow return line.

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| Security

The why’s and how’s of equipment theft TER discusses the nature & extent of equipment theft in UK, NI & Europe. he low level of both integral security on plant and equipment, and of crime reduction awareness amongst its owners, are two of the main reasons why equipment is vulnerable to theft and why it is easy to steal. A key flaw in the equipment’s integral security is the widespread use of the universal key. A criminal with a bunch of universal keys, such as is held by most plant fitters, will be able to

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start up and remove any unprotected equipment from an unprotected site.

Plant items are often used to assist in the theft of other plant items. For example, lorry mounted cranes can be used to reach over security fences and lift items out of a site onto the criminal’s vehicle; metal cutting saws can be used to cut fences or remove gates to access plant on sites; and, larger plant vehicles may be used to force entry into sites or yards.

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TECHNICAL CAPABILITY Once the plant has been accessed criminals may utilise scanners, jammers and battery discharge meters in order to identify, and/or neutralise, the presence of a tracking device on the target item. If such a device is located it may be neutralised through use of a jammer, destroyed in situ, or removed – in one instance a tracking device which had been removed from an item of plant was recovered by the police from a National Express coach on the M25!

TRANSPORTATION Criminals may drive the plant off site and along the highway or load it directly onto a suitable road going transporter or trailer to remove it to another location.

During this process, criminals may abandon the equipment for 24/48 hours in case the target item was fitted with a tracking device which they were unable to detect.

Serious and organised criminals may also use hauliers to steal the plant for them.

RE-IDENTIFICATION Once in his possession, and secure in his holding area, the serious and organised criminal will already know what re-identification techniques, if any, he will apply to the stolen plant prior to its disposal. This may include any of the following: •No alteration to the equipment’s identity data •Alter or erase identity •Replace the identity - cloning While opportunist criminals will tend to sell on stolen equipment without altering its identity and within a short period following its theft, often for considerably less than the market value, many other criminals attempt to secure higher value out of the stolen equipment by altering, erasing or completely changing the identity of the stolen equipment. By disguising the original identity in this way

criminals can often sell on the equipment for its market value.

A very high degree of technical re-identification, cloning, has now become a widespread criminal capability in the UK. This is where criminals remove the whole identity of the stolen machine and replace it with the whole identity of another machine. The ‘other’ machine may be in the UK market or may be overseas. But the criminals will have at their disposal the serial/chassis number, engine and axle numbers of the ‘other’ machine, possibly prior to the theft. In some instances, especially in the tractor market, the criminals will also steal the engine management system from the ‘other’ machine as this black box has the equipment’s serial/chassis number embedded within it.

EXPORT A proportion of equipment stolen in the UK may be exported immediately or within a period following its theft, with or without all or part of its original identity.

Criminals may use their own haulage, particularly if the theft requires breaking and entry, and may then move direct to a port or to a temporary storage area.

Known destination countries for equipment stolen in the UK, NI and Europe include: •Republic of Ireland •Western and Eastern Europe •Middle East •Africa •Australia BROKEN FOR PARTS Machines may be broken for parts and sold in the UK or exported. This is usually dependant upon age, condition and demand. In a limited number of cases high quality machines may be broken down into its major parts, containerised, exported and reassembled overseas prior to sale.

Visit www.ter-europe.org for more information.

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| Feature Kubota RTV400Ci

Master challenge: the UK food system The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Food Standards Agency (FSA), under the Global Food Security programme are delighted to announce the five successful grants of the ‘Understanding the Challenges of the Food System’ call. he UK food system is part of an increasingly globalised system, which means it can often be prone to periodic scares and crises. UK consumers will be only too aware of the challenges of the food system which they experience through rising food prices as a result of weather disasters, conflicts and wars and will remember only too well scares of recent years about the provenance of meat products.

The FSA and ESRC previously identified an area of mutual interest around the challenges to the UK agri-food system, food safety, food fraud/crime and consumer trust.

Professor Paul Boyle, Chief Executive of the ESRC, said: “We’re delighted to come together with the Food Standards Agency to fund innovative research into important areas which underpin UK food security. The projects that are being funded will deal with priorities such as resilience, safety and security, food price volatility and supply chain management - all of which are recognised as yielding important social science research challenges to be addressed for the mutual benefit of the food industry and consumers alike.”

The Food Standards Agency’s Chief Scientific Advisor, Professor Guy Poppy commented “Achieving food security is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity in the 21st Century. I am particularly pleased that together with the ESRC, we are funding world class social scientists to develop an evidence base in these important but underresearched areas. The Agency believes this research will offer maximum policy relevance, as well as building strong relationships between researchers. The inception workshop will allow the researchers to discuss common themes relating to fraud, resilient food chains, consumer behaviour and an ageing population and thus allow the five projects to share knowledge and expertise throughout their projects and for the greater good of our understanding of the food system.”

The successful applications receiving funding are: Making provisions: anticipating food emergencies and assembling the food system (ES/M003159/1) Dr Andrew Donaldson, Newcastle University From animal disease outbreaks, to accidental contamination, foodborne illnesses, and concerns over the provenance or ingredients of foodstuffs, food crises of one form or another are seemingly a regular occurrence. This project will look at the ways in which those involved in the production, processing, retail, management and governance of food anticipate future problems and

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develop plans to avoid them or deal with them. By investigating these issues the project hopes to be able to draw out realistic lessons for building a more resilient food system.

Food fraud: a supply network integrated systems analysis (ES/M003183/1) Mr Jon Spencer, Manchester University The aim of this research is to develop a predictive computational approach to modelling food supply chains so that the points where food fraud can occur are identified.

Identifying these points of vulnerability to adulteration within the supply chain will allow regulators and retailers to take appropriate action to avoid food fraud. This project will bring together an interdisciplinary team of researchers from analytical sciences, predictive modelling, law, criminology and business studies, and will contribute to consumer confidence and trust in UK food supply chains.

Older people's perceptions and experiences of strengths and vulnerabilities across the UK food system (ES/M00306X/1) Dr Wendy Wills, University of Hertfordshire Like the rest of the developing world the UK is experiencing demographic change. Increasingly people are living longer and predictions say this is set to continue. A significant minority of older people have ongoing health conditions and for those aged over 85 up to two thirds have a disability or limiting long term illness. These older people might become vulnerable through the food that they eat and this should be a research priority in terms of impact on the UK food system, quality of life for individuals, better public health outcomes, reducing the burden of disease and disability, not to mention the resultant economic benefits for the UK. Public perceptions of the UK food system: public understanding and engagement, and the impact of crises and scares (ES/M003329/1) Ms Caireen Roberts, NatCen Social Research The growing complexity of international food supply chains is giving rise to a new generation of risks and concerns. These encompass traditional food safety issues relating to biological and chemical contamination but last year adulteration and fraud of food reemerged as a major issue with the horsemeat scandal. The extensive media coverage revealed not only widespread fraud but also the hitherto underappreciated complexity of the UK meat supply chain and the extent of meat imports. This project will use both qualitative and quantitative methods along with

social media analysis to generate new empirical findings on public perceptions of UK food supply chains, what people's concerns are, and what influences these and how they may be best managed in the future.

Analyses of food supply chains for risks and resilience to food fraud/crime (ES/M003094/1) Professor Christopher Elliott, Queens University Belfast As food supply chains have become increasingly global and complex, new and challenging risks have emerged. One of the risks gaining attention from industry, governments, regulatory bodies and consumer organisations is food fraud conducted for economic gain.

In addition, current food protection systems are not designed to look for the never-ending number of potential adulterants that may show up in the food supply. As criminal activity by design is

intended to elude detection, new tools and new approaches to supply chain management are called for.

This project will combine theories and methods from psychology, political economy, sociology, anthropology, criminology and law, with natural science disciplines to help determine how fraud can happen and what measures could be put in place to prevent it from happening in the future.

The project will also explore how other countries deal with issues of food safety and analyse legal cases as they relate to fraud. Based on an assumption that fraudsters will exploit any intelligence gathering system it will also examine current and potential models of data collection and intelligence sharing and test their vulnerabilities to future fraudulent attacks. This will help to develop a novel data collection sharing system that is more robust and secure.

New look Farm Assurance standards for 2014 Red Tractor have completely revamped the farm assurance standards, making them significantly shorter, with simple easy to read content which clearly explains what each standard is, why it is important and what the assessor will be looking for. very three years the standards are reviewed to ensure they are up-todate and cover key reputational risks. There are some small changes and these changes have been clearly outlined in handy sector “What Has Changed” leaflets – the go-to guide for members to find out what they might need to do differently.

“Our farmers are busy people so I am sure they will welcome the clearer, shorter standards,” said Andrew Blenkiron, Red Tractor Vice-Chairman and farmer representative. “ We have had unprecedented input into the review from across the farming and food industry and are confident the balance is right. It is important our standards meet the requirements of customers as well as being practical and achievable to deliver on-farm.”

45,000 Red Tractor Farm Assurance members will be

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receiving a pack in the post in the next couple of weeks including a new standards manual for every assured enterprise, a guide to the manual, the ‘What has Changed’ leaflet applicable to each enterprise (including a useful checklist of all the changes) and revised Scheme rules. All these documents can be downloaded from the website www.redtractorassurance.org.uk /newstandards.

For more information on the new standards, contact Jess Sloss on 0207 630 3320 or email industrycommunications@redtra ctor.org.uk

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| Groundcare

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| Tyres

Michelin introduces first Ultraflex technology trailor tyre Michelin is expanding its range of Ultraflex technology tyres with the launch of the CargoXBib High Flotation tyre for trailers and farm machinery. his marks the first trailer tyre to benefit from Michelin’s patented Ultraflex technology – an innovation which offers substantial improvements to a farmer’s productivity and profitability.

The new tyres can operate at pressures ranging from 0.8 to 4 bar and can be adjusted depending on the type of job the trailer is undertaking and the soil conditions on the day.

Mike Lawton, Commercial Director of Michelin’s Agricultural tyre division, says: “Trailer tyres need to be able to withstand intensive use in fields and on roads, carrying heavy loads – all whilst protecting the soil they are working on. Savvy farmers have long realised the benefits of using dedicated agricultural trailer tyres for this type of work, rather than remould truck tyres. Our latest generation CargoXBib High Flotation tyre simply extends this performance gap even further.

“The Ultraflex casing allows pressures to be set as low as 0.8 bar in the field and as high as 4 bar on the road, and are specifically designed to complement central inflation systems. Even on trailers without this type of system fitted, we recommend an average pressure of 2.5 to 3 bar – still significantly lower than the 4 to 5 bar required on conventional trailer tyres. Given that low pressures equal higher crop yields, we expect a lot of interest in this new tyre range.”

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“The Ultraflex casing allows pressures to be set as low as 0.8 bar in the field and as high as 4 bar on the road, and are specifically designed to complement central inflation systems” The new Michelin tyres will ensure total performance on all types of farm land and in all weather conditions thanks to a larger footprint than conventional trailer tyres - 17 per cent larger, on average, at 2 bar and 37 per cent larger at 4 bar. This ensures both improved grip

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and more effective soil protection.

The launch of the CargoXBib High Flotation range is the product of Michelin’s annual investment of more than €600 million in research and development – more than any other tyre manufacturer in the world.

From the outset, the new tyre has been designed so farmers can get optimal use out of their machines, with rounded shoulders to minimise ground cover damage and offer greater resistance to wear and cargo shifting during road use. The multi-angle, nondirectional tread blocks guarantee good grip on sloped ground and even wear – this in turn makes it easier for the tyres to rotate so they use less fuel, whilst increasing mileage.

The new tyre range features a continuous central rib to ensure superior wear resistance, making it ideal for road use. A new, even more effective self-cleaning tread pattern also ensures mud is evacuated over a shorter distance – up to three times less – than with the previous generation CargoXBib tyres.

The new CargoXBib High Flotation tyre will be available in the UK as both original equipment and on the replacement market from Q1 2015. It will be available as a 600/55 R26.5 165 D, 710/50 R26.5 170D, 710/45 R22.5 165D, 650/65 R30.5 176D and 750/60 R30.5 181D. They join a growing line-up of Michelin tyres to benefit from Ultraflex technology, including AxioBib and XeoBib tractor tyres, CerexBib harvester tyres and SprayBib fitments for sprayers.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 45

| Tillage

Tillage-Live cultivating establishment ideas Tillage-Live - The National Cultivation Event takes place at Down Ampney Airfield, Down Ampney, Gloucestershire GL7 5QF on Wednesday 10 September 2014 from 08.00 hrs to 15.00 hrs, offering visitors the opportunity to get to grips with the latest in cultivation equipment and soil management technologies. longside the working demonstrations of cultivation machinery and sprayers will be an array of static exhibitors and for the 3rd year the Knowledge Trail where visitors gain NRoSO and BASIS CPD points from completing all of the stations.

Stations on the knowledge trail will include the ever-popular soil pit helping visitors to understand and manage what is happening beneath the surface as a result of cultivation, as well as guidance on weed control across the rotation and Metazachlor stewardship from sponsors BASF. Here visitors can talk to the experts about the weed problems on their own farms and get guidelines on best practice in limiting Metazachor reaching water bodies.

“This year’s Tillage-Live is filled with lots of

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helpful information. The Knowledge Trail will again provide visitors with access to valuable, in-depth advice from industry experts on a whole variety of topics. As the largest cultivation demonstration in the UK, Tillage-Live gives progressive growers the opportunity to view the latest and most innovative cultivation and seedbed preparation equipment and drills at work on large scale plots, “said organiser Duncan Russell of the Agricultural Engineers Association (AEA).

All the latest news about the event is available on the website www.tillagelive.uk.com including listings of all the working demonstrations and details of pre-booking (£7.50/car, compared to £10 on the day). For group rates contact FarmSmart Events.

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| Tillage

Fram Farmers members benefit from additional rebates on Claydon kit Exclusive rebates on the full range of Claydon equipment (www.claydondrills.com) are now available to members of Fram Farmers, the UK’s foremost farmers cooperative (www.framfarmers.co.uk). he new incentive programme will allow Fram Farmers’ 1250 members, who collectively farm more than 350,000 hectares across 39 counties, to benefit from valuable financial savings on all new Claydon products. Under the terms of the deal they will have unique access to manufacturer’s rebates on the full range of Claydon patented strip seeding drills, Straw Harrows and Cambridge Rolls.

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“This is good news for our members, many of whom are existing Claydon customers.”

“We are delighted to be working closely with such a large, wellrespected farmers’ cooperative to extend the range of benefits which they are able to offer,” states Charlie Eaton, Claydon’s UK &

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Ireland Sales Manager. “Fram Farmers members are typically progressive, forward-thinking farmers who appreciate the benefits of harnessing the latest technology to enhance the productivity and financial performance of their businesses.

The range of Claydon products will help them to significantly reduce production costs while at the same time benefiting agronomic performance and ultimately increasing both yields and profitability.”

Simon Scott, Machinery Buyer for Fram Farmers, adds: “This is good news for our members, many of whom are existing Claydon customers and have given us very positive feedback on the company, its products and service. Being able to provide members with preferential rates on the Claydon range will further enhance the benefits available through our unique Machinery Scheme. Each year we purchase

over £11 million worth of agricultural equipment on behalf of members, making it the largest and most successful of its type in the UK.” To benefit from the preferential terms which are on offer members simply submit a copy of the original invoice to Fram Farmers.

Rebates to members, which are paid in full and on larger purchases regularly exceed the annual cost of Fram Farmers Membership, are in addition to any cost savings that members make on their farm input purchases.

Claydon Drills was started by Suffolk farmer Jeff Claydon in response to falling cereal prices and lower farming profits. In 2002 he developed the company’s patented Strip Seeding System, which enables farmers to establish crops far more cost effectively, with significant agronomic and environmental benefits. Now used all over the world, in all soil and crop conditions, it enables farmers

to obtain above-average yields from their crops without needing to use unnecessary and expensive pre-cultivations.

Claydon Drills has expanded progressively during the last 12 years and now employs more than 50 people at its factory in Suffolk.

Continually innovating, the company recently launched its new 6m and 8m Hybrid T trailed seed/fertiliser drills, which have been designed specifically to meet the requirements of 1000ha-plus farms and will undoubtedly be popular with Fram Farmers members.

For more information about Claydon Drills call 01440 820327 or visit www.claydondrills.com

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 47

| Tillage

The B-est gets better Tractor and groundcare specialists Kubota UK has introduced the next generation of compact tractors with the launch of its new B50 Series. ubota UK Ltd is celebrating 35 years of serving the UK and Irish markets, so the introduction of the B50 serves as a timely reminder of Kubota’s roots. The BSeries tractor range was the 1st tractor range to be introduced to the UK market all those years ago, and whilst this new range raises the bar in terms of new technology and features, the basic principle of compact dimensions, high power to weight ratio, and high quality engineering remain key attributes that keep Kubota as market leaders in this HP class.

Available for purchase now, Kubota's B50 Series - an enhancement of the B30 - is designed to deliver outstanding performance, durability, and reliability. The B50 has an optional A/C integrated cab option, including an all new four-pillar design with curved glass for more space, 360 degree panoramic vision and low noise, giving the operator maximum comfort for longer working hours.

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The B50 offers the choice of a 9 speed manual gearbox with fwd/rev shuttle control, or a threerange HST transmission which includes a new multi-stage notch type cruise control, for fixed working speed. Available in four models from 20HP to 31HP, each model boasts Kubota’s innovative hydraulic bi-speed turn function that automatically activates when the front wheel turning angle exceeds 35 degrees, which ensures a smoother, faster and tighter turn for operators as well as reducing turf damage.

Some of the key enhancements on the B50 include a stylish new one-piece bonnet, for quicker and simpler access to the engine for easier maintenance and allowing increased air flow through the cooling radiators.

In addition, ground clearance has been increased and significant cab improvements have been made. These include major changes like the new air conditioned cab for outstanding visibility, and a single piece door for easier entry and exit.

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The independent brake pedals are now on the left hand side to allow the operator to control them while using the HST pedal on the right.

The B50 compact tractor series comes with hydraulic power steering for ease of use, and a new easy to read LCD digital dash panel (cab version only), displaying vital information like fuel usage, engine temperature, hours of use and RPM. Ergonomically designed to maximise operator comfort, the machine also features a hydraulic independent PTO system (both mid and rear) for outstanding productivity and performance when carrying out a multitude of tasks from mowing right through to front loader and trailer work.

As has become customary now, Kubota is also introducing new loader models to compliment the new tractors. With increased lift

capacities and the ease of use, these new matched LA424 and LA534 loaders really get the most out of the B50 range.

Kubota built 54” and 60” mid mounted mower decks are also available, as well as a whole host of Kubota matched rear mounted implements that allow you to optimize your B50 tractor.

Kubota's B50 Series is designed to deliver outstanding performance, durability, and reliability.

Contact your local Kubota dealer and book a demo today!

For more information on Kubota and its extensive range of solutions for the Groundcare and agriculture sectors visit www.kubota.co.uk or call 01844 268000.

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| Tillage

Reducing drill size improves output and timing flexibility Cutting out a cultivation pass prior to drilling cereals and purchasing a smaller drill has helped reduce costs without compromising productivity for M H Poskitt Ltd’s East Riding-based operation. gricultural operations manager Richard Watson inherited a Vaderstad RDA 800, which was used to drill cereals on 4000 acres of heavy bodied land as well as sandier soils.

He says it is an excellent drill on the heavy land but it could bulldoze the soil on the sands. A lot of horsepower was also needed – John Deere 8345 (345hp) – which made it expensive to establish cereals.

Alternative drills were sort and several, including the Sulky were tested, but having weighed up all the pros and cons of each drill option it was the Vaderstad Rapid that kept coming out on top.

“The Sulky drill was very awkward to empty the hopper for

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example, compared to the Vaderstad,” he says.

The decision was taken to replace the 8m Vaderstad Rapid drill with a Rapid 6m version as part of long term strategy to reduce establishment costs. A Dolly wheel unit with an additional pair of wheels attached to it has helped spread the weight of the drilling unit across the full 6m working width.

“Our plan it to eventually reduce the size of the tractor too and therefore cut down the total weight of the drilling unit,” says Mr Watson.

Wheels fitted to the wings of the drill also help hold it out of the sand. A smaller tractor chassis should help reduce the total weight from 16 tonnes to about 11

Richard Watson

tonnes. The combination of Dolly wheels and wing wheels has improved levelling.

Cultivations vary from plough to minimum tillage depending on the previous crop, but whichever

system is adopted, constant seed to soil contact and a consistent depth are key factors. The Rapid 600 comes with System Disc Aggressive to help improve the tilth in one pass.

Winning the battle against black grass Tillage will see the first public demo for Cousins’ Surface cultivator, their innovatory reduced depth system that has proven effective against black grass infestation. heir agronomist and design partners Hutchinsons are well into a five year plan on their test farm and already have results to prove the cultivator’s pivotal role in their black grass strategy.

The Surface cultivator incorporates a new tine design which, in conjunction with Razor Rings, provokes weed germination for effective weed control with total herbicide prior to sowing the crop.

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Field trials confirm that the machine can provide ideal seedbed conditions for a range of cultivator drills in use.

The tines work at a consistent shallow depth of 2" (50mm) with a precise level of control. The shallower working depth makes for very energy efficient cultivations, encouraging grass weed seed in the top layer of soil to germinate, leaving seeds at lower levels undisturbed.

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Field trials confirm that the machine can provide ideal seedbed conditions for a range of cultivator drills in use and will potentially offer wide working widths at a power requirement of around 50hp/metre and forward speeds up to 9km/h ideal for controlled traffic situations.

The new model is the latest product to emerge from Cousins’ collaborative work with Hutchinsons, bringing together the skills of the agronomist and the machinery specialist.

V-Form is a long established Cousins product that has shown great flexibility in adapting to farming’s ever changing needs.

From the initial staggered subsoiler concept with robust ‘level lift’ feet, long recognised as a fast and effective soil loosening system, through the addition of OSR seeders and more recently the introduction of Micro-Wing option.

The shallow working MicroWing tines are followed by targeted seeding and razor ring 'leg zone' press wheels which

focus consolidation over the seeded areas within the cultivated 'leg zone' ensuring consistent seed depth and coverage with minimal moisture loss. The result is rapid and even emergence of the crop which allows for treatment with pre-emergence herbicide and help with the slug pressure burden.

Shallow working at a target depth of 75-100mm avoids destruction of natural soil fissures and worm burrows promoting a

robust root system with subsequent increased nutrient and water uptake. The Micro-Wing tines disturb less than 20% of the soil with each pass which requires much less horse power and provides excellent fuel economy.

For further information please contact the Cousins of Emneth Sales Office on 01945 584 600 or visit www.cousinsofemneth.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 49

| Buildings

Dugdale Nutrition completes £1 million investment in new feed blending plant Lancashire based farm animal feed company ,Dugdale Nutrition, have made a £1 million investment in both their future and the future of farming with the completion of a purpose-built feed blending unit, says Commercial manager, Andrew Galling.

Andy Galling

he new facility, which has a capacity in excess of 50,000 tonnes of blend per year, has been constructed alongside the company’s existing mill and headquarters at Salthill, Clitheroe.

The unit, which has a floor space of 3450 sq. metres, includes sixteen 100-tonne capacity bulk raw material bays, one large bay for bagged “hand tip” raw materials, one 40 tonne capacity molasses tank plus eight bays for finished feeds.

The unit’s height of 15 metres to the eaves, ensures that all delivery vehicles can discharge directly into raw material bays with no height restrictions therefore keeping unloading times to a minimum.

Blends are processed through a custom built 24 cubic metre capacity Hi-Spec static mixer and distributed to out-loading points using a high throughput elevator system. The mixer has the capacity to accurately mix a

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maximum of 10 tonnes of dry raw materials in a single mix with the option to add molasses when required. Finished blends can either be stored in one of the eight finished product bays or loaded directly onto the delivery vehicle via a Moduflex loading system.

All products are weighed over the pit mounted weighbridge within the blend unit.

All blending processes are accurately controlled using the latest DSL Systems mill control technology.

Currently two JCB Loadall units carry out all raw material handling operations.

As the business grows one of these is likely to be replaced with a larger loading shovel.

The unit is operated by two fully trained personnel, who run a two shift system to ensure all blends are made on time. The lead operator has over 20 years of feed blending experience.

The unit was successfully commissioned in April 2014 with all weighing equipment accurately

SHUFFLEBO OTTOM SHUFFLEB SHUFFLEBOTTOM

calibrated at this time. Since commissioning the unit has manufactured in excess of 4500 tonnes of bulk blends.

Main Contractors: • All unit steel & concrete supplied and installed by Leach Structural Steelwork, Preston.

• Main electrical contractor:

Apex Electrical, Carlisle.

• Out loading system: JW Installations UK Ltd, Northallerton • Unit control system: DSL Systems, Nottingham.

• Weighbridge: John Maguire & Son, Wigan.

Mixer:Hi-Spec Enginering, Co.Carlow.

First British maker of steel-framed farm buildings to receive the European mark

◆ Built for durability and security ◆ Nationwide construction service ◆ Full planning and design service ◆ Bespoke buildings ◆ ISO 9001 Registered company ◆ CHAS & RoSPA member ◆ Grain and crop stores ◆ Factories and industrial units ◆ Kit buildings and Erected buildings ◆ Equestrian buildings ◆ General purpose buildings ◆ Sheep housing ◆ Dairy and pig units

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T : 01269 831831 E : enquiry@shufflebottom.co.uk W : www.shufflebottom.co.uk www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Buildings

New CE Marking Door Regulations Since 1st July 2013 all door makers have been legally obliged to CE mark every non-fire industrial and commercial door they supply. rior to 1st July the CE marking of powered doors was mandatory as set out in the Machinery Directive. Manual doors were governed by different EU rules – the Constructive Products Directive. This ruled that CE marking for manual doors was voluntary, not mandatory.

ENHANCED REGULATIONS Manual Doors: the Constructive Products Directive is now called the Constructive Products Regulation. CE marking and compliance is now mandatory for manual doors, including testing monitoring and issuing a Declaration of Performance.

Powered Doors: CE marking continues to be mandatory under the Machinery Directive but now must also comply with the Constructive Products Regulation. Thus the manufacturer has to issue a Declaration of Performance for each model of door sold. The regulation also clearly specifies who should undertake the initial testing and who monitors the production system to ensure that the Declaration of Performance are maintained.

In summary, all doors must be CE marked and this is valid for all countries in the EU. GALEBREAKER DOORS Since 2005 Galebreaker have been CE marking both manual and electric doors. For powered / electric doors this was done following the procedures and guidelines

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detailed in EN13241. Galebreaker used the data detailed in EN13241 to streamline their design process to mitigate risk and so were able to also CE mark manual doors.

Declaration of Performance documents for Galebreaker products are available on their website in the customer support area.

All Galebreaker doors are sold with the expectation that they will be operated by trained users in a controlled area. Agridoor® Electric models are fitted with a highly sensitive safety edge system.

WHY SHOULD BUYERS CARE IF A DOOR IS CE MARKED? The following text is taken from the Door & Hardware Federation’s website: “It is vital that specifiers choose CE marked products from DHF members. Why? • peace of mind that the product has been checked to ensure it complies with health and safety and some environmental regulations.

• no need for specifier to check compliance (but a check still needs to be made to ensure it complies with Building Regulations.

• no need for specifier to carry out risk assessments (but the building owner or user will still have to carry out risk assessment.

Choosing a CE marked product from a DHF member company means that the CE mark is evidence of compliance relating to product safety under health and safety legislation - and so It helps protect the architect’s or specifier’s

Since 2005 Galebreaker have been CE marking both manual and electric doors.

client against litigation in the event of an accident occurring.” http://www.dhfonline.org.uk/industrial-groupce.aspx Galebreaker have been DHF members since 2011.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 51

| Buildings

Are your steel farm buildings CE Marked?

CE marking at Norfolk constructional engineers

Graham Heath Construction are proud to be one of the few steel framed building companies who offer CE Marked accredited buildings.

Certified quality continues at family firm. . C. Bacon Engineering Ltd, from Hingham in Norfolk, is pleased to confirm its mandatory annual audit has been completed by the SCCS (Steel Construction Certification Scheme) with continued approval of their Welding and Factory Production Control systems.

This ensures they continue to provide CE Marking for the fabricated structural steelwork used in their Agricultural, Industrial and Commercial buildings.

The CE Marking alongside extensive in-house production contributes to achieving the quality and flexibility that delivers projects on- time to the required high quality standards. Operations include state-of-the-art cutting, drilling, welding, shot-blasting & painting.

A. C. Bacon Engineering is a well-established family firm that has been providing farm buildings in East Anglia and surrounding counties for over 50 years. Since 1961 they have produced an

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rom 1st July, all fabricated structural steelwork had to be CE marked in order to ensure that they meet stringent European-wide standards. This applies to all steel work used in agricultural, equestrian and industrial buildings, whatever their size or end-use.

“From July it was made compulsory that all new structural steelwork is CE marked,” explains Graham Heath, proprietor of Graham Heath Construction. “This is to certify that the fabricated structural steelwork complies with all relevant European Union standards and regulations. We are very happy to confirm all our buildings are CE Marked.”

Graham continues: “Having the CE Mark is a declaration that our product meets the requirements of a harmonised European technical specification.” In this case, the standard covering fabricated structural steelwork is BS EN 1090: Execution of steel structures and aluminium structures.

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“Having the CE Mark is a declaration that our product meets the requirements of a harmonised European technical specification.”

Under the Construction Products Regulation (CPR), new legal obligations have been placed on manufacturers, distributors and importers of construction products used within the European Union and the European Economic Area to CE Mark their products where they are covered by a harmonised

standard. This applies not only to constituent products (such as steel beams, bolts etc.) but also to fabricated elements and systems made from CE Marked products.

To qualify, steel portal framed manufactures like Graham Heath Construction have to both design buildings to the relevant standards and have a factory quality control system in place, which complies with the requirements of the European code.

From 1 July 2014 marketing structural steel without a CE Mark was made a criminal offence.

Penalties for non-compliance include suspension notices, prohibition notices, notices to warn, and application for forfeiture.

For certain offences the penalties may include a fine, imprisonment or both.

Trading Standards are responsible for enforcing the new regulations, and will follow up any complaints received. Any firm that is not accredited to CE Mark may be issued with a suspension notice, meaning they cannot supply structural steel for up to six months. Furthermore, it may be necessary for an un-accredited firm to recall any structural steel supplied since 1st July 2014.

“For your own peace of mind, we recommend that anyone buying a new steel-framed building should contact the manufacturer at the earliest opportunity and ask for a copy of their Certificate of Conformity with respect to CE Marking,” adds Graham Heath. “You will find a copy of ours on our website and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call our office and speak to one of our sales team.”

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enviable list of very satisfied customers and a reputation that is second to none.

The key to success and level of repeat business is down to the high quality of product and service they deliver at competitive prices.

A. C. Bacon Engineering is a proud holder of the Royal Warrant of Appointment as a tradesman to The Queen for the manufacture of steel-framed buildings.

Services offered include initial consultation, planning assistance, design, production and site installation of steelwork, cladding, grain walling and doors.

Membership of RIDBA & BCSA provides assurance of competence and financial standing. They directly employ an in-house Health & Safety Officer, leading to an exceptional safety record.

Customers say that they can rely upon the A. C. Bacon team to be dependable, proactive, attentive and genuinely good people to work with.

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| Groundcare

Industry bodies line up at SALTEX This year’s SALTEX (Sports, Amenities, Landscaping Trade Exhibition) is gearing up to be THE meeting, debating and networking venue not only for turf care specialists but also for everyone involved in landscaping, parks and amenity services – including play – and arboriculture. n addition to an ever-increasing list of exhibitors showcasing a myriad of products and services essential to efficient and effective turf care and open space management, a host of organisations will also be homing in on the Windsor show (September 2-4) to make best use of the facilities and opportunities: • Representatives from Groundsmens’ Associations from as far afield as Cornwall and Gloucester will be visiting and networking at SALTEX; • The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) will be holding its AGM at the event; • The Parks Alliance will be staging an open workshop on ‘The state and future of UK parks’; • The Amenity Forum will chair an open panel debate on ‘The control of pests, weeds and diseases in the amenity sector’;

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• The British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) has programmed a series of golf-centric educational presentations; • Arboricultural Association specialists will be presenting seminars on ‘Tree planning and establishment’; and • The British Agricultural & Garden Machinery Association (BAGMA) will be hosting an event.

In addition, the Association of Play Industries (API) and a number of its members will also be in attendance, at the co-located PlayFair exhibition, alongside other companies showing play equipment.

SALTEX (www.iogsaltex.com), the Sports Amenities Landscaping Trade Exhibition organised by the Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) and managed by Brintex Events, will be held on 2-4 September 2014 at Windsor Racecourse, Berks. Founded in 1938, the exhibition is attended by open space

professionals and volunteers who design, construct, manage and maintain the UK's outdoor facilities - from sports grounds of every type to motorway service stations, and from stately homes to local council parks and schools.

SALTEX: for everyone involved in landscaping, parks and amenity services – including play – and arboriculture.

They visit SALTEX to meet suppliers of the machinery, tools, vehicles, turf, soils, seeds, aggregates, artificial or natural surfaces, playgrounds, landscaping equipment, street furniture, arboriculture, horticulture, safety, security, training and education services designed to help them do their jobs as effectively as possible.

The easiest ever starting with INSTART® Visit the Briggs & Stratton stand at SALTEX 2014 and witness the next generation of engine starting with INSTART®. he 21st century solution to starting petrol powered lawnmowers will be showcased on the Briggs & Stratton stand (no. A20) and is set to be the easiest mower starting system ever.

The company is the world’s largest producer of air cooled petrol engines for lawnmowers and is internationally recognised as a market leader in innovation. It believes that its INSTART instant starting system is set to revolutionise the petrol powered garden products market. The INSTART system, which is powered by a Lithium-Ion battery, is simple to recharge and can give more than 50 starts from one hour’s charge.

INSTART will be available on the brand new Briggs & Stratton 775iS DOV engine. This comes as an expansion to the company’s Direct Overhead Valve (DOV®) range which was launched in 2006 to set new performance

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standards within the industry. DOV engines from Briggs & Stratton enhance the end user experience so they can see, hear and feel the difference. They feature a range of technological features to give a heightened performance that give easier starting, smoother running and advanced cutting performance.

Ian Small, UK sales and marketing manager at Briggs & Stratton, commented: “Demand for easier starting of petrol engines has been increasing over recent years. Our research found that consumers consider easy starting to be the biggest decision making factor when purchasing a new lawn mower. We also found out that 84 per cent of electric mower users would consider switching to a petrol engine if starting was easier. INSTART is our solution to that.

“The user simply charges up the Lithium-Ion battery, attaches it to the mower, and engages the INSTART system and that’s it! We really do

believe that this is the next generation of engine starting and I can’t wait to see people trying it for themselves at SALTEX”.

To celebrate the launch of INSTART, Briggs & Stratton is offering visitors to the stand the chance to win a Silverstone Experience Package for two, which includes driving a Ferrari around the prestigious track, as well as a tour and helicopter ride over the venue. The prize also includes a night’s accommodation.

To be in with the chance of winning the Silverstone Experience, visit Briggs & Stratton at stand A20 to try INSTART for yourself and to see just how well it can transform mowing your lawn.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 53

| Groundcare

APS brings new tracked dumpers to IOG SALTEX ‘14 Access Platform Sales (APS) is showcasing two new crawler-mounted products at IOG SALTEX 2014. he Hinowa HS701 is a stand-on, dieselpowered, 0.29m³ capacity dumper with a mast-type high-tip feature, enabling it to load skips up to 1.35m high.

Attractively styled, robust, compact and agile, the HS701 makes fast work of moving sand, gravel, earth or shingle from one work site location to another. Strong customer demand for a machine with this specification led Hinowa to send the first prototype HS701 to the UK. The Italian manufacturer expects to deliver the first production models in September.

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As tracked machines, both the TX2500 and HS701 cause minimal disturbance when traversing lawns or grass.

Preliminary specifications include a 7kW (9.4HP) Kubota engine, two-speed gearbox, and a top speed of 3.8km/h. Just 758mm wide, it is designed to comfortably pass through a garden gateway or standard door. The prototype has a fixed undercarriage but Hinowa will offer a hydraulic widening version as on its other dumper models. Load capacity is 550kg to heights of up to 1.35m and the bucket can be tilted by up to 88˚.

It will be joined at SALTEX by the Hinowa TX2500 TraXporter, a tracked dumper with a swivel skip which can be operated at the same time as the vehicle is in motion, an advantage over most of its competitors. It also has a 180° rotating seat and controls, so the operator can always face in the direction of travel. The TraXporter is available to order now.

As tracked machines, both the TX2500 and HS701 cause minimal disturbance when traversing lawns or grass, making them ideal

for grounds keeping and landscaping. They are also comfortable on sandy or boggy terrain, as well as steep gradients and uneven ground.

The TX2500 has a top speed of 12km/h (7.5mph) and a powerful Kubota V2203-EU1 4cylinder 35.9kW (48.8hp) diesel engine.

Smooth traction is ensured through two fixed and four floating rollers on the rubber tracks.

The operator is protected by an FOPSapproved cage and a safety belt. The simple controls include two levers for steering and a smooth accelerator pedal, as well as a onetouch parking brake. The dumper can carry 2,500kg and is rated for 1.49m³. Slewing the skip also enables efficient tipping from either side or the rear.

APS is the exclusive UK distributor for all Hinowa construction, lifting and materials handling products. This includes Hinowa tracked access platforms, mini-dumpers, tracked forklifts, mini backhoe loaders, compact excavators and mini-tractors.

Alongside the new Hinowa dumpers will be a wide range of powered access platforms, including trailer-mounted Niftylift booms, Isoli vehicle-mounted booms, and crawler-mounted booms from Hinowa and Ommelift. These machines are perfect for many working at height applications, including building and floodlight maintenance as well as tree work.

Richard Tindale, Sales & Marketing Director for the IAPS Group, which owns APS, said: “Our products provide specialist, value-formoney solutions for lifting people and moving materials. We have a strong customer base in facilities and estates management as well as green space maintenance, so IOG SALTEX is the ideal event for us to showcase our growing range.”

APS is also one of the UK’s largest suppliers of pre-owned access platforms, with an

extensive inventory and the capabilities to refurbish machines to a range of standards.

This strength in both new and used machines means it can provide the right access platform to suit any budget.

And as part of the IAPS Group – the UK’s largest independent powered access distributor - APS can also offer all customers one of the best product support packages in the industry.

Along with APS, the Group includes Independent Parts Specialists (IPS), the awardwinning supplier of replacement parts for access equipment; and Platform Service & Repair (PSR), which has a fleet of 23 directlyemployed mobile service engineers supporting customers across the UK as well as repair centres in Cambridgeshire, Shropshire and Scotland.

IOG SALTEX is the UK’s leading trade show for the grounds care, sports, amenities, estates and green space management sectors. This year’s event takes place at Royal Windsor Racecourse from 2nd – 4th September. Visit APS on Stand J40.

Etesia returns to SALTEX with Green Technology™ Etesia UK returns to IOG SALTEX 2014 after two years absence on stand D35 with a new range of Etesia Green Technology™ products and Pellenc battery powered maintenance tools isitors to the stand will be able to view the new battery powered machines from Etesia which includes the Bahia M2E – the world’s first fully electric ride-on cut and collect mower, the Bahia VTE – an electric tow vehicle, a multi-purpose electric wheel barrow and the range of robotic ETmowers.

Also on the stand will be the full range of Pellenc battery-powered tools which include the Helion hedgecutter, Airion blower, Selion pole and chainsaws, Treelion pruners, Excelion 2000 cow-handled brushcutter and the Excelion 1200 grass strimmer.

Featuring all of the benefits of its petrol 'brother' which has made the Bahia a favourite, the Bahia M2E has the advantages of no odour, zero emissions, low noise, low vibrations, reduced maintenance costs and reduced health and safety issues for operators. Cutting and collecting is directly comparable to the petrol version. An optional power converter is also available to power any 220V electric tool below 1000W.

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54 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

The VTE model of the Bahia electric family is a true multifunctional vehicle that is compact, silent and environmentally-friendly. It offers a professional and original solution for all of your maintenance, work and transport needs throughout the year. It is ideal for movement, towing and working in enclosed spaces where compactness, manoeuvrability, low noise and absence of pollutant emissions are important.

The wheel barrow is a new revolutionary 100% electric wheel barrow, which is available with a range of attachments to tackle a wide variety of jobs. Power comes from a 24V 1000W battery with two forward and two reverse speeds up to 6kp/h which can transport heavy material in the skip section and water or liquid material in the tank section, be used as a raised work bench by folding down the side panels, or transport tools in the tool rack and be used to tip waste material.

The range of four robotic ETmowers, which are available in 44cm, 65cm and 105cm cutting widths cut from 5,000m² up to 20,000m². Robot mowers mow grass areas perfectly without any

human intervention and reduce the cost of lawn maintenance considerably, not only in terms of labour and maintenance costs, but also by cutting your energy bill. Mulch mowing is 100% natural: it does away with the need to gather up, store and dispose of the cuttings, it fertilises the soil, and it helps the lawn to stand up to drought conditions.

Pellenc tools can now be seen in every major UK city, as well as the majority of national trust sites around the country. “Most councils and contractors are looking more closely at the lifetime cost of their machinery and not just the initial purchasing cost. Our product is not the cheapest to buy, but if you consider lifetime cost, repairs, maintenance and downtime, the value is there for all to see".

A range of petrol and diesel Etesia pedestrian and ride-on machines can also be seen by visiting RT Machinery, an Etesia approved dealer, on stand D45.

For further information, please contact Etesia UK on 01295 680120 or visit www.etesia.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Groundcare

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August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 55

| Groundcare Billy Goat

Pictured: Cobra from Henton & Chattell

Henton & Chattell continue a successful ‘14 at Saltex The Cobra range of powered garden machinery, launched in March 2014 by Henton & Chattell, is already becoming established as a major brand in the UK garden machinery dealer network. ales are “well ahead of budget and orders continue to flood in”, says Henton & Chattell’s managing director, Peter Chaloner.

It is the largest single range of domestic and professional lawnmowers and other powered garden equipment, all designed to meet UK garden conditions. The Cobra range is rapidly expanding. It currently consists of over 70 products including 30 petrol and electric mowers as well as scarifiers, cultivators, chainsaws, hedgetrimmers, brushcutters and vacuums. Henton & Chattell will be showcasing these as well as new

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products at Saltex ready for 2015.

Henton & Chattell has also enjoyed its first successful season with the Billy Goat range of land maintenance and clearance machinery which will also be on the stand. The range of brushcutters, overseeders, sod cutters, vacuums and scarifiers can tackle the toughest of challenges including clearing 6ft high brush and 2” wide saplings with absolute ease.

Peter Chaloner, managing director of Henton & Chattell, commented: “We’ve had a fantastic year with the launch of Cobra. SALTEX always provides a great opportunity for us to see our customers and to show off our new product,

which we’ll certainly be doing this year.

“Cobra has been really well received this year. Our ultimate goal is for Cobra to become a name that gardeners can trust for dependability and quality for all their gardening needs.”

In addition, the Henton & Chattell stand will also be the home of Briggs & Stratton’s range of power products such as petrol powered generators, pressure washers and water pumps. The Gardencare range of lawnmowers, scarifiers and other powered garden equipment will also feature on the stand.

Visit Henton & Chattell at stand M55.

New, new, new is GreenMech’s motto at Saltex A move to a new stand position as well as the launch of two new products this year. Conveniently situated near to the central catering area is stand A18 where visitors will find the new Arborist & ArbTrak 190 chippers. ith all the features of its much admired Arborist 150 sister, the Arborist 190 has been designed to offer even greater productivity – featuring a 190mm chipping capacity. It has a generous 970mm x 790mm infeed hopper, which aids bushy brash reduction and is coupled with a 190mm x 280mm letterbox-style infeed throat enabling heavily forked branches to be fed in easily. With a 45hp Kubota turbo diesel engine, the Arborist 190 is valueengineered for quality, strength, performance and economy.

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56 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

The ArbTrak 190 is the latest addition to GreenMech’s celebrated tracked range of Arborist wood chippers, built to effortlessly get to hard to reach locations. Similarly to the Arborist 190, it features a 190mm chipping capacity, a 970mm x 790mm infeed hopper and a powerful 45hp engine. The tracked chassis system provides high ground clearance of 274mm, allowing easy access to sites over rough terrain and the 3kph tracking speed means the operator can get the job done quickly.

These two new products will be shown

The Arborist 190 is value-engineered for quality, strength, performance and economy. beside other popular machines from the GreenMech range, like the CS100, QuadChip 160 and the SAFE-Trak 19-28. GreenMech’s Sales Director, Martin Lucas, is upbeat, “We’re expecting these new additions to our ARB range to make a big impression this year at Saltex.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| ATV

BRP’s new Can-Am Outlander 1000 6x6 blazes a trail in the ATV market A new six wheel drive Can-Am Outlander 1000 6x6 XT is to join BRP’s extensive utility line-up for 2014, aimed at the farming and forestry sector.

urpose-built for users who want a workhorse ATV that can handle any situation put in front of it, from dragging heavy cargo over narrow trails to riding on rough terrain, and yet still enjoy the same comfortable ride expected from a Can-Am ATV BRP, the new Outlander 1000 6x6 XT is based on the second generation Generation 2 chassis, Can-Am Outlander ATV platform, which features industry-leading performance with its reliable 82 hp Rotax 1000 V-Twin engine, the Double TTI rear suspension provides this no-compromise utility ATV with precision-engineered handling, comfort and control that is expected from the Outlander ATV range .

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Purpose-built for users who want a workhorse ATV that can handle any situation put in front of it, from dragging heavy cargo over narrow trails to riding on rough terrain.

The vehicle’s six feel drive – power, freedom, confidence, comfort, versatility and modularity – makes the ATV more agile, with its precisionengineered handling and Tri-mode Dynamic

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Power Steering (DPS ) means it can get right up to the side of a tree or fence as well as ride faster and with more stability without a trailer on the back, reducing the swaying effect.

Users will also benefit from BRP’s exclusive Dual-Level rear cargo box with big flat bed, which has a load capacity of 363kg and can carry anything from round hay bales to logs or heavy equipment. In addition, the front rack on the 6x6 can hold up to 45kg. For those users that require a trailer there is a Can-Am logging trailer that can be purchased separately and will provide an additional 750kg towing capacity.

The Can-Am Outlander 1000 comes with a Visco-Lok, which provides quicker engagement of the front differential, progressively transferring power from a slipping front wheel to the gripping one automatically, without having to push any buttons. There is also no wheel hop or driveline wind-up, as the system is totally transparent to the driver and extremely easy to steer, and it can lock up to 100 per cent with no rev or speed limiter.

Additional features include two colour options, light grey and yellow, and a pre-wired rear winch for towing. The D.E.S.S (Digitally Encoded Security System) offers the user peace of mind with its anti-theft key system. It utilises electronic key codes that are required to

match each specific ATV’s engine control module (ECM). The machine will not start unless the coded microchip in the key matches the pre-installed code. Two keys are included with each model. The performance key allows the ATV to operate maximum performance while the normal key limits acceleration and top speed.

The Outlander 1000 6x6 comes in five different modules and Can-Am ATV accessories that will cover all customers’ needs: • The Sidewall package comes with sidewalls and tailgate.

• The Forest package is designed for forest applications and includes a rear winch kit (Warn 2500 XT), log bars and LinQ 6” rack.

• The Storage package is designed for large storage requirements and includes sidewalls and tail gate, a hard top for a flatbed, 70 L utility box and LinQ modular bags.

• The Winter package is designed to work in cold weather conditions and includes a deluxe extra high windshield, Visor heater power outlet, heated handgrips and throttle combo, sidewalls and tailgate, and a hard top for cargo.

• The Farmer package is tailored for farm use and includes a rear winch kit (Warn 2500 XT), rear rack extension, 6” LinQ rack, LinQ grips, cargo net, tailgate extension and a full skid plate.

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 57

| ATV

Interest-free finance for four-passenger Gator A special interest-free finance programme is now available to anyone ordering a new John Deere XUV 855D S4 Gator 4x4 utility vehicle and any John Deere Gator attachments. he scheme, which runs until further notice, is based on 60 per cent of the recommended retail price, with purchasers able to make 1 + 2 annual payments at zero per cent interest.

The new XUV 855D S4 Gator is available in olive & black livery, and can be ordered with a variety

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of factory and dealer installed options and attachments. The proven 22hp three-cylinder liquidcooled diesel engine delivers a top speed of 32mph, and power steering is standard.

The S4 combines versatile offroad performance, work capability and comfort for up to four passengers. To allow for extra passengers or cargo space, an

easily convertible rear bench folds down to provide a flat surface for extra storage. A spacious underseat storage compartment is also included.

Cargo box, towing and payload capacities are 454kg, 680kg and 635kg respectively, and the XUV 855D S4 Gator also features true on-demand four-wheel drive and fully independent suspension. The

The S4 combines versatile off road performance, work capability and comfort for up to four passengers.

vehicle’s UK base list price starts at £14,593 plus VAT

Polaris at SALTEX 2014 Polaris, the industry leader in off-road vehicles, will represent their developing Commercial Division with the ranges of UTVs and electric vehicles at this year’s Saltex

he Polaris Brutus is the world’s first UTV with frontend Power Take Off. The side by side Brutus is designed to drive accessories to lift, sweep, mow, blow, scoop and plough, with hydraulic controlled attachments and hydrostatic drive.

The Polaris Ranger EV, launched as the first true 4x4 electric vehicle, offers full off-road capability with the ecological benefits of silent running and nonpolluting electric power.

Complementing the EV and launched at Saltex is the new Polaris GEM eM1400 light utility vehicle. It is the first GEM model to be completely designed and engineered by Polaris and is built

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to be a customizable work vehicle.

The eM1400 leads the off-road light utility vehicle category with a 1,400 lb/635kg payload capacity and a rear cargo-carrying capacity of 1,100 lb/498 kg.

Goupil Industrie SA designs, develops and sells electric vehicles for use in commercial applications. Goupil shares the stand at Saltex with Polaris who acquired the company in 2011.

The electric and hybrid electric vehicles on show represent the diverse range of compact, manoeuvrable on-road approved municipal, industrial and delivery configurations.

SALTEX Stand No. A30. Polaris Britain: 0800 915 6720 www.polaris-britain.com

58 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

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| ATV

New Forest Garden Machinery 316-318 Salisbury Road Totton, Southampton Hampshire SO40 3ND Tel: 023 8087 1764 www.nfgmltd.co.uk

Greenlow ATV Greenlow House Royston Road, Melbourne Hertfordshire SG8 6DG Tel: 01763 260239 www.greenlow.co.uk

On A Hill Garage Lynton Garage Ilfracombe Devon EX34 9RQ Tel: 01271 862691 www.onahillgarage.com

XP Bikes 17 Hareleeshill Road Larkhall ML9 2EX Tel: 01698 881 885 www.xpbikes.co.uk

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Off Highway Plant Solutions Tel: 01305 858623 Mob: 07899 848569 Email: sales@sphere24.com www.sphere24.com

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 59

| Motors

Working with you to bring you more style and better performance.

Rugged it may be, but the Amarok pick-up offers car-like driving and a refined interior with premium styling and functional design. The comfortable interior and convenience of an optional eight-speed automatic gearbox mean it’s as comfortable in town as it is off-road.

With its powerful 2.0-litre TDI engines and the dynamic all-terrain benefits of the intelligent 4MOTION® four-wheeldrive, it will take you anywhere you need to go. Offering maximum payload of 1,145kg and towing capacity of up to 3,200kg, it boasts the widest load area in its class so you can fit in a Euro pallet sideways.

Call us today to book a test drive or pop in to ask for more details.

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7KH $PD

PRQWK D

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Business users only. Plus VAT and initial rental. *Contract hire quotation based on Amarok Startline 2.0 TDI 140PS. Offer based on a 3 + 35 payment profile and 10,000 miles per annum.

Available for Amarok registrations before September 30th, 2014, subject to availability. Indemnities may be required. Subject to status. This offer may be varied or withdrawn at any

60 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

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| Motors

Alan Day Van Centre Pinkham Way, North Circular Road, New Southgate, London.

Telephone: 020 8920 4000.

Volkswagen Van Centre (Birmingham) St Stephens Street, Birmingham, West Midlands. Telephone: 0121 546 0062.

JCT600 Van Centre (Sheffield) Europa Close, Europa Link, Sheffield.

Telephone: 01144 040 023.

Find us on your sat-nav using N11 3UT.

Find us on your sat-nav using B6 4RG.

Find us on your sat-nav using S9 1XS.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/alandaynewsouthgate

www.vw4vans.co.uk

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/jct600sheffield

Greenhous Volkswagen Van Centre

Greenhous Volkswagen Van Centre (Bilston)

JCT600 Van Centre (York)

Ennerdale Road, Harlescott, Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Telephone: 01743 600 031.

Find us on your sat-nav using SY1 3TL. www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/greenhous

Listers (Worcester) Van Centre 157 Bromyard Road, St Johns, Worcester, Worcestershire.

Telephone: 01905 412 191.

Trinity Road, Bilston, Wolverhampton.

Telephone: 01902 546 561.

Find us on your sat-nav using WV14 7EF.

Listers (Coventry) Van Centre

JCT600 Van Centre (Hull)

Find us on your sat-nav using CV6 6BN.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/listersworcester

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/listerscoventry

Or find us on your sat-nav using OX29 4TH, (Stanton Harcourt Road). www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/cordwallisoxford

Find us on your sat-nav using YO30 4WW. www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/JCT600York

Find us on your sat-nav using WR2 5EA.

Give us a call on 01865 882 885.

Centurion Park, Clifton Moor, York.

Telephone: 01904 848 302.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/bilston

347-367 Bedworth Road, Longford, Coventry, West Midlands.

Telephone: 02477 670 054.

Cordwallis Oxford

Saxon Way, Priory Park West, Hessle, Hull, East Yorkshire.

Telephone: 01482 908 520.

Find us on your sat-nav using HU13 9PB. www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/JCT600Hull

6p per mile (plus VAT) charged for mileage travelled in excess of the contracted mileage. Available on contract hire or finance lease terms. Available to over 18s in the UK only. time. Finance providers may pay us for introducing you to them. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle Finance, Freepost VWFS.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 61

| Motors

Contact your local participating dealer PMS Greens Ltd Pembrokeshire Tel: 01437 767767 www.pmscars.com

Ryedale Garages Ltd North Yorkshire Tel: 01751 431343 www.ryedalegarages.co.uk

62 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

David Cook Motors Lancashire Tel: 0161 624 1441 www.davidcookmotors.co.uk

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| Motors

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 63

| Motors

New Fiat Panda Cross: A car like no other Based on the successful and hugely capable FIAT Panda 4X4, the new FIAT Panda Cross offers even more capability, attitude and fun. eing able to offer something truly unique in the increasingly competitive SUV segment is no small achievement but in the FIAT Panda Cross that’s exactly what you get – a car like no other! In 2006 SUVs accounted for around seven percent of the total car market in Europe whereas today they account for approximately 20 percent, and yet despite the proliferation of models in the past decade the new FIAT Panda Cross remains a truly unique offering by combining the genuine capabilities of a proper off-road vehicle with the efficiency and practicality of a versatile city car.

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“The performances have redefined our class – I’m not sure those running these high power, dedicated race vehicles The technological upgrades of the FIAT Panda Cross make it the most capable vehicle in its class by some margin – more so even than the award-winning FIAT Panda 4X4* on which it is based yet it is a car that could still be chosen purely for its low running costs, day-to-day practicality and general ease and pleasure of use.

The aesthetic enhancements not only provide some visual clues to the all-road potential of the FIAT Panda Cross, they also perform the functional role of protecting its bodywork, lights and mechanical components, both in extreme off road conditions and the rough and tumble of city traffic. No other car can offer such extreme cross functionality, but then FIAT does have more than 30 years of experience in city car innovation: The FIAT Panda was the first to be offered with all-wheel drive in its segment, as well as the first to be powered by diesel, methane and LPG. More recently it pioneered City Brake Control in its segment, a safety feature that is ideally suited to city cars but until that time was reserved for larger luxury vehicles. It’s this reputation for practical innovation that has consistently kept the Panda amongst the best sellers in its class – it currently occupies the second spot in Europe, just behind its stable-mate, the FIAT 500.

Terrain Control offers FIAT

Panda Cross drivers the possibility of adjusting the vehicle’s driving characteristics according to how it is being used: There are three modes: Auto, Off-Road and Hill Descent Control.

Auto mode, as the name suggest, automatically distributes the engine torque between the front and rear axles without requiring any input from the driver.

On normal roads with good traction, the FIAT Panda Cross is 98 percent front-wheel drive but when a loss of traction is detected the system is capable of automatically reacting by redistributing the engine torque between axles in just a tenth of a second. The level of torque distribution is varied using an electro-hydraulically controlled, multi-plate central differential and is versatile enough to direct the entire torque output of the engine to the rear axle if necessary.

In Off-Road mode, the all-wheel drive function is permanently activated up to 30 mph to ensure the Panda Cross responds immediately and consistently to driver inputs: The Electronic Locking Differential (ELD) is engaged, ASR intervention is disengaged and to improve traction on slippery terrain (e.g. snow, ice, gravel or mud), the ESC system is employed to brake slipping wheels, thus transferring the engine’s torque to those wheels with the most grip.

Hill Descent Control (HDC) activates automatically when the speed drops below 15mph and remains in standby mode up to 30mph. It employs the vehicle’s ESC sensors and ABS brake system to maintain a constant speed and avoid unexpected yaw movements on tricky downhill terrain with unpredictable levels of grip, and requires no input from the driver other than steering actions.

The FIAT Panda Cross also benefits from versatile all-season 185/65R15 Mud & Snow tyres.

Larger than those of the standard Panda 4x4, these tyres were specially developed to ensure optimum traction and responsiveness on wet and dry surfaces, as well as snow-covered roads, while also ensuring excellent off-road performance.

When combined with specific springs and redesigned bodywork, they help increase the ground

64 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

clearance to 161 mm for the TwinAir version and 158 mm for the MultiJet model, while the improved attack angles of the FIAT Panda Cross are now close to those enjoyed by pure off-road vehicles: the approach angle is 24 degrees, the departure angle is 34 degrees and the breakover angle is 21 degrees. This allows the FIAT Panda Cross tackle a maximum gradient of 70 percent and lateral gradients of up to 55 percent.

These figures aren’t just for bragging rights: The FIAT Panda Cross backs these numbers up by offering protective, steel, underbody shields to allow drivers to tackle genuinely tough terrain without damaging essential

turbocharger and an intercooler, and weighs just 140kg including all its ancillaries. It can propel the FIAT Panda Cross from 0-62mph in 14.3 seconds and on to a top speed of 99mph, and on the combined fuel economy cycle it returns 60.1 mpg (4.7 litres/100 km) with CO2 emissions of 125g/km.

The 2014 FIAT Panda Cross goes on sale in the UK early in Q4 2014 priced from £15,945 for the TwinAir version and £16,945 for the diesel-powered model. For more information please visit www.FIATpress.co.uk and for more information on the FIAT Panda 4X4 or the broader FIAT range visit www.FIAT.co.uk.

Autovillage...

SsangYong in Cheltenham. stablished in 2005, components, air Autovillage is and one the of the intake duct for the country's most engine is raised by 739mm in the successful independently-owned diesel version and 711mm in the car retailers having started petrol to ensurebrand the Panda with version the SsangYong over Cross hasago, no difficulty in fording a year Autovillage are now thethe occasional river ordealer flooded fastest growing in the road. network.

EvenSouth the engines upgraded The Korean are manufacturer forproduces the new FIAT Panda Cross: The an impressive range of 0.9-litre TwinAir Turbo engine well-equipped vehicles that sees not itsonly maximum featurepower value increased pricing butto 90hp 5,500ofrpm (up from highatlevels quality and 85hp) and maximum torque is 145 Nm reliability.

(107lb. ft.) between and You certainly get a1,900rpm lot of metal 3000rpm.

ECO with mode, engine for your In money SsangYong output 77.5hp at 5,500 rpm and - andiswith attractive all-new 100 Nm (74lb. at 2,000rpm.

In models now ft.) available, including terms of performance, 0-62 mph is the stunning new Korando dispatched in 12.0 seconds and priced from just £14,995, topSsangYong speed is 104mph, on athe is going while through combined fuel economy cycle it total transformation.

The appeal returns 57.6 mpg together (4.9 litres/100 of its products, with km) with CO2for emissions their value money of 114g/km.

This is engine is also proposition, bringing people equipped a unique six-speed into the with showroom in their gearbox droves.which has a shortened first gearSsangYong to enable the Every is vehicle to crawl while the engine idling, a mechanically strong,isextremely useful well feature built andwhen verytackling capable. challenging off-road conditions.

What’s more, all models are The 1.3-litre II Turbocovered by aMultiJet reassuringly Diesel engine, with5-year DPF as comprehensive Limitless standard, enjoys a 5hp boost Mileage also Warranty! in The power to 80hp atRange 4,000 rpm, SsangYong while torque is an Themaximum SsangYong car and 4x4 impressive 190 Nm range includes the(140lb. robustft.) at just 1,5004x4, rpm.available This second Rexton as a generation MultiJet power unit is passenger or commercial equipped with a fixed geometry

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vehicle, the well-appointed New Korando and the Korando Sports double cab pick-up which, at £18,295, offers the refinement, space and seating for five normally typical of most saloon cars but with the rugged workmanlike ability of a commercial pick-up.

SsangYong also produces the all-new Turismo MPV people carrier, one of the most spacious people carriers on the market with seven seats, a flexible interior layout and plenty of interior space for luggage.

What’s more, it undercuts it competitors with prices starting from only £17,995!

The Rexton SUV, available with either manual or automatic transmission, is an excellent towing vehicle with an astounding towing capacity of 3,200 kg making it a great workhorse for towing caravans, big trailers and horseboxes with ease. The Korando also has a class leading 2,000 kg towing capacity and comes with two and four-wheel drive.

Autovillage at Gotherington Cross, Evesham Road, Cheltenham, has the SsangYong range for you to view and test drive along with full main dealer aftersales and parts back-up at Auto Village’s Tewkesbury Road dealership.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

MRG Chippenham Wiltshire Tel: 01249 443300 www.mgrcars.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

SG Petch Richmond North Yorkshire Tel: 01748 821185 www.sgpetch.co.uk

GMD Car Sales County Durham Tel: 0191 384 1925

www.gmdcarsales.co.uk

Pinkstones Subaru Staffordshire 01782 711661

www.pinkstones.subaru.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 65

| Motors

SsangYong announces 3 year free servicing offer on Rexton W 0% finance offer also available from participating dealers. sangYong is introducing a 3 year free servicing offer on all Rexton W models purchased during August and September, and applies to the 4x4 Rexton W SX, EX and EX automatic models, as well as the CSX commercial registered by 30th September 2014.

Combined with the existing market leading 5 year limitless mileage warranty that protects all SsangYong cars, this brings three years free servicing (or three services, whichever comes sooner) to give customers complete peace of mind.

The Rexton W range is also currently available with 0% finance from participating dealers.

Rexton W Built on a steel ladder chassis and with a 3 tonne towing capacity, the new SsangYong Rexton W is a serious off-roader and tow-car, yet with all the equipment and creature comforts expected of an urban cruiser, including cruise control, air conditioning, electrically operated & heated door mirrors, and CD & RDS radio with iPod and Bluetooth connectivity.

Powered by SsangYong’s own 2.0 litre Euro 5 turbo charged e-XDi200 diesel engine offering a level of performance and NVH control that

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66 | Farming Monthly | August 2014

has already been tested, proven and praised in the marketplace. Delivering maximum power of 155ps/4,000rpm and maximum torque of 360Nm/1,500-3,000rpm, it is designed to provide low end torque whatever the conditions on or off road.

Acclaimed for being an extremely competent off-roader, Rexton W uses a body on frame construction for maximum strength - the accepted approach for a serious off-roader and features double wishbone and coil spring suspension to the front, and a five link rigid axle with coil springs at the rear.

Available with either 6-speed manual or 5speed Mercedes-Benz T-Tronic automatictransmission, prices range between £21,995 and £25,995, with the commercial at £18,495 (ex VAT).

5 year limitless mileage warranty All models in the SsangYong range are covered by a best-in-class 5 year limitless mileage warranty. Designed to be totally transparent and give customers complete peace of mind, ‘limitless’ means just that: not a maximum mileage condition that some brands impose in their small print. All the major mechanical components are covered including wheel bearings, suspension joints and bushes, steering joints, shock absorbers and even the

audio system. Wearable components such as clutch discs and brake friction materials which could have their life reduced by poor driving are covered for one year or 12,000 miles, and the battery and paintwork for three years.

As the Cherokee wears the legendary Jeep badge it will be one of the most capable cars around, no matter what surface it’s on.

SsangYong SsangYong cars are manufactured in South Korea by SsangYong Motor, which is 73 per cent owned by the Indian engineering conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra, and imported into the UK by SsangYong Motor UK. Established in 1954 it is Korea's oldest vehicle manufacturer and only 4x4 and SUV specialist producer. There are currently some 60 SsangYong dealers covering England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, with new locations being added to the network all the time.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

Isuzu Salisbury Wiltshire 01722 412222 www.isuzu.co.uk

Hammonds of Halesworth Suffolk 01986 834090 www.hammondgroup.co.uk

Jeffries of Bacton Suffolk 01449 781087 www.jeffriesofbacton.co.uk

York Van Centre North Yorkshire 01904 470170 www.yorkvancentre.co.uk

Maple Garage Ltd East Yorkshire 01964 670392 www.maplegarage.co.uk

MRG Chippenham Wiltshire 01249 443300 www.mrgcars.co.uk

Garland Motors Ltd Hampshire 01252 367373 www.garlandskoda.co.uk/isuzu

Mark Weatherhead Ltd Cambridgeshire 01954 210355 www.markweatherhead.co.uk

Isuzu North London Middlesex 0208 8046135 www.isuzunorthlondon.com

Bob Gerard Limited Leicestershire 01162 592224 www.bobgerard.co.uk

Riverside Eastern Ltd North Yorkshire 01723 862242 www.riversidemotors.co.uk

Tallis Amos Group Bibury Gloucestershire 01285 740115 tallisamosgroup.co.uk

Tallis Amos Group Leominster Herefordshire 01568 613434 www.herefordshireisuzu.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 67

| Motors

RANGE ROVER EXPERIENCE THE JOURNEY

Enhanced performance & increased personalisation options for 2015 model year Range Rovers Range Rover and Range Rover Sport continue to improve the customer experience. and Rover is introducing a comprehensive suite of updates to Range Rover and Range Rover Sport for 2015 model year, reaffirming their status as the world’s best luxury and premium sporting SUVs, unrivalled in their breadth of capability, both on- and off-road.

‘As the world’s best luxury and premium sporting SUVs, the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport have long offered an unrivalled combination of performance, luxury and offroad capability,’ says Phil Popham, Group Marketing Director, Jaguar Land Rover.‘These latest updates ensure both vehicles maintain their market-leading positions, with a special focus on performance, efficiency and increased personalisation options.’

Clean engines and even greater performance The potent SDV8 now produces 339PS and 740Nm – a 40Nm increase – with a fuller torque curve from 1700 to 3300rpm thanks to detailed calibration changes. This improves in-gear acceleration by up to 6.5% from fifth to eighth gear, ensuring effortless overtaking ability and enhanced towing capability. The ZF 8HP70 8speed automatic gearbox has been reengineered with a revised torque converter incorporating a twin-spring damper. Despite such a large increase in torque, the SDV8’s fuel economy and CO2 emissions remain unchanged at 32.5mpg and 229g/km CO2.

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Distinctive new features and additional convenience for Range Rover and Range Rover Sport Updated puddle lamps now project each vehicle’s silhouette onto the ground at night to light the way for occupants.

Fixed panoramic roofs with power blinds are now available and bring an additional sense of space and light to both vehicles’ luxurious interiors. Meanwhile, for Range Rover, 19-inch alloy wheels with a Satin Dark Grey finish introduce a stylish option for buyers wishing to use smaller wheels where conditions and surfaces may prove more challenging.

Increased personalisation options for Range Rover derivatives An updated colour palette features Aruba silver and Kaikoura Stone, and long-wheelbase derivatives can be specified with a sophisticated 22-inch alloy wheel for the first time.

Inside, an Intelligent Cargo Mode senses if the rear seats are about to make contact with the front seats when folded down to increase luggage capacity, and automatically moves the front seats forwards. Once the rear seats have folded flat, the front seats are returned as close as possible to their original position.

From this month, UK customers will be able to order the Range Rover Autobiography Black Long Wheel Base, an intensely design-focused response to our customers' desire for more

choice and exclusivity. It delivers higher levels of luxury with unique design finishes, precision leather detailing and new features to give this vehicle specification a distinctive and subtly different character both inside and out.

Supreme comfort and added functionality are evident with the Executive Class package, which offers two individual fully adjustable seats and a re-designed extended centre console with electrically deployable leather tables, integrated USB charging sockets, enhanced stowage and bespoke lighting.

“As the world’s best luxury and premium sporting SUVs, the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport have long offered an unrivalled combination of performance, luxury and off road capability” The Autobiography Black available in long wheelbase only, is available with an exclusive new Lunar/Cirrus interior colour combination.

Autobiography Black signature details include unique Santorini Black and Bright Chrome exterior trim, LED tail lamps, unique 21- and 22inch alloys, new seat designs with Semi-Aniline leather, customer-configurable mood lighting, and additional swathes of leather.

The 2015 Range Rover and Range Rover Sport are available to order now.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

UNRIVALLED CAPABILITY Call us today to book a test drive.

The Range Rover has been engineered from the ground up to be the most refined, most capable Land Rover ever.

Armstong Massey - York 01937 531531 armstrongmassey.landrover.co.uk

Ripon Landrover - North Yorkshire 01765 646464 ripon.landrover.co.uk

Kentdale - Kendal 08433 833530 kentdale.landrover.co.uk

Guy Salmon - Maidstone 01622 795666 guysalmon.maidstone.landrover.co.uk

Hunters - Southampton 02380 215800 hunters.southampton.landrover.co.uk

Matford - Exeter 01392 825825 matford.exeter.landrover.co.uk

Guy Salmon - Knutsford 01565 632525 guysalmon.knutsford.landrover.co.uk

Rocar Moores - Huddersfield 01484 516016 rocarmoores.landrover.co.uk

Barretts - Ashford 01233 506070 barretts.ashford.landrover.co.uk

Hunters - Norwich 01603 944836 hunters.norwich.landrover.co.uk

Barretts - Canterbury 01227 475475 barretts.canterbury.landrover.co.uk

Copley - Halifax 01422 363340 copley.landrover.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

August 2014 | Farming Monthly | 69

| Motors

WILL.I.AM adds an edge to Lexus NX campaign Multi-faceted artist and innovator teams up with Lexus to champion design and technology, including design of a limited edition NX. exus has announced a creative partnership with the global entrepreneur, innovator and musician will.i.am.

The Grammy Award-winner will work with the brand to champion provocative design and technology as part of its Striking Angles campaign to launch the new Lexus NX. Starting now, this collaboration will encompass the worlds of music, design and technology. As part of the campaign, will.i.am will design his own limited edition interpretation of the NX, Lexus’s sharply-styled entry into the premium mid-size SUV market. He will also star in a television commercial supporting the new model, for release later this year. will.i.am said: “Whatever I do, I want it to be striking. I want to innovate and revolutionise, and my partnership with Lexus on the Striking Angles campaign is no different. Inspired by our shared philosophy in design, we’ve been able to work together on a multifaceted campaign that will challenge design conventions and fuel people’s imaginations.”

A short collaboration film featuring the singer-songwriter will be released shortly to kick off the partnership. Celebrating the synergy between innovation and technology, the film uses visuals to bring to life will.i.am’s track Dreaming About the Future,

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first heard as part of will.i.am’s Pyramidi installation in the Barbican’s Digital Revolution exhibition in London. The track, which also features Brazilian musician Sergio Mendes, is central to the immersive installation, sponsored by Lexus, which showcases a mixture of digital and analogue music technologies and projectionmapped visuals. The short film also features animated graphics inspired by will.i.am and Lexus’s passion for angular and striking design. will.i.am will design his own limited edition interpretation of the NX, Lexus’s sharply-styled entry into the premium mid-size SUV market.

Alain Uyttenhoven, Head of Lexus Europe, said: “We’re really excited to be working with will.i.am. His passion for design and innovation, coupled with his incredible creativity, makes him the perfect partner for our Lexus NX Striking Angles campaign.”

Isuzu extends D-Max model range D-Max Yukon premium spec now available with extended cab. suzu UK has added another model variant to its award winning D-Max pick-up range.

For the first time, the popular extended cab version is now available in the premium Yukon trim, to provide a pick-up which is both adaptable and luxurious at the same time.

The extended cab configuration features standard front seats, behind which is a large load area incorporating a fold-down rear bench for occasional use.

The new Yukon specification extended cab – priced from £19,249 (CVOTR) – is ideal for trade and leisure users who prefer the added exterior capacity of a longer rear load bed, require only occasional rear seating, and who still want the interior refinement and equipment available with the Yukon’s specification.

The new variant, available from October 2014, has been introduced in direct response to customer and dealer network feedback and is expected to help sustain the Isuzu D-Max’s impressive sales growth. This useful addition to an already extensive model range comes as Isuzu UK announces record June sales, up

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85% on the same month in 2013. Sales are up 25% for the year against 2013, itself a record year for the brand in the UK. Yukon specification models feature a host of standard equipment, including cruise control, air conditioning, 17-inch alloy wheels, chrome grille and rear bumper, heavy-duty side steps, six-speaker surround-sound audio system with roof-mounted ‘Exciter’ speaker, as well as highvisibility projector headlamps and LED rear light clusters.

Powered by a highly fuel-efficient, 2.5-litre twin-turbo common-rail diesel engine, the Isuzu D-Max Yukon generates 163 PS and peak torque output of 400 Nm from 1,400 rpm, and is available with six-speed manual transmission.

The Yukon extended-cab boasts excellent fuel economy of 38.7 mpg (combined) as well as being a supremely capable towing vehicle, certified to tow 3.5-tonnes (braked) / 750 kg (unbraked).

“Since its launch in June 2012, the D-Max has stood for rugged build quality and outstanding on and off-road performance. The new Yukon extended cab further enhances its

appeal,” says William Brown, General Manager at Isuzu UK. “We hope this latest addition to what is already one of the most comprehensive line-ups in the sector will allow us to better meet the varied needs of pick-up users.”

The new variant, available from October 2014, has been introduced in direct response to customer and dealer network feedback.

Like all models in the D-Max range, the Yukon comes with Isuzu’s five-year / 125,000mile warranty. Running costs are kept down by 12,000 miles or 24-month service intervals, three years recovery and assistance cover, a three-year paint warranty, and a six-year anticorrosion warranty.

For full details of the Yukon extended cab and the full Isuzu D-Max range, or to find your nearest Isuzu dealer, please visit www.isuzu.co.uk.

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