July 2015 Farming Monthly National

Farming

MONTHLY National

July 2015

Inside this issue...

Root Crops

Sugar beet crop infection research award | Buildings

On Topic | Leverage modern genetics to boost OSR profitability

A comfortable cow is a happy cow |

Cereals

Post show round-up |

News

| Action needed on farm safety

Renewables | Ad & Biogas focus

Also Inside: Animal Health | Livestock | Machinery | Tyres | Security | News | ATV | Motors

Contents

27

40

July 2015

09 14

FMN

Features

FMN

Regulars

09 14 18 26 29 30 34 42

Grassland

06 12 36 49 56 61

News

Why is grass under-utilised in the beef industry?

Root Crops Sugar beet crop infection research

Cereals Post show follow-up

Pests Use of Aluminium Phosphides

Education Down on the farm at Moreton Morrell College

Livestock Including final event preview

Sheep

Catch up on the news that matters

On Topic Modern genetics boost OSR

Renewables UK AD & Biogas 2015

Machinery Latetst news

ATV New Honda models launched

Motors Latest motors news

NEXT MONTH

Carcase splitting rules & EID

Dairy & Livestock Event

Buildings A comfortable cow is a happy cow...

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Andrew Poulton EDITOR

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| News

Leading EU industry associations call for policy support for innovation in the agri-food sector Agri-Food Chain Coalition presents how innovation can fuel a strong and competitive EU agri-food sector to Agriculture Commissioner, Phil Hogan. he Agri-Food Chain Coalition (AFCC), representing 11 leading industry associations across the agri-food chain, recently presented its joint declaration entitled: “Food for Thought: a vision for unlocking the potential of agriculture and food industries in the EU” to the Agriculture Commissioner, Phil Hogan. The event took place on the first day of the Food & Drink Week at the Universal Expo in Milan with the aim of showcasing the importance of science and

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innovation in the EU agri-food sector.

Commissioner Hogan, in his keynote address, said, “Innovation is the key to sustainable food security; through innovation, we can improve resource-efficiency, adapt to climate change, improve food safety, diversity and quality while maintaining the competitiveness of the agri-food sector and creating more and better jobs in rural areas.”

Speaking on behalf of the AFCC, Alexander Döring, Chair of the AFCC and Secretary General of the European Feed Manufacturers' Federation

Confirmation of the Arla Foods amba July milk price Arla Foods amba on-account price will reduce by one eurocent per kg (0.77 pence when applied to the UK standard litre), with effect from 6 July 2015. n addition, sterling has continued to strengthen and July sees a new quarter’s (April to June) average exchange rate

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being introduced to the pricing mechanism. The introduction of this quarter’s exchange rate into the mechanism has a 0.41 pence negative impact on the milk price.

The combined impact of the currency smoothing mechanism

06 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

(FEFAC) said, “The AFCC is pleased to see Commissioner Hogan’s commitment to stimulate innovation in the agri-food chain, as a top priority. AFCC members insist on the need to reshape the EU policy framework by removing bottlenecks and providing new incentives to favour the development of a comprehensive innovation toolbox allowing EU Agri-food chain partners to become more productive in a sustainable way.”

Members of the AFCC called on the Commissioner to give serious consideration to the recommendations outlined in the and the reduction to the onaccount price lowers the UK standard litre by 1.18 pence, taking it to 23.81 pence.

The Arla direct milk price will reduce by 1ppl from 1 August 2015.

Commenting on the reduction, Ash Amirahmadi, head of UK milk and member services, said: “Commodity markets are continuing their downward trend, despite only a minor reduction in prices in the latest GDT auction.

While we have taken significant mitigating actions, the impact has been felt on our traded business

joint declaration to help ensure that Europe’s agri-food chain can continue to meet the ever changing needs of consumers, grow sustainably, innovate and create jobs. Specifically, the vision calls for: Fostering agricultural and food chain research to sustain innovation, thanks to better and smarter policy-making; Promoting the creation and protection of jobs in the agri-food sector; Taking into account the social, environmental and economic dimensions of sustainability in every EU policy measure. and more recently on European markets which are also in decline.

“Unfortunately, these factors are affecting the entire dairy industry and despite our efforts it has not possible to buck the trend. I can confirm that our customers in the UK are supporting us at this very difficult time for our members.”

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| News

CLA urges Government Sugar beet prices to collaborate with announced for 2016/17 landowners to meet climate challenges

After an extensive and detailed negotiation process, the NFU and British Sugar have written to sugar beet growers today to announce the sugar beet prices for 2016/17.

It is vital that landowners and Government work in partnership to mitigate and manage the effects of climate change. This includes providing the right incentives for landowners to make investment in managing water supplies, maintaining flood defences and ensuring we are doing all we can to protect soil. he CLA, which represents landowners, farmers and other rural businesses, made these comments in response to the Committee on Climate Change Progress Report published recently.

CLA President Henry Robinson said: “The report identifies the priority issues that we must collaborate to address, including water scarcity, flood risk and the climate resilience of the farmed countryside. The CLA has set out actions that can be taken now to improve mitigation and management of the effects of climate change in these areas.

“On water scarcity we need to fast track planning approval for natural irrigation systems like onfarm reservoirs to reduce demand on the water supply. This has to be done before any radical or damaging changes are made to the rules on how much water farmers can abstract to irrigate their crops.

“On flood risk we have set out detailed proposals for how a system of tax relief can be used to unlock private sector investment in flood defences. We know

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landowners will to act to defend homes and farmland, so we must find ways to unlock this potential additional investment through tax relief and fast track environment agency and planning approval processes.

“On improving biodiversity and soil quality in agricultural land, we continue to work with Government to ensure that environmental schemes like countryside stewardship are effectively targeted to deliver results. We have some way to go but really strong progress has been made.

We must continue to develop these schemes in a collaborative way.

“The CLA is working with the Committee on Climate Change, and will continue to work with colleagues across Europe to set out landowners’ views ahead of the United Nations conference on Climate Change in Paris later this year.”

The report from the Committee on Climate Change can be found here http://www.theccc.org.uk/publicati on/reducing-emissions-andpreparing-for-climate-change2015-progress-report-toparliament/

he price for contract (CTE) and industrial (ICE) beet is £20.30 per tonne. The price for surplus beet has not been confirmed and will be announced later in the year.

NFU sugar board chairman William Martin said: “Our industry continues to face significant challenges. Low world prices and the approaching end of quotas are resulting in difficult market conditions.

“Both the NFU and British Sugar are confident that, despite these challenges, we will secure the long-term future of the industry by continuing to work together.”

In addition to the price announcement, growers will not be subject to a compulsory cut in CTE and ICE and instead they may offer to grow whatever proportion of their CTE and ICE they wish, from 0% to 100%. They

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will retain their right to grow in 2017/18 regardless of what they have chosen to grow in 2016/17.

Performance rules will be set at a two year average of 95% of contracted tonnage over the years 2015/16 and 2016/17.

The transport allowance will be calculated from the Industry Haulage Scheme costs, including cleaning and loading - there will not be an additional payment in 2016/17 for those in the Industry Haulage Scheme.

William Martin added: “The package we have negotiated should enable beet to compete in rotations on farm and builds for a successful future for both growers and the UK sugar beet industry.”

Growers can expect to receive their contract offers during the week beginning July 6th 2015 and if they have any questions on the announcement they can contact the NFU Sugar Helpline on 0870 066 1974.

Make AgriBusiness 2016 a date for your diary ‘Be sure you put November 11th – the date for AgriBusiness 2016, the agri-supply industry conference - in your diary.’ That’s the message from the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC).

The theme for AgriBusiness 2016 is ‘Accelerating the agriculture and food agenda’.

Speakers confirmed include Beth Hart, Head of Product Development and Technology – Fresh Foods at Sainsbury’s, and leading economic analyst Sean Rickard. This year’s event will be chaired by Charlotte Smith from

BBC Radio Four’s Farming Today programme.

“The AgriBusiness conference focuses on information and inspiration for leaders in the agricultural supply industry, as well as providing an excellent opportunity for networking. It has become an essential date for those planning their strategy for the coming years.”

Full details and booking forms will be available shortly on the AIC website at www.agindustries.org.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 07

| News

Maris Otter goes to Parliament Robin Appel and Mark Banham celebrated the 50th anniversary of their revered Maris Otter barley variety at a tasting of past Champion Beers of Britain at the Houses of Parliament. even of the most recent Champion Beers of Britain, between 2000 and 2014, have been brewed with Maris Otter, and 2015 sees a raft of activities to celebrate its anniversary.

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“The importance of high quality British barley should not be underestimated” Organised by CAMRA and the All Party Parliamentary Beer Group, the event demonstrated the flavours of British barley in a wide range of styles of ale,

Action on farm safety needed as fatality figures show no decline The NFU is urging farmers to assess risks and take action in making their farms safer for themselves and others around them, as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics released today show 33 fatalities involving workers and four involving members of the public occurred in agriculture last year.

including Milds, Pale Ales, Best Bitters, Porter and Barley wine – paired with British foods to match.

Banham and Appel comment: “The importance of high quality British barley should not be underestimated, and it was good to show over 70 MPs such a display of different colours and styles of barley malts, and the wonderful champion beers produced from them. It is also good to see our farmers, maltsters, brewing supporters and brewers working together in such a positive fashion, and demonstrating their respective arts to so many new MPs.”

08 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

he figures show that the five-year average has not improved. To address this, the industry has come together to promote advice on avoiding accidents on farm in Farm Safety Week (6-10 July). This is part of a long-term initiative to reverse the trend and make the sector a safer one to work in. The NFU will be working alongside partners from across the UK and Republic of Ireland to achieve this.

NFU Vice President and Farm Safety Partnership Chairman Guy Smith said: “The stagnant nature of these figures underlines the importance of the

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industry working to ensure the number of fatalities in our sector falls and the NFU is playing a leading role in this.

“The Farm Safety Partnership, a collaboration of 48 organisations, is committed to raising awareness of potential risks and promoting safe practices on farms. From the statistics, farming has the poorest record of any occupation in the UK. We need to take responsibility and wake up to the risks around us and do something about making our workplace safer.

“The Farm Safety Week tagline says it all: don’t learn safety by accident.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Grassland

Why is grass so under-utilised in the beef industry? And how can the situation be improved to reduce their costs of production?

By: Marc Jones, Farm Business Consultant, ADAS. he potential for beef cattle to achieve high growth off grass and grazed forages is well known but rarely achieved on British farms. Maintaining quality and quantity going into the summer should be a key focus area, as should earlier turnout and extended grazing. Unlike other ruminant sectors, very few beef producers measure and monitor grass growth.

The recent 2014 Stocktake commissioned by Eblex indicated that the average conventional suckler herd was losing -£260.02 per cow put to the bull and that the average beef finishing animal over 16 months of age made a loss of £131.69 per animal. It is quite clear that the average producer is very reliant on subsidy to make money.

Furthermore the average live weight gain for the finishing animal over 16 months was 0.8kg/day with the number of days grazed at

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grass only standing at 147 days.

The conventional suckler cow was grazed for a longer period of 217 days but performance in terms of weight weaned per hectare only stood at 241kg. It is very clear that the introduction of efficient grazing systems can and will reduce the costs of production and increase the kg of live weight produced per hectare.

By implementing four main points it is possible for the beef farmer to significantly progress down the grazing route. These points are: 1 Identify soil nutrient levels by soil sampling to develop a nutrient plan to correct any deficiencies 2 The use of electric fencing to reduce field size 3 The supply of water and centrally locating troughs in all grazing fields 4 The use of rotational grazing, grass measurements and forage budgets.

If beef farmers implement the four points above there are three main areas where farmers will

The importance of reseeding It’s not always easy to realise that a sward needs renewing, but, over time, the proportion of sown species in a sward will inevitably decline, with socalled weed grasses increasing in prevalence. hese grasses are of a lesser feed quality and less responsive to nutrients, as well as being lower yielding. The differences, whilst not necessarily obvious, can be stark - relative to a new, productive sward, the difference in quality and production from an old sward producing only 7t DM/ha of 10.8 ME equates to the

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equivalent of around £1600/ha in concentrates to replace the energy that would have been available for milk production.

Viewed in this way, reseeding looks cheap! This loss in yield and quality is important whether producing milk or meat. Quality forage gives good results in all managements.

But it’s important to know some indicators of whether a sward needs replacing, so that

financially benefit, these are: • The reduction of the number of days cattle are housed by early spring turnout and extended grazing in the autumn to allow for a four month winter. For every extra day a suckler cow or growing animal is out at grass a saving of up to 80 pence a day will be made, over a 1 month period this will amount to a saving of £24/cow or £2,400 over a 100 cow suckler herd.

• A possible increase in stocking rate of 25% through increased grass growth and better utilisation of grass. If stocking rates can be increased by 20% from a set stocking system based on the current average weaning weight of 241kg per forage ha for a conventional suckler cow, this would equate to an increased weaning weight per ha of 48.20kg.

Based on a calf sale price of £2.14 /kg this would equate to an increased output of £103.15 per ha or £10,315 over a 100 hectare farm. you know when it is past its best.

If you measure sward growth, such as by regular plate metering or by monitoring silage yields from a field, it is relatively easy to spot if a particular field is underperforming.

But otherwise, you should consider reseeding if: • There is less than 50% sown species in the ley • There is a high weed burden (major weeds such as docks being more than 15%of the sward content) • The soil structure is so compacted that ploughing is needed to remedy it When reseeding, sward quality and yield will always be better in a mixture that is doing what it is designed to do – whether cutting or grazing – and the sward is likely to last longer. The balance of diploid and tetraploid varieties is important – diploids tend to

• An increase in growth rates from growing higher quality grazed grass and silage. 10% increase in growth rates over a 12 month period for cattle finishing over 16 months of age would equate to an increase of 29.2kg per animal or a value of £62.78 per animal based on a sale price of £2.15/ kg As grassland management improves overtime the system will continue to reduce costs and labour requirements while increasing output. The above points are an excellent start to helping the beef industry improve its profitability.

For more information contact ADAS at enquiries@adas.co.uk or 0333 0142950 have a prostrate growth, giving ground cover, which makes them more suitable for grazing, whilst tetraploids are more open and upright, making them favourable for cutting. Other species can be introduced for their particular qualities – for example, Timothy is relatively slow to establish, but tolerates cold damp conditions, which makes it a useful addition on heavier soils in cooler areas.

New grasses are available, such as Festuloliums, a cross between ryegrasses and fescues, which combine the cold tolerance and drought resistance of fescues with the quality and palatability of ryegrasses. When choosing varieties, pick those that are listed on the Recommended Grass and Clover List, as these have undergone several years of rigorous testing to ensure their quality and suitability.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 09

| Grassland

Batwing flies through the work whilst scrub stands no chance Potato crops that have been held in check by the cold weather are expected to put on a surge of new growth after any rain or irrigation when conditions warm up. But a rapid expansion in the leaf area will stretch the protection of blight fungicides, at a time when risk is likely to significantly increase, warns Syngenta Technical Manager, Stephen Williams. rom set-aside maintenance and stubble chopping, to amenity or airport grass, it’s all in a day’s work for the new Wessex range of heavy duty batwing mowers.

The brief was to design a high output rotary mower with a blade tip speed and up-turn on the blades to allow a superb cut at fast forward speeds. And these fit the brief precisely.

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The ST Series features a patented hydraulic levelling system which allows easy levelling of the machine regardless of the height of the tractor towing hitch The Wessex batwings cover the ground fast so you get the most for your money from a range that suits tractors from 100hp upwards.

There are five models from 4.8m to 8.0m and each will ensure even distribution of cut material across the width of the machine without swathing. The Wessex ST-480 and ST540 have three rotors and six wheels as standard with the other models offering the option of six and eight wheeled versions with five rotors. The six wheeled mowers feature independent suspension on each wheel, while

10 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

on the eight wheeled model pivoting axles allow smooth travel over rough terrain. All blade assemblies are mounted directly on the output shaft of a heavy-duty gearbox protected by its own friction blade clutch.

The ST Series features a patented hydraulic levelling system which allows easy levelling of the machine regardless of the height of the tractor towing hitch. There’s a simple hand pumped, hydraulic oil reservoir and linkage rod system to enable you to set the drawbar at the desired height so the mower is cutting level behind the tractor. The machine is lifted in and out of work hydraulically and the wings can float between -15º and +15º to allow the accurate following of ground undulations. As we have come to expect from Wessex the heavy-duty deck fabrication comprises a massive box section sub-frame to provide integral strength, while a sheet steel plate above and below gives a clear, uncluttered deck free of residue build-up.

In transport mode the Wessex ST Series batwing mowers fold to 2.5m and past centre for safety and stability on the road. Smooth travel is ensured with hydro-pneumatic suspension and the machines come fully fitted with road-legal kits and safety reflective strips.

Wessex International 01264 345870 www.wessexintl.com

The answer to clearing areas of dense vegetation and heavy scrubland is to find yourself a rotary slasher tough enough for the task.

One of the originals, and still highly rated today, the Wessex Scrubmaster has an enviable reputation for serious scrub clearing ability. In fact, Wessex say, they still receive calls for spare parts for Scrubmasters over thirty years old. Powering its way unstoppably through dense brush and scrub in woodlands and forest areas across the UK and Europe, the Scrubmaster is certainly impressive to watch. Little stands in the way of this slasher with its heavy gauge steel plate and exceptionally high performance drive system.

Definitely it’s built to last. You have the choice of a blade assembly with four heavyduty reversible blades mounted on the large hardened steel square plate, delivering over two thousand one ton impact cuts a minute. It will slash its way through woody material, effortlessly bringing down scrub, and it can be used for controlling grass and weed growth. In areas where there are tree stumps and rocks which could damage blades you can turn to the chain cutters which comprise three high tensile chains on a circular boss. This will lacerate woody and fibrous scrub growth and accelerate its breakdown.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| On Topic

Contact your local dealer today: P Tuckwell Ltd Ardleigh Hall Ardleigh, Colchester Essex CO7 7LG 01206 230 283 www.tuckwell.co.uk

Edwards Machinery Ltd Unit 2 Main Avenue Brackla Ind. Estate, Bridgend South Wales CF31 2AL 01656 664155 www.edwardsmachinery.co.uk

Farmstar Ltd Grove Farm, Church Lane, Marr Doncaster DN5 7AU 01302 786786 www.farmstar.co.uk

Mona Tractor Co. Ltd Denbigh Road Ruthin Denbighshire LL15 2TN 01824 708810 www.monatractors.co.uk www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

Bell Agricultural Ltd Wenham Lane, Ivychurch, Romney Marsh Kent TN29 0AW 01797 344688 www.bellagricultural.co.uk

Farmstar Ltd Bridge Street, Brigg, North Lincs DN20 8NF 01652 654944 www.farmstar.co.uk

Farmstar Ltd Becklands Park Ind. Estate, York Road, Market Weighton York YO43 3GA 01430 875900 www.farmstar.co.uk Farmstar Ltd Hawton Lane, New Balderton, Newark NG24 3BU 01636 671628 www.farmstar.co.uk July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 11

| On Topic

On Topic T

his is the conclusion of financial assessments of the value of key output-enhancing and yieldprotecting traits available in Dekalb varieties by the country’s leading OSR breeder,

Monsanto.

“Despite today’s market pressures, winter oilseed rape remains one of the best combinable cereal breaks there is for most rotations,” pointed out the company’s NW Europe seeds and traits marketing lead, Deryn Gilbey at a special July industry briefing.

“However, there’s no getting away from the fact that the crop has become increasingly expensive to grow for many while remaining more variable in its delivery than most.

“Our key challenge as an industry has to be to make the crop much more economically and environmentally resilient. Apart from anything else, this means we need to make the very most of all the genetic opportunities we have.”

When rapeseed was trading at £350/t or more, Mr Gilbey explains that the range of genetic traits in addition to yield and oil content available in the best modern varieties provided nice-to-have security for most growers. At nearer £250/t, however, he sees them as vital to maintaining the crop’s viability for many.

The latest edition of the Farm Management Pocketbook estimates variable costs of winter OSR production in 2015 running at an average of around £450/ha. Add in its typical cereal farm fixed costs of around £560/ha before rent, interest and unpaid family labour and total costs are almost exactly £1000/ha. That’s £250/t at 4t/ha or £285/t at 3.5 t/ha, putting the crop on very much of an economic knife edge at current market prices.

“Apart from emphasising just how important the highest possible gross output is to

12 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

Putting modern genetics to work to boost OSR profitability Modern genetics can add a good £25/t to the bottom line of UK oilseed rape growing in the coming season. And this before accounting for any gross output advantage.

profitability in today’s market, these figures underline the fact that the £20-25/t increase in crop value or £25/t or more saving in production costs we calculate our modern genetics offer could easily be the difference between profit and loss with next season’s winter rape,” Mr Gilbey stressed.

With the high oleic, low linolenic (HOLL) variety V316OL at the very top of this year’s Recommended List on gross output alone, the opportunity for increasing earnings by around 10% without any extra risk by growing it or one of its high output HOLL stablemates on contract for premium food oil markets cannot be ignored.

Although filling-up fast, contracts for 2016 harvest providing fixed rate premiums of £2025/t over ordinary ‘double low’ rapeseed on top of oil bonuses are still available through leading UK seed suppliers.

“As not everyone will be able to secure a HOLL contract for the coming season, the opportunities the yield-protecting traits in our mainstream ‘double low’ varieties offer for production cost savings are likely to be at least as significant for most growers,” explained Dekalb OSR project lead, Kuldip Mudhar at the briefing.

“These come from the principal genetic traits we have concentrated on breeding into our hybrid portfolio alongside gross output – pod shatter resistance, double phoma and high light leaf spot resistance, and vigorous establishment with fast leaf development.”

The pod shatter resistance that is standard across DK hybrids has traditionally been seen as valuable protection against losses from stormy weather in the run-up to harvest.

Harvest timing trials undertaken by NIAB-TAG at two sites with eight of today’s top hybrid varieties under notably low shatter conditions

last season, however, show the important yieldsaving value of the trait in everyday commercial practice.

On average, the four pod shatter resistant hybrids yielded almost identically to the nonresistant controls when harvested on 23-24 July. When harvesting was delayed for 6-7 days, though, the non-resistant varieties yielded 6% less than the resistant ones, the gap widening to 9% after a further 5-7 day harvest delay.

“Even assuming a very conservative 4 t/ha initial yield parity with non-resistant varieties, the 6-7 day delay that would be quite normal on many farms with workloads as pressured and weather

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| On Topic

Advanced oilseed rape development at Dekalb's European breeding headquarters

conditions as variable as they are today represents a yield saving of just under a quarter of a tonne per hectare for pod shatter resistance,” said Mr Mudhar. “Which is almost £16/t at a rapeseed value of £265/t, including oil bonuses at 42% oil.

“It just goes to show how valuable pod shatter resistance can be in allowing harvesting to be delayed without risk to take full advantage of the longest possible pod-fill. This is incredibly important as we know many growers are desiccating their OSR a good week too early in the interests of security, and every day of pod filling lost reduces oilseed rape yields by 1-2%. We also know that seeds accumulate most of their oil in the second half of seed filling, so the gross output losses from harvesting too early for fear of shattering losses are even greater.”

To the considerable yield-protecting value of pod shatter resistance, Kuldip Mudhar calculates that growers can make additional savings of over £11/t from the best modern OSR genetics through economies in their fungicide spraying and nitrogen bills.

“In normal practice we find that phoma and light leaf spot resistance of the highest order in varieties like DK Extrovert and DK Exalte means only two rather and three foliar sprays are needed in a moderate disease season,” he reported. “A single autumn spray is sufficient for phoma control and light leaf spot can be targeted at stem extension.

“Where higher disease pressures require a three spray programme for security, the superior resistance of these varieties allows a less expensive fungicide mix to be used. On average, at current fungicide prices and operational costs we calculate savings of around £24/ha here, worth £6/t at 4t/ha.

“Likewise, we typically see vigorous autumn

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growth and fast leaf development delivering an early spring Green Area Index (GAI) advantage of 0.5 units for varieties with these traits. This means around 25 kg/ha less spring N is required to achieve the optimum 3.5 GAI canopy at flowering, saving just over £21.00/ha – or £5/t – at current fertiliser prices.”

Adding these specifics together, Monsanto conservatively calculates growers should be looking at savings of at least £25/t – probably nearer £30/t – from putting the best currently available genetic traits to work in the coming season.

“Our studies highlight just how the outputenhancing and yield-protecting traits in modern Dekalb hybrids can be harnessed for the greatest commercial gain, even without allowing for the extra production potential built into them,” said Deryn Gilbey.

“Of course, these gains can only be achieved with the right variety-specific crop

On Topic

DK ExPower delivers at Chillington

management. While many growers may have not taken up such opportunities in the past in favour of simple one-size-fits-all agronomy, with margins as tight as they are today we believe they can no longer be ignored by most.

“We are confident genetics has an increasingly important role to play in helping growers maintain winter OSR as a financially sustainable crop as well as highly valuable cereal break in their rotations.

“Alongside, further improvements in the breadth as well as depth of disease resistance and the introduction of our full range of yieldprotecting traits into low biomass, HOLL and Clearfield varieties, we are actively building extra tolerance to nutritional stress into our varieties to offer growers even greater possibilities for controlling costs, improving consistency and reducing risk in such an important component of today’s cropping.”

Conservative Winter OSR Cost Savings with Dekalb Traits Assuming yield parity with non-trait bearing hybrids at 4t/ha

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 13

| Root Crops

Potato leaf growth surge demands strong blight protection Potato crops that have been held in check by the cold weather are expected to put on a surge of new growth after any rain or irrigation when conditions warm up. But a rapid expansion in the leaf area will stretch the protection of blight fungicides, at a time when risk is likely to significantly increase, warns Syngenta Technical Manager, Stephen Williams. tephen advocates growers and agronomists should be looking to utilise the movement of Revus fungicide into expanding leaf growth, to offer extending protection from infection between applications.

“New leaf growth is especially susceptible to infection,” advised Mr Williams, “partly since the soft tissue is easier for the pathogen to infect, but also because it is unprotected by conventional contact fungicides. Furthermore, their efficacy is reduced over time after each application.

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“Revus will move with the expanding leaf to offer protection of the new surface area. It is also highly effective at maintaining protection between applications.”

Revus is proven in trials as the leading blight fungicide for protection against foliar infection.

Maintaining a clean leaf in the early stages is essential to prevent disease developing later in the season, as well as stopping transfer of blight to tubers, added Mr Williams.

Mr Williams pointed out that new criteria for foliar blight prediction on the Syngenta website BlightCast service had already indicated the potential for infection in the crop this season.

TGAC awarded £100k to combat sugar beet crop infection in the UK The Plant & Microbial Genomics Group at TGAC has been awarded £100k towards the identification of the sources of infection and reinfection of the sugar beet crop across the UK. ugar production from sugar beet accounts for 20 per cent of the world's supply. Erysiphe betae, a sugar beet powdery mildew can cause sugar yield losses of up to 20 per cent.

Presently, to reduce the impact of E. betae, the main methods are fungicidal treatments and a range of partially resistant varieties.

However, despite annual surveys for E. betae prevalence little is known about the disease’s diversity, its source of infection and strains that re-infect after fungicidal treatment.

Following a successful proposal, titled: “Discovering the source of sugar beet infection and re-infection by Erysiphe betae”, the British Beet Research Organisation (BBRO) granted TGAC the funding to, quantify the diversity of the UK E. betae species, determine the source of infection of the sugar beet crop, and identify the effects of fungicidal application on pathogen genetic diversity.

The research project will use a hundred E. betae genome sequences from both an agricultural and wild setting, contributed via

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14 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

the BBRO and wider sugar beet industry, and will analyse the pathogen to design genetic markers that will be used in a rapid detection technology to identify infection in sugar beet species.

This will be accompanied by the generation of a draft genome assembly of a secondary beet pathogen, the rust Uromyces beticola, which will allow the research team to gain further insight into the sugar beet pathogen, answering questions regarding its size and complexity, and informing potential follow-up studies.

Dr Mark McMullan, Population & Evolutionary Biologist in the Plant & Microbial Genomics Group at TGAC, said: “Evolution of powdery mildew in the wild may drive adaptation to crop hosts and cause losses in agriculture. By analysing the population genetics of pathogens that span both wild and agricultural ecosystems we hope to shed light on the causes of sugar beet infection and also on the causes of agricultural host-pathogen evolution.”

Priorities in the sugar beet industry are to

The forecast triggered potential infection periods at lower temperatures, believed to be more representative of today’s more aggressive blight strains.

“New leaf growth is especially susceptible to infection” BlightCast provides a free localised forecast for growers and agronomists, based on both traditional Smith Periods and the New Criteria, to help with better timing and selection of appropriate blight fungicide programmes. protect and promote sugar beet yield and performance and an important part of this objective is to decrease yield losses caused by fungal pathogens.

Currently, the main treatments for E. betae, are the triazole/strobilurin fungicides which are currently under scrutiny, due to concerns of their effects on the human endocrine system.

Alternatives to widespread fungicide treatment are: targeted fungicidal applications and optimal deployment of current resistant cultivars via improved disease forecasting and identification of pathogen reservoirs.

Dr Matthew Clark, Plant & Microbial Genomics Group Leader, said: “Wild plants can often be a reservoir of agricultural diseases especially important if it’s where they complete their life cycle. A better understanding the biology of E. betae and how modern agriculture is affecting it could enable better land management to minimise yield loss, pesticide use and harm to the environment.”

Understanding the diversity of a pathogen population can improve development of resistant cultivars, facilitate treatment programmes and allow the identification of new infectious strains. Studying the diversity of E.betae strains will inform resistance trials and allow for the future development of targeted treatment of possible virulent strains.

Identification of genetic variation will enable the researchers to design DNA markers for an infield detection system using an isothermal DNA amplification system from TwistDx as a diagnostic tool. Knowing the source of the E. betae agricultural outbreak will inform surveillance and treatment decisions to reduce

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| Root Crops

Innovations from Greencrop Find out where your rain gun is located in the field without leaving the office. ith time being more valuable, a new tracking system from Irrimec will help you identify the position of all your irrigators without leaving the office/home.

Rain loc is GSM Controlled This small unit can be fitted to any make of gun trolley; the selfcontained box has a battery, modem and software. Plus we fit a pressure switch in the trolley pipe.

By just dialling the number, installs a map on your smart phone or computer pin pointing the position of the gun in the field.

It gives a green mark every 5 metres so you can see if the trolley is moving or a black mark if the trolley has stopped. This will indicate if the irrigator has finished its pull, or there is a problem.

UV resistant White PET irrigator hose Another innovation from Irrimec is the introduction of a white coloured special PET irrigation

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fungicide treatment. By analysing E. betae species that infect both before and after fungicidal treatment will identify those that are more resistant to current treatment strategies.

E. betae genome sequencing is especially favourable because of the recent release of the sugar beet genome sequence.

Together, these genomic resources are valuable tools for the future discovery of novel resistance genes for E. betae infection and improved sugar beet varieties.

Dr Lawrence Percival-Alwyn, Research Associate in Plant & Microbial Genomics at TGAC, added: “Currently it’s unknown how fungicidal treatment affects the success of different E.betae strains. By sequencing strains that infect prior to and those that re-emerge following fungicidal treatment, we hope to identify those strains that are more

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drum hose. Being white in colour and made of a special polymer, it is made up of 3 layers. The hose is protected from UV rays, it will maintain its shape and reduce the deteariating process experienced from sunlight. Maintaining the hose roundness aids winding onto the drum more evenly keeping the coils tight and inline, helping to prevent hose timing issues. The outer wall is also harder to resist ware against abrasive soils.

The centre of the hose is normally black, however the inner wall is again lined with the special white layer, which is very smooth.

This helps to prevent friction loss of the water while passing through the hose.

The cost is around 8% greater than normal black hose, which should be easily re-cooped in longer hose life.

New engine pump set Manufactured at our assembly plant near Ely in Cambridgeshire using the highest quality materials and attention to detail, giving built-

in reliability and a long-lasting finish.

Greencrop Irrigation can now offer an economy diesel engine irrigation pump set that will drive a single hose reel irrigator fitted with either a rain gun or boom.

The unit is powered by a water cooled Perkins 422PT 2.2 litre 63hp 4 cylinder silent pack unit.

Sound levels for the 422PT power pack are as follows: 1000 rpm 55dBa and 2800 rpm 73dBa both at 7 metres, direct coupled to a Caprari MEC-MR 65-2/4A 1 centrifugal multiple-stage pump with horizontal shaft (Q: 64.67 m³/h H: 109 m).

The unit comes standard

mounted on a 80 gallon (364 litre) fully bunded fuel tank chassis with jack and tractor draw bar.

10/75/15.3 6 stud wheels and mudguards. Hand primer, and our modified 450 waterproof protection control panel for water temperature, high and low oil pressure; high and low water pressure and no flow protection.

The above pump unit can also be supplied mounted on our fuel bowser tandem axle galvanised chassis with mudguards and road lights.

For more details visit our website www.greencrop.co.uk or contact howard@greencrop.co.uk

resistant to current treatments.

With greater insight into the mode of infection and progression of E. betae on the sugar beet crop, combined with strain specific identification in the form of a diagnostic assay, the ultimate goal is to inform disease management strategy and potentially introduce targeted treatment programmes.”

TGAC’s research has the potential to lead to the development of markers for an infield diagnostic test for Erysiphe betae. Scientists will develop two types of DNA-based diagnostic tests, lab-based and infield based test kits using the TwistDx technology.

TGAC is strategically funded

by BBSRC and operates a National Capability to promote the application of genomics and bioinformatics to advance bioscience research and innovation.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 15

| Root Crops

Tong Peal go upbeat for sugar beet As farmers and growers throughout the UK and Europe increasingly look for an alternative market for their sugar beet crop, Tong Peal has designed a new range of heavy duty sugar beet handling equipment for efficient washing, de-stoning and loading of the crop prior to its use in Anaerobic Digestion (AD). ith the opportunity for significant electricity savings alongside the potential of a regular income for the crop, more and more sugar beet growers are looking towards the AD industry to help get the most out of their yield.

Edward Tong, Operations Director at Tong Peal says “We have seen a noticeable rise in orders for sugar beet handling equipment as customers are looking to effectively de-stone and handle the crop for use in on-farm AD plants.”

Simon Gittins of WH Gittins & Sons/Wykey Farms and Guy Davies, have both recently installed AD plants on their farms and decided that sugar beet would be an important component.

Currently, Wykey Farms inputs almost twenty three thousand tonnes of materials for AD each year, of which sugar beet is an increasing part. ”Sugar beet offers both a high yield in the field as well as high methane yield and a fast

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fermentation rate, meaning more of the sugar beet plant can be digested compared to other crops such as maize” said Mr Gittins.

With the shared need to effectively de-stone their sugar beet crop, Mr Gittins and Mr Davies made the decision to make a joint investment in a new barrel washer that could be used at both of their sites, to wash and remove stones from the crop at high speed whilst increasing their daily throughputs.

With sugar beet being a large, hard and bulky crop in comparison to standard root crops, they also needed a washer that would withstand the demands of handling the crop.

Tong Peal, the UK’s leading vegetable handling equipment manufacturer, offered Mr Gittins and Mr Davies the perfect solution, with a large mobile barrel washer, mounted on road wheels with a tractor drawbar for easy transport between sites. The barrel washer was manufactured with an integrated close coupled de-stoner, for the effective removal of stones from crop, and was designed using

16 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

uprated components and heavy duty fabrication to ensure they had a robust and reliable washing facility that would stand up to demand.

As the beet is fed into the Barrel Washer it is met with a reinforced infeed chute for handling the tough crop at high speeds, enabling a throughput of up to 40 tonnes per hour. Fitted with a heavy duty Auger inside the barrel tank for the removal of soil and a pneumatically operated sluice valve to discharge the dirty water from the tank, the barrel washer effectively washes crop before it is discharged to the outfeed elevator with a final rinse spray bar.

“Because of the weight and bulk of the sugar beet, we needed a manufacturer that could supply us with machinery which would be strong enough to deal with the crop as we wash and de-stone it for use in our AD plants” commented Mr Gittins. “The mobile barrel washer from Tong Peal was exactly what we were looking for and everything ran smoothly from initial design to delivery and commissioning.”

“We are not only processing our own sugar beet crop much more efficiently, the barrel washer offers us such high throughputs that we can wash our crop in much less time, leaving us able to hire the machine out to other growers to do the same job!” added Mr Davies.

Edward Tong added, “We take pride in developing handling equipment that meets farmers and growers changing needs. The mobile sugar beet washer we supplied for Mr Gittins and Mr Davies allows them to wash crop quickly and efficiently in any location they need.

“This heavy duty washing machine, as well as heavy duty loading hoppers, have been designed to offer sugar beet growers a range of equipment that is built to perform under the most demanding situations whilst helping them to save time and improve efficiency when processing sugar beet for use in AD facilities.”

“While various crops are suitable for AD, sugar beet is gaining

Aphid action reaps of potato virus red Potato aphid numbers are now build many seed crops at early growth sta vulnerable to virus infection. The col season for seed crops could see ear eed growers had already been advised to include a pyrethroid insecticide in tank-mix with blight treatments every seven days, reported SRUC specialist, Dr Andy Evans. And with the main vector of potato viruses, Myzus persicae (Peach Potato Aphid) picked up in monitoring across Scotland and the north of England, they should now be looking to include a resistance breaking insecticide in alternate treatments, he advocated.

“A pyrethroid is especially important to manage non-potato colonising migrating aphids that may be carrying viruses and transmitting disease in as little as 30 seconds as they move across a field,” he advised.

Treatment with Hallmark Zeon has also been shown to offer deterrent activity to stop migrating aphids settling or feeding.

Dr Evans highlighted Carrot Willow Aphid and the increasing numbers of Cereal Aphids, for example, that could be spreading infection. “Virus could be picked up from surrounding ware crops, or especially dumps and volunteer potatoes, which we know from studies can frequently be a source of infection,” he warned.

But with Myzus also now present in crops and hedgerows, populations are likely to build up rapidly with any warm dry weather. A rapid increase in numbers in any Myzus colony can quickly trigger the appearance of winged aphids and mass migration.

He cited resistance busting insecticides, such as Actara and Plenum, will be essential tools to include in the programme. They do need to be effectively timed to allow for the restriction of just two neonicotinoid applications, and to utilise Plenum outside of the crop flowering period.

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popularity in the UK and Germany, due in part to last year’s high stocks and sugar beet prices remaining under pressure. Our range of sugar beet handling equipment has been designed to offer these growers the equipment they need to successfully process the crop prior to its use for this purpose.

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| Root Crops

rewards uction

Pack house refits on a budget While nobody believes 2015 is going to be a great year for potato growers, if your pack house is in need of a refit, David Harrison Handling Solutions have the answer.

ing up, coinciding with ges that are particularly d, slow start to the growing ly infection risk increasing.

Syngenta Insecticide Technical Manager, Pete Saunders, added that growers can optimise results with Hallmark Zeon, Plenum and Actara from application using angled nozzles, alternating forward and backwards, to enhance crop penetration and coverage of lower leaves. “The target is principally the same as for blight application, so growers will get the best from both elements of the tank mix.

“For earlier applications, until the crop canopy is complete, application in water volume of 100 to 200 l/ha will give good retention on the leaf and optimise sprayer output,” he said. “But where crops get very leafy increasing water volume, up to 400 l/ha, can assure canopy penetration and leaf coverage.”

Dr Andy Evans added that growers and agronomists had made significant advances in reducing virus infection levels in seed crops over recent seasons. He attributed improvements to the combination of implementing the effective new insecticide programmes and better awareness of cultural practices. That has included removal of dumps and volunteer infection sources and intensive roguing of seed crops to remove potentially infected plants.

“There has been a real beneficial reduction in the background reservoir of virus,” he reported. “Potato Leaf Roll Virus (PLRV) is now at very low levels, and whilst non-persistent viruses are still about, such as Potato Virus Y, we have been able to hold them at relatively low levels, compared to several seasons ago.

“It remains vital that growers and agronomists maintain the same attention and efforts for aphid control right through the growing season to burndown, and even any green regrowth, to prevent any reoccurrence of virus issues,” he added.

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hilst full refits with new kit are viable when market prices are good, more straightened times demand a smarter approach” explains Gary Palmer.

“We have seen many market ups and downs in the forty years since David Harrison started his potato machinery business near Ely and it’s when budgets are tight our phones get busy with customers who know that besides new machinery, we are active in buying and refurbishing good used kit.

“Consequently we can save them up to 50% of their costs.

“Typically an existing grading / bagging line in need of extension or general updating will comprise a mix of conveyors or specialist weighing/ bagging kit plus newer items such as box tippers or

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screens.

“In this case we can check and refurbish the latter and replace the older kit with either new or rebuilt kit from our stock. The result is a successful mix of new and rebuilt or refurbished machinery to meet future needs but with serious saving on your investment.”

The Tong Caretaker Classic in the photo has been stripped and re-sprayed. The belts have been replaced and pollution control upgraded. It has been completely rewired and fitted with axle and wheels for mobility. Another current example is an O&P computerised palletiser. This has handled many thousands of bags over its 10 year life but is now undergoing complete refurbishment. Either of these units could save a customer around 40% on the price of a brand new machine.

Besides building their own

conveyors and elevators, Harrisons also enjoy good relations with major machinery manufacturers, often buying popular units at attractive prices in quieter production periods which can be passed on to the benefit of our customers.

“We can save customers up to 50% of their costs” David Harrison Handling Gary Palmer Systems offer and a fullrefurbishe planningd grader service and costing service.

They are UK agents for Symach Palletisers, O&P Palletisers, Propak bagger weighers and The Sack Filling Company’s stitching and bagging lines.

Details of current used and rebuilt stock can be found on davidharrisons.com.

Gary can be contacted on 07711 329 252 or 01353 740666.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 17

| Cereals

Positive mood at Cereals as farmers look to the future Despite the squeeze on arable incomes caused by low grain prices and relatively high input prices there was a positive mood at Cereals 2015 among farmers and exhibitors. any of the 24,500 visitors attending the event took full advantage of the expert technical and financial advice on offer from over 500 exhibitors to help drive their businesses forward, said Jon Day, events director at Haymarket Exhibitions.

“Technical and machinery exhibitors were kept busy by growers keen to explore improved cultivations and soil health, better drilling techniques, integrated

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weed management strategies and impressive advances in precision farming.

“The business area was popular with growers wanting to maintain a grip on budgets and production costs. All this reflected the sense of determination among visitors to ride out current problems.

“The feedback we’ve had from visitors and exhibitors has been overwhelmingly positive. Cereals continues to build on its position as the leading UK arable technical event and a key date for forwardlooking arable growers.”

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DEFRA minister George Eustice opened the event, which took place at Boothby Graffoe, Lincolnshire on 10 -11 June, on the HSBC stand. He emphasised the government’s manifesto commitment to a 25-year food and farming strategy, which he hoped would be in place by the end of 2015.

Key areas included developing agricultural technology and competitiveness, opening new export markets and encouraging more young people into the sector.

“We need to change perceptions – farming is vibrant and dynamic, with lots of new technology,” he added.

Mr Eustice also mentioned the use of neonicotinoid seed treatments on oilseed rape, saying that government would look at the science “very carefully” when considering emergency authorisation for this summer.

Allan Wilkinson, head of food and agriculture at HSBC Bank, the Cereals event principal sponsor, said the event had lived up to its reputation for setting the scene and for setting the standard.

“Cereals is most definitely as strong as ever, and goes into future years in excellent shape. As one well-known farmer said to me – ‘Simply perfect! Now all we need is another £25/t for wheat, and it's utopia!’.”

Cereals’ reputation as a leading conference venue was reinforced by a revamped programme that included several condensed seminars on some of the hottest topics in the arable sector. Many of the sessions were standing room only.

Al Brooks, 2016 Oxford Farming Conference chairman, said: "The marquee was buzzing for each of the 11 Arable Conference sessions. It's been a great fit for the Oxford Farming Conference to work with Haymarket in delivering such high-quality debate and speakers from all over the world.

Cereals has hit the bull's-eye for

the OFC in creating challenging debate."

All the familiar Cereals features returned, including hundreds of crops plots to illustrate the wealth of agronomic developments on show. Other specialist areas included machinery, working demonstrations, post-harvest technology, business area, potatoes, renewables, careers and education and the Syngenta Sprays and Sprayers arena, which showcased the latest spraying technology and equipment.

Paul Temple AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds chairman, said Cereals 2015 yet again showed the industry at its best.

“Despite a difficult back drop of market and agronomic issues, I sensed a determination to find solutions to the problems, rather than complain, from all those that attended. It provided the perfect backdrop for the AHDB to launch its rebrand and the opportunity to meet levy payers at a key point in the arable year. The Cereals event yet again stimulated a vision for the future of the industry.”

NIAB chief executive Dr Tina Barsby described Cereals as another non-stop two days. “Well done to the Haymarket team for ensuring the show ran smoothly.

Cereals is our best opportunity to showcase NIAB, its work and its people, and we’re always delighted with how many visitors we have to our stand. It takes 10 months to bring it together, but it’s definitely worthwhile.”

Lindsay Haddon, Agco’s advertising and sales promotion manager, said: “Agco’s return to the Cereals show was a welcomed one as customers and dealers alike flocked to the see our Challenger, Massey Ferguson, Fendt and Valtra models on display. It couldn't have gone better.”

Sara Sebastianelli, brand communications UK & ROI at New Holland, said: "Cereals is a significant show in the New

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| Cereals

Demo a Dale Drill on your farm Try the benefits of no till for reduced time and costs. he Cereals Event was a great success for Dale Drills according to sales director, James Dale. ‘We had a very busy two days on the stand, with a lot of farmers coming to talk to us about how our no till drills can save their businesses time and money. With the grain market showing no signs of picking up, farmers are focussing on how to reduce costs to ensure a margin.’

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“We had a very busy two days on the stand, with a lot of farmers coming to talk to us about how our no till drills can save their businesses time and money” Dale Drills launched their new Eco-T range of drills and had a 5m version on the stand. ‘Interest in the Eco-T was very high, with

farmers seeing the benefits that a low weight, low draught seed drill could bring to smaller acreages’, said James. The Eco-T utilises the companies proven no-till drilling assemblies mounted to a chassis which includes low pressure land wheels within the tine assemblies and a 2t hopper which can be split for seed and fertiliser applications.

Dale Drills will have several 6m Eco-Drills and a 4.8m / 5m Eco-T available for short term hire / demonstration this autumn.

Despite a rapidly filling schedule there is still availability for farmers to try a Dale Drill on their farm.

Interested parties are asked to contact Dale Drills (info@daledrills.com or 01652 653326) for more information.

Crowds were out in force at Cereals 2015

Holland calendar. Each year we manage to attract more visitors to our stand, with 2015 being no exception. This year's exhibition has been extremely good for our brand!"

“Cereals is most definitely as strong as ever” It was a successful show again for Bayer CropScience, said Chris Cooksley, the firm’s marketing manager. “The stand was busy for large parts of both days and we had many excellent conversations, as we looked to help growers through the agronomic and business challenges they face with lower commodity prices and increasing pest, weed and disease threats.”

Vaderstad experienced a buoyant and upbeat Cereals event this year with a significant number of visitors to its stand on both days.

“On both days our stand was buzzing,” said managing director Mike Alsop. “Farmers seemed remarkably positive about the future. They had an appetite for

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knowledge and a desire to adapt their businesses.”

David Holmes, sales director, Great Plains UK said: "We have been very pleased with footfall on the Great Plains stand on both days of this year’s Cereals event.

The level of enquiries was reassuringly healthy, both in terms of volume and quality."

Thousands of messages appeared on Twitter during and after Cereals from exhibitors and visitors praising the success of the event. Farmer comments included: Great day at #Cereals15 today good to see old and new faces – Tractorman 07, Lincs-based farmer and contractor Awesome day at #Cereals15 – Kent contractor Ant the Farmer.

A brilliant couple of days networking with the future and meeting leading agricultural enterprises – Norfolk-based AF_NextGen (discussion group of 20-35 year olds).

Had a great day at #cereals15.

Wow what a show – Farmer williamrhaire.

Cereals 2016 will be held on 1516 June at Chrishall Grange, near Duxford, Cambridgeshire.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 19

| Cereals

Academy for AICC Members launched at Cereals Due to the continuing growth of independent agronomy and the demand for sound impartial advice, AICC has launched its own in-house academy to provide additional technical training for its new junior members. he aim of AICCA is to enhance the level of expertise of these new entrants post BASIS to provide them with a sound technical platform in preparation for a career in independent agronomy,” says Sarah Cowlrick, CEO of the AICC. “This will assist members in growing their business and to future proof the continued growth of independent agronomy.”

AICC has looked at various ways to address the issue of succession based on schemes available to trainees run by other groups, but AICCA is structured differently. “The emphasis is on the AICC member to choose his/her trainee and then AICC will support them

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20 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

through the bespoke academy. We will be offering up to 6 fully funded places per year.

Each trainee will attend a series of modules over the course of a year and will graduate as a group at the end of the year. We believe that this will give each trainee the technical edge to provide rounded impartial advice to their existing and new clients” added Sarah.

The key points are as follows: • Trainees will have BASIS/FACTS qualification • Trainees will be working with an established AICC member or member group.

• The group will start and finish together providing another network of support for their future career.

• The academy will be in modular form covering all aspects of agronomy including crop protection and nutrition, rotations and cropping systems, management of resistance, soil science, precision farming, application technology, business management, agricultural policy and finance, AICC business support.

• Trainees will be exposed to industry partner training and networks and assisted with accessing and interpreting independent R & D data.

• AICCA will be fully funded.

• AICCA advanced modules will be considered after the first year of the Academy

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Cereals

New grain bin for the European market Chief Industries UK Ltd were pleased to be able to display a full size version of the grain silo that they will be offering to the European market from October 2015.

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he silo will be manufactured at the Chief facility in France and will be produced to the latest EUROCODE

criteria.

The silo will be available as standard in capacities from 80 to 15000 cubic metres from the European facility, and up to 27000 cubic metres on special order.

The “W” stiffener is nearly twice as strong as the closest competing competitor The 1077mm wall sheet height requires significantly fewer rings, seams and stiffeners. Combined with our exclusive “W” stiffener, the bins offer unsurpassed strength, whilst reducing costly assembly time.

The “W” stiffener is nearly twice as strong as the closest competing competitor. Designed to support

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the vertical load, the unique “W” staggered stiffener system provides supplemental strength and fully supports overhead catwalks and conveyors.

The 120 x 11mm profile of the shallow form corrugated sheets minimises the build up of residual grain on the silo wall during unloading.

The wall sheets are manufactured from high quality steel to EN 10326 and are Sendzimir galvanised to Z450 as standard and Z600 on request.

Roof panels are of Aluzinc AZ 185, which is superior to galvanised steel, and feature an interlocking “J” rib design for outstanding strength and reduced assembly time.

All roofs have a 30 degree pitch with high peak load capacities and are designed to support additional loads imposed by conveyors, temperature cables, or heavier snow loads. The design meets anti-explosion criteria.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly |21

| Cereals

New Holland Dual Stream header wins IMMA Gold award New Holland’s innovative Dual Stream header, which offers increased harvesting capacity and reduced fuel consumption, took Gold in the harvest machinery section of the prestigious International Machinery Manufacturer’s Awards (IMMAs) at Cereals 2015.

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aunched in 2014, the IMMAs recognise the best new farm equipment on the market and aim to reward companies who have produced machines that show innovation, effectiveness

and value.

The Dual Stream system uses a second bank of self-sharpening knives to reduce the quantity of straw going through the combine resulting in easier threshing, reduced fuel use and increased throughput from a given header width.

The standard header cuts the upper section of the crop while the second bank of knives operate at normal stubble height, leaving a middle-section of ‘double stubble’ straw. This middle section is spread uniformly across the entire header width rather than entering the combine.

“Reduced material going in to the machine will reduce wear and tear,” says Nigel

22 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

Honeyman, New Holland's Combine Product Specialist. “In addition, straw chopper power consumption will be reduced, while speed of harvesting can be increased.”

The system fits directly onto New Holland’s heavy duty Varifeed™ headers and is driven by a secondary power take-off mounted on a parallel linkage. The standard header cuts the upper section of the crop while the second bank of knives operate at normal stubble height, leaving a middle-section of ‘double stubble’ straw. This middle section is spread uniformly across the entire header width rather than entering the combine.

A two section roller behind the knives is used to allow the system to float and to accurately set the working height of the second knife. The entire unit can be hydraulically lifted, up to a maximum of 700mm, from the comfort of the cab to speed-up end of row turns.

The Dual Stream system, which can be retrofitted to existing New Holland combine

harvesters with heavy duty Varifeed headers as well as on new machines, will be on sale in the UK in time for the 2016 season. It will be available for 25ft to 41ft cut headers.

The judges of the IMMA awards, drawn from The Institution of Agricultural Engineers, Harper Adams University, NIAB, an award-winning contracting business and Farmers Weekly commented that: By using twin knives at different heights New Holland has come up with a radically different way of reducing the amount of straw going through the combine.”

“We are thrilled to win this prestigious award, which recognises New Holland innovation in practice,” said James Ashworth, New Holland's Marketing Manager for the UK and Ireland “To enable farmers to see the new system in action, New Holland is arranging a demonstration tour around the UK for the Dual Stream between July and September. Details of the tour can be gained from New Holland dealers.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Cereals

Spaldings Cereals success Cereals 2015 proved to be the best show to date for Spaldings Ltd with record sales and invaluable customer feedback. paldings Ltd attended Cereals for the 15th year running and claims that it was their best show yet in terms of number of visitors to the stand and sales across the two days of the Show. Spaldings showcased their new Wireless Dynamic Weighbridge for the first time and sold a number of units at the Show following demonstrations from their expert team. Roger Chase, Sales Director at Spaldings, said “Despite the industry facing difficult times, we were extremely pleased to see so many people at our stand and with the response to our new products on show, particularly the Weighbridge.”

New weighbridge very well received with pleasing sales Spaldings have been working closely with an Italian weigh system manufacturer over the last

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6 months to develop the new Wireless Dynamic Weighing System, designed specifically for the Agricultural user.

The complete kit retails at just £6,995 and consists of a wooden levelling track to ensure stable and accurate reading, wireless aluminium weighing platforms with 6 premium stainless steel load cells per pad to provide accuracy of +/- 5kg and a digital colour weight indicator unit with touch screen and printer.

The complete system is easy to install, portable and most importantly accurate, providing peace of mind. Weigh in motion provides an accurate record of weights entering and leaving the farm. The 950mm by 611mm platforms are light weight, fully mobile and do not require expensive installation.

In order to take delivery of your weighbridge in time for 2015 harvest, orders need to be placed as soon as possible. Don’t miss out on

this fantastic new product! For more information on the weighbridge or to arrange a site survey, contact a member of the Spaldings team on 01522 507 600.

Invaluable customer feedback Spaldings listen to their customers’ feedback and respond accordingly. This year we have reviewed and reduced our prices across a number of product ranges including power tools, compressors and oils as well as a vast number of other individual product lines.

Speak to one of our Account Managers’ today for our revised prices or register for an online account and view prices and place your order through our website.

For more information on any of the above, contact 01522 507 600, email agsales@spaldings.co.uk or view the product range at www.spaldings.co.uk.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 23

| Cereals

Warwick Trailers are built for dependability With 59 Years of experience we know what works and what doesn’t. ur trailers’ are one of the strongest on the market today.

We are still sending parts out for trailers that are 30 years old. We are aware of the harsh conditions our trailers are subject to and we build with that in mind.

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To show our confidence we now offer a 2 year structural warranty. If one of our trailers fails, we will collect, repair and

deliver free of charge. We have two CAD stations with the latest 3D modelling packages. CAD systems are essential to building bespoke trailers, we prove the design before production starts.

To show our confidence we now offer a 2 year structural warranty With our own in house brake testing rolling road, all Fastmaster trailers are issued with a VOSA approved test certificate for the braking system. We like nothing more than designing and building bespoke trailers for specific customer requirements. If a customer wants one of our standard builds slightly tweaked... Not a problem.

With a new factory on the horizon, Warwick’s are here to stay!

24 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

BASIS announce Paul Singleton Project of the Year Award winner Leading Agricultural training provider, BASIS, has announced Paul Dovey as the winner of the first Paul Singleton Project of the Year Award at Cereals 2015. aul Dovey clinched the award for his project investigating the effects of seed treatments and varietal difference on farm-saved wheat seed from germination to emergence.

The trial examined the effects of seed treatments and varietal differences on winter wheat farmsaved seed (FSS) from germination to emergence.

Results were recorded at seven day intervals over a 28 day period and observations included the speed of emergence, germination percentage, root growth and seedling height.

The project concluded that FSS can be a cost effective and viable option provided that germination and seed-borne disease testing is

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conducted, and that the grain meets the industry recognised thresholds and standards.

Paul Dovey’s training was organised by Hampshire Training Providers run by Jenny Lewis, the lead trainer for the course was Julian Lewis of Octopus Agronomy Training.

The Paul Singleton Project of the Year Award was introduced in autumn 2014 to recognise the outstanding input that many candidates apply to their project, which is a fundamental element of the Certificate in Crop Protection.

The project requires significant crop protection content, personal practical involvement and original research.

Paul Dovey’s project was selected from the top five scoring projects and judged by a panel of BASIS exam chairmen following

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Cereals

L-R Jenny Lewis Paul Singleton Rob Simpson Paul Dovey and Julian Lewis

second marking and moderation.

Paul has been in the farming industry for over thirty years. He started his career as an apprentice, studying a National Certificate in Agriculture (NCA) before completing a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Organic Agriculture. He then went on to manage farms in Switzerland, Middlesex and Kent.

Currently, Paul works at Lake House Estate, where he manages the farm for the popstar Sting and Trudie Styler.

Speaking of receiving the award, Paul said: “Although my background is mainly in the organic sector, passing the FACTS and BASIS Crop Protection course has now given me a wider range of skills, knowledge and experience that I believe is now needed to manage farms in a sustainable way, both environmentally and financially.

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“The BASIS Certificate in Crop Protection course is intense, with a vast amount of information to be retained and processed. The project formed a large part of the work required to pass the course, and I thoroughly enjoyed doing the research and trials necessary to complete it, even though it was hard work! It was great news to hear that I passed but to receive recognition for my project is both unexpected and greatly appreciated.”

Paul added: “I am now greatly looking forward to the next chapter in my farming career where I will be taking up the position of Farm and Estate Manager at a 440ha private farming estate in Bruton, Somerset.”

Stephen Jacob, BASIS Business Development Manager, says: “We have seen some spectacular projects over the years, with candidates going to a

lot of effort to demonstrate their understanding of a particular subject. We felt it was only right to celebrate their achievements, and Paul Dovey is a very worthy recipient of the new award.”

The award has been named the Paul Singleton Project of the Year Award in gratitude and appreciation of the work and commitment that Paul Singleton has made to BASIS over the years.

During his many years at BASIS,

aking a profit, efficiency in how farmers produce and the ability to compete internationally are critical factors in ensuring a long-term future for the British arable sector at a time of falling prices and rising costs, NFU President Meurig Raymond said today.

Speaking at Cereals 2015, Mr Raymond said farmers and growers needed the right conditions to grow and access new markets, and the NFU’s work with the new Government would play a crucial role in this.

“We’ve seen the price of wheat almost half since 2012 and costs rise around 100 per cent in the same period – there’s no doubt that profitability in the

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Paul led the organisation as Managing Director, as an Exam Chairman, as a Member of the Education and Training Committee and in a number of Amenity roles including development of the Amenity Assured Standard, and Chairman of the Amenity Forum Education and Skills Committee.

Paul continues to offer his valuable advice and support to the management team, as and when required.

arable sector is under severe pressure,” said Mr Raymond.

“While the commodity prices are impervious, influencing government policy is more pertinent than ever – the NFU is at the forefront of this. The new government comes with a detailed and positive agenda for food and farming which notably includes many of the NFU’s lobbying asks.

“We will continue to work with the government for a better policy framework for farmers to grow more to then sell more both here and abroad and reverse the downward trend in our self-sufficiency. With the agriculture’s current economic climate, we are lobbying for these things to happen here and now.”

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 25

| Pests

Establishing the ground rules for CSFB With harvest around the corner, many growers will be considering the best tactics to get the next crop off to a strong start. AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds Caroline Nicholls considers the particular pressures for growers looking to harvest winter oilseed rape (WOSR) in 2016. eonicotinoid restrictions are still the key talking point and we have invested in a wide range of impactassessment activities since the restrictions were announced in 2013.

For example, our Winter Planting Survey 2014 – based on over 1,300 grower responses – found around 5.0% of the WOSR area originally planted was reported to have been lost to adult cabbage stem flea beetle (CSFB).

About 1.5% of this lost area was reported to have been successfully replanted, with the remaining 3.5% permanently lost – estimated to be equivalent to 22,000ha lost in England.

Integrated action Now the CSFB protection offered by seed treatments has gone, control needs to be

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regained by adopting integrated approaches based on nonchemical methods.

There was tremendous variation in crop damage across the UK in 2014. Although there are likely to be many causes of this variation, some common ground rules were established.

Firstly, it is good to gauge potential pest pressure by monitoring CSFB levels at harvest and assessing feeding damage on volunteer OSR. Secondly, it is essential to give the crop the best possible start in life. In 2014, it was often the crops drilled into dry/cloddy seed beds that were slow to get away which suffered the most damage.

Pesticide performance Last September, we also showed that resistance to pyrethroids in CSFB was widespread in England.

To limit the spread of resistance,

pyrethroid sprays should only be applied where there is evidence of high pest pressure at emergence or if thresholds are exceeded post emergence.

Whenever control is sought, it is recommended that full pyrethroid field rates are used. If control remains poor, a pyrethroid-based product should not be used again.

Thresholds Last year, AHDB issued a

publication to help growers manage pests and natural enemies in field crops. The Encyclopaedia of pests and natural enemies in field crops has information on pest thresholds – including ones for CSFB. To get a copy of this essential guide for all bug spotters, simply visit cereals.ahdb.org.uk/pests

Contact your RSPH accredited test centre: SX Environmental Unit 2, Scitmar Park Ind. Est. Courtauld Road, Basildon, Essex SS13 1ND Nationwide training venues T: 0800 0851 451 W: www.sxenv.com

26 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

Pest Solution Ltd Unit A6, Risby Business Park, Newmarket Road, Risby, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP28 6RD T: 01284 766 362 W: www.pestcontroltraining.co

Russell IPM Ltd Unit 45, First Avenue Deeside Flintshire CH5 2NU T: +44 1244 281 333 E: info@russellipm.com W: www.russellipm.com

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Pests

Use of Aluminium Phosphide when dealing with vertebrate pests Aluminium phosphide (often sold under the brand names Phostoxin or Talunex) is an effective, targeted way to deal with vertebrate pests. It’s an essential tool for farmers and land owners who manage their own pest control, particularly as it leaves no residue so there is no risk of secondary poisoning of non-target animals. However, as the chemical is so toxic, purchasers and users of aluminium phosphide have long since had to provide some evidence of training before buying the product.

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ith effect from November 26 2015 however, only specific accredited certificates can be used as evidence

of competency in the use of aluminium phosphide. This means that in order to purchase or legally use Phostoxin or Talunex, the buyer or user must have the correct certificate. This is as a

result of the requirements of the Plant Protection Products (Sustainable Use) Regulations 2012.

Only three certificates have been approved as sufficient proof

of competency, one of which is awarded by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), which has a long history in developing qualifications for the pest control industry. The RSPH level 2 award in using aluminium phosphide safely for the management of vertebrate pest is a two-unit qualification which covers the theory and practice of aluminium phosphide use. The qualification is assessed by a short written test and a practical exercise and has the full public backing of Rentokil, Killgerm, Agrovista, British Pest Control Association and National Pest Technicians Association. A feature of the RSPH qualification is that candidates can be assessed by tutors running approved courses and do not have to go to a separate assessment centre following their training, saving the candidates time and money. There are, of course, very rigorous quality assurance procedures in place to ensure that the assessment is carried out fairly and safely, and that only candidates who can meet all of the qualification’s assessment criteria are awarded the RSPH certificate.

Only three certificates have been approved as sufficient proof of competency, one of which is awarded by RSPH November 2015 is now only a few months away, and there has been a recent surge in users of aluminium phosphide signing up for the RSPH certification so it’s advisable to book yourself on to a course well in advance of the November 26 deadline to avoid a last minute rush. Approved centres can be found by using the centrefinder on the RSPH web-site.

Courses, including assessment, will normally take two days but can be shorter for experienced users or by reading course material before the start of the course.

In order to be able to continue using this product, make sure that you obtain the RSPH qualification.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 27

| Animal Health

Scaly Leg problems?

Prepare for lungworm

Regularly check for the tell tail signs of crusty, white deposits on enlarged, rough and lumpy legs where the scales have become raised.

Cattle farmers are warned to be alert for signs of lungworm in their herds this summer according to the June NADIS Parasite Forecast sponsored by Merial Animal Health.

iving entirely on the bird Scaly Leg Mite cause intense irritation and discomfort for the bird as they burrow under the scales and into the skin of the legs and sometimes the comb and wattles. In severe cases of infestation the birds find it difficult to walk, may lose a toe and become severely deformed.

Caused by Cnemidocoptes mutans and evident as tiny white spherical creatures with a diameter of less than 0.5mm Scaly Leg Mite is difficult to spot in the early stages. For this reason we recommend you use Scaly Leg Ointment regularly as a deterrent and to treat infested birds. Scaly Leg Mite affects birds of all ages, although older birds and feathered leg breeds tend to be more susceptible. Affected birds should be isolated and all housing cleared and thoroughly cleaned.

Barrier Animal Healthcare designed and manufacture a product called Scaly Leg Ointment that suffocates scaly leg parasites instantly, whilst soothing and calming irritation.

Scaly Leg Ointment contains the purest Lanolin combined with 100% Natural Herbal & Essential Oils & will not taint the eggs.

Use regularly as a barrier: When buying in birds always check them very carefully and treat them as a matter of course before introducing them to clean birds.

Use in accordance with the instructions on the container. As an ongoing maintenance generously massage into the legs, feet, comb and wattle, every few weeks.

Where infestation exists: Affected birds should be isolated until clear of the problem.

Generously massage into the legs,

nvaccinated animals of all ages may be at risk, but clinical husk will be more likely in youngstock that are not part of a strategic worming programme, and naïve bought-in cattle that are introduced to herds where lungworm is a recognized problem.

Sioned Timothy, veterinary adviser for Merial, says: “Coughing, particularly during activity, is often the earliest sign of husk, but this can rapidly progress to severe respiratory disease, particularly if the pasture challenge is high. Farmers should be vigilant for signs of lungworm, particularly on farms with a history of disease: husk should be suspected in any cattle coughing at grass whatever their age. Early diagnosis and treatment is key to achieving the best outcome.”

Cattle infected with lungworm will rapidly lose condition, and dramatic milk drops can occur in lactating cattle. This can result in pronounced production losses that will be compounded in outbreaks where deaths occur.

Animals that were not vaccinated prior to turnout are at risk of infection. Last year saw a high number of cases across all age groups of cattle. Overwintered larvae and those shed by carrier cattle may contribute to the pasture challenge in the coming months which could result in outbreaks later in the year, particularly if the weather turns warm and wet – encouraging larval dispersal and development. Where husk is suspected, farmers should consult their vet or animal health advisor to ensure that effective treatment of the whole group is implemented as soon as possible.

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U

feet, comb andBASF's wattle,Jonathan repeat Ball every 5-6 days to break the egg cycle and get on top of the problem.

Barrier Animal Healthcare designed and manufacture a product called Scaly Leg Ointment that suffocates scaly leg parasites instantly, whilst soothing and calming irritation.

Suitable for use in both organic and intensive farming systems.

This product falls into the exempt category of products which use only plant oils as active ingredients, as listed in Annexe IIB (Pesticides) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 (as amended) and is therefore suitable to use in organic systems.

For more information and further product details visit www.redmite.com

28 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

“Strategic worming programmes using broadspectrum wormers such as those containing ivermectin (IVOMEC® Classic, IVOMEC® Super - which also contains clorsulon) and eprinomectin (EPRINEX®) to control gutworms, will also control lungworm,” says Ms Timothy.

“Where no strategic programme is in place, farmers should treat all individuals in the affected group once lungworm is diagnosed.

Group 3 wormers are effective against all parasitic stages of lungworm. IVOMEC® Classic, available as an injectable or pouron formulation, provides a flexible treatment option for youngstock, whilst EPRINEX® is particularly suitable for dairy cattle, as it has the benefit of a zero milk withhold.”

Incidents of clinical parasitic gastroenteritis (PGE) peak in cattle during August and September. If implementing a strategic treatment programme such as IVOMEC® treatment at 3,8 and 13 weeks after turnout, it is critical that cattle remain on the same pasture for the entire grazing season or are moved to lower risk ground, such as silage aftermath. Untreated animals should not be introduced to the group as this will increase the risk of disease.

In sheep, lambs on safe grazing should not require worming until around 3-4 months of age. Those grazing contaminated pastures will become increasingly at risk of PGE from a build-up of infective larvae on the grass, as the season progresses.

Timing of initial worm treatments will depend on a number of factors including the treatment given to ewes at turnout, grazing conditions, stocking density and the weather.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Education

Down on the farm Moreton Morrell College has been a centre for agricultural training in the UK since 1948, and at its heart is Nethermoreton Farm. et over 250 hectares, the farm operates as a real commercial business, giving students vital practical experience alongside their academic studies.

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All students work directly with the farm staff and take part in all the daily duties - milking, feeding, bedding and general management of the livestock.

The farm’s dairy herd consists of 160 Holstein Friesian and 3 jerseys. The farm has a commercial milk contract and delivers around 100,000 litres a month which ends up in traditional glass bottles on the doorsteps of customers in London.

Milk yield remains consistent, bucking the national trend despite a slight reduction in the herd over the last few months and lower milk prices. This has been achieved by

a focus on the quality of milk – including close monitoring of diet and reducing mastitis – which has also paid off by increasing income through bonus payments.

Changes have also been made to the arable side of the farm, with the aim of the farm producing more of its own food and becoming even more sustainable.

Fields have been turned over to lucerne for forage, cutting down on the need to buy straw, and to red clover to provide valuable protein.

Learning on the land Moreton Morrell College students are an integral part of the farm team. Supported by experienced staff, they get involved in all aspects of the business learning the jobs involved with everyday farming.

All students work directly with the farm staff and take part in all the daily duties - milking, feeding, bedding and general management of the livestock. As well as doing practicals on the farm as part of academic timetables, students work on the farm for a day and a

“The agriculture course offers practical skills as well as all the background knowledge needed to work in the farming industry.”

Mollie, Level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture

half each week, including rotas for the 5.30am morning shift.

Students also experience field operations including ploughing, cultivation work, muck spreading, grassland management and mowing. The students will also work with contractors on jobs such as maize-drilling, giving them an all-round experience of running a commercial farm.

Lambing provides another opportunity for students to gain

invaluable experience. Supervised by experienced staff, the students are on around the clock to look after the ewes and new-born lambs. The farm has 390 breeding ewes, producing over 500 lambs this spring.

For more information about agriculture and countryside courses at Moreton Morrell College, go to www.warwickshire.ac.uk

Door is open for land-based careers The land-based sector comprises agricultural and related trades, such as farming, fisheries and forestry work. It also includes horticulture; gardeners, landscapers and grounds people. Despite being one of the smaller occupational sectors in the economy, it offers a vast range of jobs. griculture is not limited to manual labour; there is an increasing need for technology. As a direct result, job specifications have become more advanced to accommodate levels of technical skill and ability.

Employers report higher than average numbers of applicants lacking the relevant skills so understanding what qualifications you need can help you succeed in the industry.

On-the-job training is commonplace for many jobs in the sector. Although some do not require formal qualifications, others may need nationally recognised qualifications. For example, a National Certificate in Arboriculture is necessary for a career as an arboricutlural officer.

Land-based engineering businesses work with an array of machinery including anything from tractors and combine harvesters to chainsaws and milking equipment so qualifications in mechanisation

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are essential to ensure safe and effective working.

Apprenticeships are widely available in the sector, allowing for hands-on experience as well as a recognised qualification. The type of qualification required will depend largely on the job that interests you.

An award in horticultural skills allows entry to jobs as a gardener or grounds person, whilst a certificate in chainsaw maintenance is essential for the majority of jobs in forestry and arboriculture. Qualifications in fisheries management or fish husbandry can greatly aid progression into careers in fish farming, despite not being a necessity.

Advanced qualifications, such as a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture, enable progression to higher education or to a technical or supervisory role in the agricultural industry, while foundation degrees in landscape design offer insight into domestic and amenity landscapes, technical

skills and business management.

Volunteering with environmental organisations can be a useful way to access paid employment.

The Royal Horticultural Society www.rhs.org.uk and LANTRA www.lantra.co.uk– the Sector Skills Council for land-based and environmental studies- are useful sources of information for jobs in the sector, encompassing everything from gardening and

aquaculture to floristry and farriery.

Many outdoor jobs require stamina and a willingness to work alone in remote locations so the right attitude, coupled with an understanding of the demands of a job, can be as important as the right qualifications. To find out more you can speak to a National Careers Service adviser on 0800 100 900 or visit nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 29

| Livestock

The Livestock Event 2015 The must go farmer event for fresh thinking and free of charge. he Livestock Event, the UK’s leading livestock trade show held at The NEC, Birmingham on 8 and 9 July and organised by RABDF, will be welcoming over 400 trade exhibitors, providing the most comprehensive offering of any UK event, all under one roof in the most easily accessed location.

All dairy, beef and sheep farmers will be able to take up the pre-event complimentary ticket

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offer, get away for the day and seek some fresh thinking that will keep their businesses on track and remain competitive.

The Event which will be officially opened on the first morning by farm minister, George Eustice MP, will be show casing the latest equipment including over 100 new products. Cutting edge technology will be complemented with timely financial and business advice to help all livestock farmers stay a head of the game.

Visitors will be able to watch the

cream of the dairy cattle entered in the National Dairy Show featuring six different breeds along with some of the UK’s highest performance recorded beef cattle in the National Charolais Show, the Aberdeen Angus National Junior Championship and the inaugural South Devon Performance Championship. Added to that is the National Lleyn Sheep Competition.

Away from the ringside, farmers will have the opportunity to evaluate automated systems - the award winning live robotic milking and feeding demonstration is returning with 40 commercial cows and the UK’s first live robotic feeding demonstration of beef finishing cattle. New for this year is the live calf rearing demonstration, show casing feeding and housing systems including the Roundhouse.

Farmers will also have the opportunity to have their say in two new industry forums staged on the Barclays stand – for dairy and for beef and sheep. Useful tips that can be put in to practice next day on farm can be picked up from The Healthy Feet Workshop, Forage Field Exhibition and 70 short seminar sessions focused on animal health, nutrition, youngstock and practical farming issues.

UK’s 1st live robotic feeding system demo for beef cattle The UK’s first ever live robotic feeding system demonstration for beef cattle will be staged at the Livestock Event.

The demonstration will comprise 20 loose housed finished cattle fed by a Lely Vector automatic system which will ensure they have continual access to a self-mixed ration in the feed passage.

This live demonstration organised by Lely in Machinery Hall 16 will be of interest to all beef finishers seeking to improve livestock performance and farm efficiency, says Lely’s Tomas Cooney.

Stepping up sheep Sheep will be stepping up their presence at the Livestock Event.

The section will be featuring some of the UK’s most progressive genetics, together with a grass clinic and husbandry demonstration, whilst the British Wool Marketing Board will be making its debut. The National Lleyn Sheep Competition is back for the second year showcasing the best of commercial.

On Thursday visitors will be able to share their views in the new Livestock Farming Forum. The

Livestock Event free ticket Pick up the INVITATION to download your FREE ticket to Livestock Event for either Wednesday 8 or Thursday 9 July.

The invitation will be found for • GB dairy farmers: in DairyCo’s All Things Dairy, June issue • GB beef and sheep farmers from NFU Go to www.livestockevent.co.uk click on REDEEM INVITATION premidnight on Tuesday 7 July.

Enter the unique six digit code on the INVITATION card, print off the ETICKET and bring to the event. Whilst online, why not purchase an additional ticket for your partner or stockman at a 25% discount.

30 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Livestock

panel includes NSA’s Phil Stocker, TFA’s Stephen Wyrill and NFU deputy president, Minette Batters, chaired by Barclays’ Oliver McEntyre.

Visitors will be able to find out more about performance recorded Hampshire Down, Lleyn and Meatlinc.. The Texel Sheep Society will also be discussing its groundbreaking work on the genetics Innovis will be discussing progress made to its genomics project, the first and most extensive study and development

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

of new breeding technologies within the UK behind mastitis and footrot in sheep which in turn will help to reduce reliance on antibiotics.

Some of the sector’s technical leaders will be providing sound advice which producers can put in to practice the next day.

Grassmaster’s Charlie Morgan will be staging a one to one grass clinic on Wednesday and discussing how, when rotationally grazed grass is combined with high performance genetics, output

can improve by 20%.

The sheep husbandry demonstration staged by Agrimin, Ritchie, Shearwell Data and Sterimatic will feature best practice for bolus administration, reducing animal stress whilst handling, EID for effective flock management and carrying out clean and effective livestock vaccinations.

The British Wool Marketing Board will be explaining this year’s current pricing structure, featuring its Campaign for Wool initiative and inviting producers to try their

hand in its Identify the Breed competition.

The National Lleyn Sheep Competition will feature pens of sheep from the breed’s clubs from throughout the country for judging

by John Geldard, Kendal on Wednesday. The society is also collaborating with Hampshire Down and Texel to demonstrate consistent quality prime crossbred lambs on display.

Visit: www.livestockevent.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 31

| Livestock

New Bauer Turbomix provides effective, powerefficient mixing of slurry ready for spreading Heavy-duty construction, efficient macerating of fibrous material and a blade design that makes the most of available tractor power are features of the new Bauer Turbomix MTXH slurry mixer. he tractormounted device is designed for use in slurry lagoons and below-floor slurry tanks to homogenise solids and liquids in readiness for field application by tanker or umbilical system.

“Although a slurry mixer is a pretty simple device, a lot of thought has gone into making this new Bauer model one of the most effective and efficient on the market,” says Adrian Tindall, UK & Ireland sales manager for Bauer.

“The special design of the blades, together with the unusual protection ring, makes a real

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difference to its performance.”

The Bauer Turbomix MTXH has a cranked frame to position the mixing blades, which are mounted on a shaft housed within a 120mm x 120mm square section tube constructed from 4mm galvanised steel.

Inside this tube, the propeller shaft is supported by multiple bearings and runs in oil for guaranteed constant lubrication.

Together with the heavy-duty build of the tube, these measures ensure the Turbomix MTXH is robust enough to handle a demanding workload.

Two hydraulic cylinders raise and lower the frame and a third is

32 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

available to tilt the shaft to get access to an underground tank – an opening of no more than 80cm square is needed.

Each of the three overlapping blades has a sharp cutting edge and a guard ring surrounding the 600mm diameter assembly is shaped to channel the flow of material over the blades and so optimise their chopping performance.

The design is also very powerefficient – according to comparative tests at research centres in Austria, the Turbomix MTXH recording the lowest power consumption for homogenising slurry, converting pto power into

thrust more effectively than other slurry mixers tested.

There are ‘pushing’ blades, considered best for incorporating surface crust, and ‘pulling’ blades for the most efficient mixing of solids and liquids. Both are available on shafts 4m, 5m and 6m long designed to work effectively in storage facilities of 1000-1400cu m.

An ‘L’ version with larger diameter blades and a reinforced tube in four lengths from 7m to 10m is also available.

Prices start at £2710 for the 4m Turbomixer MTXH; a 6m version is £3000.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Livestock

For slurry management.. Supplementary summer think Tramspread feeding at grass ensures high dry matter intakes and consistent yields on Yorkshire Dales farm Tramspread of Mendlesham, near Stowmarket, Suffolk markets a comprehensive range of digestate and slurry handling equipment throughout the UK and Eastern Europe. are is needed when applying digestate as a fertiliser top dressing due to the nutrient value being higher than the usual, typical livestock slurries. With this in mind, farmers and contractors would be wise to take advantage of the latest equipment and techniques which will deliver their nutrient in the most efficient and effective manner.

These days, it's fair to assume that most operators are using 12m - 36m dribble bars (fitted with a flow meter) with macerator distributors on both slurry tankers and umbilical systems for application and therefore, getting the right amount of Nitrogen, Phosphate and Potassium (N,P and K) will involve testing the digestate using a slurry test kit or sending a sample off to the lab.

Tramspread can offer equipment and service meeting

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the very highest expectations and has been applying slurry to land and growing crops since 1988.

These days they cover five counties with four umbilical systems spreading up to 600,000m³ per year of farm slurry and digestate with 30% applied in the autumn and 70% applied on crops in the spring as top dressing using Tramspread’s 24m dribble bars with ISO BUS technology, transporting the flow meter’s information to John Deere’s Green Star3 2630 touch screen display allowing the downloading of m³/ha and total m³ applied. The tractors are also equipped with Star Fire GPS receiver for field application mapping and auto steer.

Tramspread are also well known as suppliers of slurry and digestate handling equipment.

Further information is available from Terry Baker Tel: 01449 766133 www.tramspread.co.uk email: info@tramspread.co.uk

Making sure the varying quality of summer grass doesn’t lead to an unexpected dip in yield is an on-going challenge for many dairy farmers and none more so than for a high-yielding Yorkshire Dales herd grazing land running to 800ft.

ut the Pratt family of Bellerby, near Leyburn, continue to feed a carefully formulated summer-time TMR mix to ensure they achieve the highest level of dry mater intakes every day.

“It keeps the cows milking to their full potential despite,” says James Pratt who farms with his brother Richard in partnership with their parents Alan and Edith.

The family’s well-known Studdah herd of 120 cows has an average yield of 10,300 litres at 4% fat and 3.3% protein. But with the highest yielding cows giving over

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50 litres on grazing land rising to 800ft above sea level, the formulation and month-by-month monitoring of the herd’s summer rationing is considered a critical part of the herd’s management.

“Feeding cows in the summer is as important as it is in the winter – end even more so because we rely totally on the TMR diet and feed no cake in the parlour,” adds James Pratt.

Although the herd continues to follow a traditional pattern of being turned out to grass, the high yielding cows are kept inside at night to provide the cows with an additional feed from a TMR mix and ensure they achieve a daily Cont...

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 33

| Livestock

Next steps taken to push progress on carcase splitting rules Cont... intake of 24kg of dry matter.

“When we moved to the new farm in 2003 we started milking in a new 16:16 parlour and that was when we decided not to continuing to feed cake in the parlour.”

The summer TMR diet comprises grass silage, wholecrop silage, straw, a blend, the molasses feed Ezi-Flo Sweetlic and minerals and meets the needs of the average daily yield of 35 litres. Although the low yielders stay out at grass both day and night during the summer, they still have access to a higher forage based TMR diet at milking times.

“With high yielding cows at grass the challenge is not to overrely on the feed value of the grazing. We put a very palatable diet in front of the cows every day because it’s essential if we are to reach a high level of dry mater intake we’re aiming for.”

Molasses has been a long-term inclusion in the TMR mix to optimise palatability as well as increase the level of sugar in the diet to optimise rumen function.

“Our aim is to achieve consistency in the way we feed the herd in both summer and winter.

Our diet is very similar all-yearround with the aim of maintaining a consistent yield,” says James Pratt.

Dr Phil Holder of molasses suppliers E D and F Man says fresh grass is a decent source of sugar and protein but it’s not necessarily enough to meet the needs of high yielding dairy cows.

“Well balanced diets should contain 6-7% sugar to maximise rumen function and overall performance. Dairy farmers shouldn’t assume that the molasses part of their cow diets isn’t needed in the summer. Even cows that are going out to grass during the day and being housed overnight should be fed a TMR mix that includes energy from one of the lower-sugar option molassed feeds.”

Dr Holder says protein intake levels can almost double when cows move from silage to grazed grass and the diet has to provide a mechanism to cope with that.

“And where concentrate levels

are being reduced its essential not to underestimate the role of sugar to cope with this excess protein.

Where the emphasis is on grass to produce milk it’s even more important not to lose sight of how much sugar there is in the cake, as well as being aware of the protein and energy levels. The sugar helps mop up the protein.”

Jim McRobert of Carrs Billington oversees the cow diets of the Studdah herd which includes between 1-2kg per head per day of molasses.

“With high yielding cows at grass the challenge is not to over-rely on the feed value of the grazing” “The summer and winter diet changes very little because achieving consistency is the key to maintaining production, cow health and fertility. We use molasses to ensure we achieve the highest dry matter intakes to sustain cows giving upwards of 10,000 litres. Driving dry matter intakes is absolutely vital to avoid the impact of any seasonal variability in the quality of the grazed grass,” says Jim McRobert.

The herd runs at around 45% conception rate to first service with a calving interval of 398 days. Cell count is 100 and BactoScan 12.

The original Studdah herd was lost during the foot and mouth outbreak but was re-established with the purchase of the entire Tarnbrook herd from Lancashire.

Continuing to develop strong cow families within the herd is an important part of the breeding policy and fulfils the brothers’ strong interest in Holstein breeding and genetics. The Dream family is one of the herd’s most well-known of which 31 have been classified Excellent. Six Studdah cows have achieved 100 tonne yields.

“We’re not intending to expand the herd but to continue to manage the cows to a high standard and enable them to reach their full potential,” says James.

34 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

Following a cross-industry meeting in February, and numerous meetings with Defra and Food Standards Agency (FSA) staff in the months since, the National Farmers Union (NFU) and National Sheep Association (NSA) have reached the point of being able to formally ask the Farming Minister for a change to carcase splitting rules for sheep. umerous organisations from across the UK have come in behind the request to change the rules, including bodies representing farmers, auctioneers and abattoirs. All have agreed that moving away from a ‘mouthing’ system to a calendar-system for determining when to split carcases would bring benefits for the whole supply chain, domestic and export markets. Instead of checking lambs for the eruption of their first set of permanent incisors, the proposed new system would see a simple cut-off date of 30th June each year. All lambs sent to slaughter before this date would be deemed to be under 12 months of age and, therefore, not required to have their carcase split.

Phil Stocker, NSA Chief Executive, says: “Despite there being no evidence of BSE crossing species from cattle to sheep in field conditions, nor evidence that scrapie poses any risk to human health, TSE regulations were brought in as a ‘precautionary measure’ and any change, however minor is met with resistance from Europe. While our two organisations will continue to fight for wider-scale reform at a European level, we feel more immediate gains can be made with the proposed change to a calendar-system. Following an unprecedented level of industry consultation and detailed discussions with Defra and FSA officials, NFU and NSA have confirmed this change could be made at a UK level, not EU, so we

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have formally requested George Eustice, Defra Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, to go ahead with this alternative implementation of the TSE regulations.”

NSA and NFU argue the change to a date-based system would not necessarily see a massive reduction in the number of carcases being split, although likely to lead to fewer older unsplit lambs entering the food chain, but would remove a great deal of uncertainty in the supply chain, as well as save money from not having to check for teeth in markets and abattoirs. It would also rid the UK sector of a barrier to more exports.

Charles Sercombe, NFU Livestock Board Chairman, explains: “We have congratulated Mr Eustice on his Great British Food unit and feel this proposed change on TSEs sits perfectly with its aims. With a drive to grow our industry through more exports, removing the uncertainty around levels of supply of unsplit carcases would be a very positive thing, particularly with our largest lamb market, France, for whom an unsplit carcase is ordinarily essential. In discussion with French importers, we have heard that such a move would be favourable to our exports. We believe this will also pay dividends when it comes to extending our red meat exports beyond the EU.” NSA and NFU will continue to develop thinking and understanding about this subject as Mr Eustice consults with Defra and FSA on the best way forward.

Chinese visit for wool industry delegation of Chinese wool industry representatives are currently in the UK visiting a number of key aspects of the UK

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wool supply chain hosted by British Wool Marketing Board (BWMB).

The delegates, who come from a wide range of Chinese textile organisations are in the UK to gain a greater understanding of

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| Sheep

Sheep EID and tagging Record keeping is an important aspect in sheep production. Performance record keeping helps to identify which ewes should be kept or culled, which lambs should be kept as replacements and which rams sire the best lambs. his begins with individual animal identification – the ideal being permanent, resistant to loss or tearing, easy to read from a distance and easy to apply, giving all the information desired at a glance. Unfortunately, this doesn't exist, but there are some methods that come pretty close.

The harsh facts of life today are that you need to be master of more than one trade and have the time to make the most of the resources that you and your business have to generate revenue, but this is where “easier management” fits in, and ways that ensure you are able to boost existing business productivity, develop new revenue streams or simply improve your quality of life.

Electronic Identification (EID) can make it far easier to record and monitor performance on farm compared to using pen and paper and this can contribute significantly to the improved management of sheep. Following the introduction of the EID sheep regulations in 2010 and the Animal Reporting and Movement Service (ARAMS) electronic database for sheep in 2014, many farmers have invested in EID tag readers to ensure accuracy of their records.

What are the benefits of EID? • Fast and accurate collection of information • Reduced paperwork and transcription errors • Speeds up routine weighing and medicine administration - the potential to reduce labour requirements • Immediate access to animal data can help with management decisions, e.g Daily live-weight gains (DLWG) from last weighing could influence decision to sell, continue to feed or identify potential animal health issues • Prevent any potential losses through selling stock still in assurance residency periods, etc

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If you have a question or problem with EID, Shearwell will be able to help and answer it. hearwell’s reputation is for quality products in both sheep and cattle tags with extremely high retention rates. This is backed up by excellent customer service from the Shearwell team, who are constantly receiving compliments from customers. Shearwell has sold over 50 million animal tags worldwide in the last five years and are now the UK’s leading supplier of sheep and cattle tags. Based on a working farm the company prides itself in its knowledge of the industry, its fast efficient service and its competitive prices.

In 1994 Shearwell was one of the pioneers of Electronic Identification (EID) in livestock conducting trials for both beef and sheep. This long term knowledge base has given the company a wealth of in depth knowledge of EID. Shearwell sets itself apart from others by supporting the full range of equipment, giving the customer added value as he

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the wool industry as a result of the significant increase in the volume of UK wool exported to China in recent years, says BWMB chief executive officer Ian Hartley.

“With exports of British Wool to China now accounting for about 30% of auction sales it is important for the Chinese industry to learn more about British Wool.

Shearwell provides a complete solution

• Potentially less stressful for the stock than having to manually read ear tags • Data easy to upload to spreadsheets or farm software packages to interrogate or monitor performance Electronic Identification (EID) can make it far easier to record and monitor performance on farm compared to using pen and paper So how does it work?

Current European Regulations for sheep enforce the use of Low Frequency (LF) Electronic identifiers that meet ISO standards. These can be either Half Duplex (HDX) or Full Duplex (FDX-B) – both of which are effective systems, however some organisations prefer HDX as there is less interference in noisy situations such as an abattoir.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) readers transmit magnetic fields from their antenna that activate the passive chip in the tag.

If you haven't already invested in this technology, it is certainly worth it, however if you are considering this or also investing in related equipment such as software, readers and weight scales, be sure you are very clear what you want from the system and most suppliers should be able to produce a system to meet your needs, as the beauty of this is that if there is no exact fit, you may be able to have a bespoke system to meet your needs.

knows there is back-up when buying Shearwell products.

Shearwell provides a full solution with a range of readers, recording equipment and software to cater for all requirements. The Stick Reader stores lists of animals to download to your PC for printing and attaching to movement documentation.

Shearwell has also developed StockMove Express, a free app for Android devices and Apple iPhones, which retrieves individual or batch data from the Stick Reader and saves them in a free to use online holding register ( www.nlmd-lt.co.uk). This online database is being used by farmers, collection centres and abattoirs as their preferred interface to ARAMS – offering a far simpler and more user-friendly solution with the convenience of having your animal data in your pocket.

Shearwell Data Tel. 01643 841611 www.shearwell.co.uk

We are, therefore, pleased to host this study visit, organised by the Nanjing Wool Market, to look at the wool supply chain from farm to auction here in the UK.”

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 35

| Renewables

Anaerobic Digestion, an ideal fit for farms – but don’t take our word for it!

Over the last couple of months, we have outlined in Farming Monthly how anaerobic digestion (AD) is an ideal fit for virtually any farming model, as demonstrated by the number of agricultural plants having doubled to 147 over the past year alone.

D is sometimes seen as a renewable energy technology – but it offers much more than just stable low carbon electricity, heat and gas. The non-energy benefits of AD can help farms of all types and sizes reduce their input costs and carbon footprint, most obviously by replacing artificial fertiliser with digestate, a nutrient-rich biofertiliser.

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Farms considering AD need to consider what they are looking to achieve, and what feedstocks they have available, and design the project accordingly. To help farmers ascertain whether AD might work for them, ADBA’s free Farmers Consultancy Service will look at each individual site, the waste it produces and the farm’s own needs, to assess how much waste would be needed to operate a plant in a cost-effective way.

To help farmers decide if AD is

36 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

right for them, I have spoken to a selection of different farmers – all AD operators from across the country managing plants of varying scales and using different feedstock mixes. I asked them for a frank assessment of their experience exploring, building and operating an AD plant and have included their responses – in their own words.

These case studies emphasise the importance of good advice and learning from the experience of

those who have gone before.

ADBA provides a range of options for farming businesses to do just that, with ADBA membership offering access to experienced operator groups and a wealth of guidance material; including a free copy of the Practical Guide to AD.

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| Renewables

James Hart Director of J.J. Power Ltd: Small Scale, Gloucestershire. eedstock: The 700ha farm includes 630ha arable, 100 suckler beef cows, 4 broiler chicken sheds and did have a 400 sow pig unit. On a daily basis the 350kW plant now uses 3 tonnes of chicken litter and makes up the rest with forage maize and hybrid rye as well as a small amount of pasteurised food waste from a neighbouring AD plant. This is significantly different from the envisaged feedstock ration and is more expensive than was originally intended.

Why AD: With large levels of dilute liquid slurry and concentrated chicken litter, it seemed to make sense to put it through an AD plant. The energy generated from those manures isn’t massive but potential odours are reduced through digestion. The loss of the pig slurry is not huge in terms of energy replacement though that replacement comes at a cost rather than “free”. The digestate is effective and reduces our fertiliser bill, albeit not by quite as much as we had hoped. The annual cost to spread is the same as we used to spend on the raw manures though it is difficult to spread at less than the cost of buying fertiliser so it remains a significant cost.

Challenges: Being tenant farmers, one of the greatest barriers was raising £1.4 million and we were lucky enough to get a sizeable European grant. Planning was not an issue for us as we weren’t importing extra material in the initial plan. The addition of the food waste permit was very expensive and not viable were it not for the agreement with a local company to deliver sufficient material each year Another challenge has been budgets from 2010 which suggested that electricity prices would rise each year. The reality is that they haven’t, and we are currently selling at 80% of the price budgeted in 2010.

Making AD work: An AD plant needs “full time” monitoring, even when operating smoothly, to get the most out of it and cannot be the last job done in the morning. If there are problems

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Stephen Temple Director of J.F. Temple & Son Ltd: Small Scale, Norfolk. he plant: The 550ac mixed dairy & arable farm operates a 170kW plant. The plant takes slurry from our 100 milking cows, whey from our cheesemaking, lower quality maize silage (leaving the best for the cows), energy beet and wholecrop.

Why AD: We needed to comply with NVZ restrictions on dairy slurry which were being introduced at the time, and wanted to ensure some financial return on the investment.

We also had a heat requirement which AD could satisfy.

Challenges: 1 Having self-financed the plant for £750,000, capital costs certainly proved a challenge.

2 Planning restrictions.

3 Environmental Agency permitting (particularly with respect to retrospective changes).

4 The cost & logistical complexities involved with grid connections.

Almost every part of plant has had to be modified or replaced to achieve reliable operation. As one of the pioneering on-farm AD models, we relied on professional engineering expertise on site to ensure that the plant remain efficiently operational.

These initial technical niggles are, however, something which more recent systems should have ironed out.

Making AD work: We utilise as much heat from the CHP as possible for: grain drying; dairy hot water; cheesemaking process heat; heating the farmhouse and 3 farm cottages; and warm drinking water

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for cows. It is fully integrated into our farming system, utilising all digestate as fertiliser. We are constrained by planning restrictions and permitting to sourcing all feedstock from our farm.

Advice to farmers considering AD: Talk to as many operators with similar size plants, with similar feedstock, as possible before making any commitment.

Talk to those who have been maintaining the proposed equipment for some time before accepting the equipment in your installation.

Ensure the plant is designed for ease of maintenance and access to all powered machinery, also ease of washdown and cleanup after maintenance activities (as simple a thing as ensuring that all concrete areas fall to a drain where small spillages can be collected.)

Adopt a plant design which could accommodate the worst possible failure – for example, if the tank or pipework (above or below ground) fails? Could the plant manage flammable and toxic (hydrogen sulphide) gas leaks?

Finally, plan to make best use of digestate - store to ensure that it’s used at the optimal time of year. Also digestate could be pumped underground to point of use so as to reduce tractor traffic and cost. Integrate the system into the farming operation.

What would we have done differently: We have learnt so much about physically handling the feedstock; had we understood this earlier we would have saved a lot of redesign.

it can take all day to resolve and so you can’t expect a plant to flourish without you investing sufficient time. As we pass our 4th birthday we are beginning to wear things out and our running costs are sure to increase from now on as we spend more and more repairing and replacing worn out equipment.

Advice to others considering AD: Initial suggestions of feedstock requirement was over optimistic and so we need more feedstock that was initially budgeted for.

Doing your homework before investing in a plant is therefore very important.

While there were issues with AD in 2010 in terms of available UK knowledge, the domestic market has now developed substantially offering the necessary technical and advisory support. Consultants can still be unreliable, however, as headline figures are often not suitable as every situation is different and so talking to other AD operators is the best way to really get an idea of what you should expect and what the pitfalls are. It is also important to have the Environment Agency on side from the beginning as they have a big say in design due to ever tightening restrictions on what we can and can’t do regarding plant inputs, and most importantly the storage and use of digestate.

Digestate is useful if you can store and spread locally to the plant. Using umbilical onto arable and grass land is the only way to get close to revenue neutral. As soon as it is transported anywhere the costs far outweigh the fertiliser benefit and become another pressure factor on the bottom line.

We would say that AD is a good fit for some but not all. To realise the potential of an AD plant you MUST have an on-site use for the heat and electric.

Only then will it make for a profitable business that adds to the existing business.

What would we have done differently: If we were to do it again we would look to co-locate the CHP near a local school or business with a substantial heat and electric requirement.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 37

| Renewables

Alistair Wannop

Duncan Worth

MD od Linstock Castle AD: Medium Scale, N. Cumbria.

Chairman of QV Foods: Medium Scale, Lincolnshire.

he Plant: 1200ac mixed dairy and arable farm operating a 1.1MW plant. The feedstock mix includes: muck and slurry from the dairy heifer rearing operation; grass silage; maize silage; and whole crop hybrid rye.

Why AD: We were at a point where we need to make a decision.

Expanding our herd of 400 milking cows to around 600-800 required a considerable financial investment, not just for the livestock but also farm buildings equipment. Having investigated a range of options, we found AD and thought the stability this could bring was attractive, volatility in milk and cereal prices was a real consideration. We visited Germany and Austria and thought that it looked achievable, that they weren’t doing anything that we couldn’t do. Thought it was a good fit for our farm.

Challenges: When we looked into AD, the key barriers include: capital costs; access to finance; planning restrictions; and grid connection limitations.

The lack of familiarity with the technology was a real barrier in accessing funds, we had to do a lot of educating, and there was a feeling that the technology was risky because it wasn’t proven in the UK – despite evidence to the contrary. Understanding has improved since we first built our plant in March 2012, and we have seen some improvements in access to finance.

The spectre of degression is, however, a big issue now.

Realistically if you are considering AD on farm you have to think about establishing a use for the heat.

There are still significant barriers that need to be overcome, especially from the point of view of a congenital farmer. With the right business model, however, AD can prove a worthwhile investment.

Making AD work: By structuring the farm business around the plant, you can ensure

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that you maximise the potential returns from AD. There are, however, more options now available for farmers to incorporate small-scale AD plants alongside existing farming operations with 100kW and 125 kW plants. The same applies for 500kW plants provided that they find an outlet for the heat they produce.

Advice to farmers considering AD: It’s important not to approach AD with a preconceived notion about the size a plant - bigger is not always better. Think instead about what you can offer: what feedstock you produce; what heat you could use; and the practicalities of any grid connections.

Choosing the right technology for your farm is essential. Every AD plant is effectively bespoke in terms of what feedstock it has readily available and how much time you have to operate it.

It’s important to be persistent and to plan ahead – try to anticipate any potential hurdles like planning and finance.

What would we have done differently: Had we known that smaller scale digesters were an option then we would have explored that option. We have no regrets having sold our cows, however, putting a 100kW or 250kW plant alongside an existing livestock business is a real business opportunity now.

The opportunity for smaller scales, in terms of supporting existing livestock and dairy operations, is really valuable, however, degression is really squeezing this opportunity which is a real shame The idealistic part of me says why shouldn’t every dairy and livestock farmer have an AD plant?

The green credentials of AD at this scale are strong; supporting farmers to manage farm wastes, including slurries and manure. AD can be an ideal fit for farming businesses – especially where they can use the heat and electricity generated on site.

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he Plant: We operate a 1.4 MW plant developed and operated by Tamar Energy. It uses waste from our packing and processing operations, as well as vegetable food waste from other sources. We also have a contract to supply 8,000 tonnes of maize a year for the plant, which is grown on 170ha of land unsuitable for potato production. In the future, however, rye and energy beet could also be considered as feedstock for the plant.

Why AD: As a relatively remote farm site with relatively weak infrastructure, having an on-site power plant makes us more robust and gives us a better platform for growth.

With rising energy costs our AD plant has made our site between 90-95% self-sufficient in electricity.

The other factor in favour of AD is that we have out grade produce and peel waste which was being used as stock feed many miles away. We are, therefore, now keeping around 10,000 tonnes of potato out grades and peel on site, reducing costs and transport. The

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supply of liquid biofertiliser (digestate) saves us around £100,000 a year before application costs. In addition the solid soil conditioner will replace all of our current artificial sugar beet base fertiliser.

Making AD work: The first stage is obviously to reduce the amount of waste generated, but ensuring that you use the right type of plant will ensure that you maximise the value of any out-grades or waste that you do generate.

In addition, we have increased our potato rotation from 1 in 6 to 1 in 8 years as part of efforts to reduce potato cyst nematode (PCN), helping us to incorporate more energy crops into the rotation. In addition, liquid and solid digestate from the plant provides valuable fertiliser for the farm.

Advice to farmers considering AD: AD is hard work and not for the faint hearted. It has been said before that it is basically a concrete cow and so needs to be treated as such. In my view it only suits certain environments and applications, but where it does there is real benefit.

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| Renewables

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July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 39

| Renewables

Equipment in situ

The Landia GasMix system The Landia GasMix mixing system uses a unique combination of gas and hydraulic mixing principles to provide efficient mixing of tanks with all moving parts positioned outside of the tank to provide easy maintenance and Health and Safety. he Landia GasMix system has two operating modes: First, there is a more conventional hydraulic mixing method, whereby material is drawn from the bottom of the tank by a centrifugal pump.

The pump motor has knife blades that reduce the size of particles with a chopping action. In the hydraulic mixing mode, the material is pumped back into the tank base through the jet nozzle, a tube that is narrower than that on the upstream side of the pump, thus the material enters the tank at high velocity and causes a vigorous mixing of the tank contents, in particular the heavy material such as stones that tend to accumulate at the bottom in the tank centre by this design. The second mode of mixing utilises the unique Landia GasMix method. In this mode, the centrifugal pump output is diverted upwards to an injection nozzle located in the wall of the tank.

Before the slurry from the centrifugal pump enters the nozzle, a pipe from the gas headspace in the top of the tank is connected at a right angle to the slurry pipe. This allows headspace gas, in particular biogas when the tank is used as a digestion tank, to be drawn into the slurry stream by the venturi principle.

Figure 1 shows the components of the system. The gas-liquid stream passes through a plastic ring of precise shape and dimensions, causing a sudden drop in pressure of up to 3 bar

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before being injected at high velocity into the tank.

The high velocity gas-liquid jet causes mixing of the tank at a higher level than the hydraulic mixing, the gas bubbles reduce the digestate density and thus low density materials such as plant fibres that often float to the surface will be forced to sink into the tank.

The Landia GasMix system is normally operated intermittently, and operation times can easily be adjusted or the system switched to only jet nozzle operation to suit substrate changes. No other form of mixing system is required.

Why is mixing so important?

There are many reasons for mixing an anaerobic digester. At the most simple level, mixing is important to release gas bubbles trapped in the medium, to ensure an even temperature throughout the reactor and to prevent stratification.

In terms of the reactor microbiology, it ensures efficient transfer of organic material to the active microbial biomass, which is important for inoculation and will also increase the rate of microbial action, it can dilute high levels of toxins, for example metals and inhibitory substances such as high levels of volatile fatty acids present in the feedstock by spreading them throughout the reactor.

Mixing does not always take place continuously; it is often intermittent and may be active several times a day or several times an hour. The method of mixing employed can vary greatly.

Mixing systems not only affect the digestion process but are often

40 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

expensive to install, maintain and run. Therefore an efficient mixing system will be beneficial in terms of productivity and cost. AD reactors that have similar height and diameter dimensions (such as those found in Denmark) utilise a top mounted central mixing system. This type of mixer may contain one or more propeller-type blades of wide diameter that rotate at a slow speed. It is preferential for this type of mixer to have at

Author of the report Alastair James Ward, Adjunkt, Aarhus University

least two blades, near the top and bottom, to ensure floating material and heavy material (respectively) is mixed into the reactor bulk contents. The reactor type

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| Renewables favoured in Germany has a much larger diameter then height and these types often use several horizontally mounted mixers with a propeller RPM of 300- 500, or in some cases a large top mounted central mixer with many vertical paddles fitted to a horizontal bar.

These mixing systems perform adequately if dimensioned correctly but failure of the mixing blade/paddle can occur and repair requires emptying and cleaning of the reactor, a costly procedure, particularly because the plant is losing income during the repair and subsequent start-up period.

Less common is the biogas recirculation mixing system, whereby biogas from the reactor headspace is compressed via a externally mounted compressor and added to the base of the reactor through a diffuser. The rising gas bubbles cause the mixing effect. This type of mixer can suffer with blockages forming in the diffuser, thus reducing the mixing effect over time. A further mixing type is hydraulic mixing, where the reactor slurry is pumped out and back into the reactor in a loop. This mixing type has no parts inside the reactor and so is easy to maintain and repair but the mixing effect is rather limited as the return flow may not cause much disturbance beyond a limited area within the reactor. The Landia GasMix system is based on the hydraulic mixing type but by adding gas without the need for an external compressor, the system has the added benefits of mixing by rising gas bubbles.

The greater part of the study was conducted at a wastewater treatment plant that utilises AD to stabilise the sludge following aerobic treatment However, mixing in anaerobic digesters is much more complicated than simply ensuring the reactor contents are homogenised. This is an area of research that is currently lacking, and the information that has been published on this subject has been conducted at small scale, is often contradictory and is highly subjective to the small scale equipment used with no conclusions that can be translated directly to full scale processes.

Below are some examples of published research, first are those that found benefits with increased mixing power or speed: • There is some evidence to suggest that mixing with higher shear forces is important in the formation of microbial colonies in biofilms and/or granules (Liu and Tay, 2002).

• An acceleration of organic matter degradation with increased agitation has also been reported in

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laboratory scale batch reactors (Pinho et al., 2004). This increase was attributed to shearing of particulate matter by the mixing action and the resulting increased solubilisation of suspended particles. Although the benefits of mixing which are listed above are valid, there is also evidence that excessive mixing has a detrimental effect on performance: • In experiments using batch reactors for the anaerobic digestion of cattle manure, nonmixing was found to produce higher gas yields than mixing (Ong et al., 2002). It was found that the mixed reactors suffered from a loss of volatile solids.

• In a reactor operating at a high organic loading rate and intensive mixing, acidification and subsequent failure occurred (Vavilin and Angelidaki, 2005).

These workers came to the conclusion that intensive mixing prevented methanogenic zones becoming established. These are areas where methane producing organisms dominate and those on the outside provide physical protection to those within the zones. The reason for excessive mixing having a negative effect is unclear but the formation of anaerobic granules has been shown to be of great consequence in anaerobic digestion. In anaerobic wastewater treatment reactors it has been postulated that propionate oxidising bacteria and methanogenic archaea live in close proximity in granules (de Bok et al., 2004) with H2 and formate as electron carriers. For the reaction to be energetically thermodynamically feasible, concentrations of the electron carriers need to be low and therefore the high rate of propionate conversion observed can only be explained by the short diffusion distance possible in obligate syntrophic consortia.

Excessive agitation can disrupt the granule structure, reducing the rate of oxidation of fatty acids which can lead to digester instability (McMahon et al., 2001).

Although the formation of dense anaerobic granules is severely impeded in reactors treating particulate matter such as manures or energy crops, it remains true that the close proximity of electron acceptors and donors is vital to stable digester operation.

A full and in-depth report has been published very recently which discusses the evaluation of the Landia GasMix system for mixing of reaction tanks, particularly those for anaerobic digestion (AD). The work was carried out by Aarhus University during 2014 and was funded by the Danish governmental body “Styrelsen for Forskning of Innovation” in the Videnkupon programme.

The greater part of the study was conducted at a wastewater treatment plant that utilises AD to stabilise the sludge following aerobic treatment.

In addition there are two smaller studies of AD plants utilising primarily agricultural wastes, one of which had a Landia GasMix system operating on one of three AD reactors before the system was later fitted to all reactors, and the final plant uses Landia GasMix in paired heat exchanger tanks, of which one tank is missing part of

the system, providing evidence of the relative effect of the missing component.

The full report is available direct from Landia and includes: • Examination of the effect of Landia GasMix in AD reactors treating a low dry matter substrate • Examination of the effect of Landia GasMix in a mixing tank with high dry matter prior to AD • Examination of the effect of Landia GasMix in AD reactors treating a high dry matter substrate

Report Conclusions The conclusions of the report are detailed below: • The Landia GasMix system has been shown to increase methane production by nearly 11% in a digester treating agricultural residues (Madsen Bioenergi).

• Reduction of volatile solids was increased by 11% in a digester treating agricultural residues.

• Methane production was increased by a smaller amount in a digester treating sewage sludge and waste grease.

• The Landia GasMix system has a greater benefit when used

with manures and biomass substrates.

• Viscocity was decreased by more than 31% when Landia GasMix was used in a heat exchange tank treating agricultural residues prior to anaerobic digestion.

• The reduced viscocity input from the heat exchange tank allowed for a 12,5% reduction in downstream reactor mixing times, equivalent to a saving of 210 kWh per day in electrical consumption.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 41

| Buildings

Compressed is best for corrugated sheet Fibre cement corrugated sheet is the ideal roofing and cladding material for livestock buildings, says Ged Ferris of Cembrit. However, he warns, it is important to make sure that you are using sheets that have been fullycompressed during the manufacturing process. Most of the corrugated sheet supplied in the UK is not fully-compressed. Cembrit is the only supplier to guarantee that 100% of the 6” profile they supply in the UK is fully compressed. ommonly seen on agricultural buildings across the UK, fibrecement was first manufactured in Europe at the end of the 19th Century. The manufacturing process was invented by an Austrian Ludwig Hatschek after 7 years of experimentation with papermaking technology and various quantities of cellulose, reinforcing fibres, cement and water. The resultant mixture creates fibre cement board, the ideal lightweight building material. Cembrit factories have been producing fibre reinforced cement sheet since 1910.

Immediately after it is formed fibre-cement is still pliable. This means it can be into moulded into shapes - including a corrugated profile while surface effects can be achieved with production line consistency to give a superb level of control and cost efficiency. A key part of the process in the Cembrit factory is compression of the board to increase the density of the finished product, in our case to 1700kg/m³. This figure is higher than the industry average. It creates a more suitable sheet, specifically designed for single skin application.

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We believe this is a vital step in the process and should not be overlooked. The reason for this is that if a board is not fully compressed (i.e. equating to a lower density) it is less able to withstand abrasion at the fixing location.

This is especially important for agricultural projects where, movement loadings are high and fixing tolerances will be tested to their limit.

If found wanting, there is the possibility that the fixing hole will breaking down calling into question the integrity of the roof itself.

The popularity of surface coloured sheets has grown steadily due primarily to rural planning requirements. Cembrit’s Cemsix tough consistent finish is particularly well liked.

This is achieved by a 2-part, primer and top coat giving a tougher, higher quality and more attractive surface finish.

Fibre cement corrugated sheets are the most practical roofing and cladding method for most livestock buildings. Unlike steel it copes very well with the “double” demands placed upon it.

Not only does it cope well with the worst of the British climate, it also has to deal with the internal atmosphere of a livestock building, which is even more aggressive. The volume of methane, urea and condensation (produced by

a herd of over wintering cattle, for example) can subject the roof covering to sustained attack.

Fibre cement offers outstanding resistance to this attack from inside and outside, as it is rust proof.

Fully compressed fibre cement corrugated sheet is the ideal single skin roofing and cladding material. This corrosion resistance is an important factor from an aesthetic point of view as natural grey fibre cement weathers to a matt dark appearance which blends into the countryside, the initial “bright” cement colour remaining just a memory. In contrast steel tends to look more dilapidated as it ages and appears more visible over time.

Cemsix corrugated sheeting from Cembrit, is competitively priced and available in a series of colours and profiles with a full range of complementary accessories including cranks, barges, vents and lights. Combined with full accreditation, guarantees and the peace of mind that comes with purchasing a product, from a manufacturer with over a century of expertise, Cemsix is becoming the material of choice for roofing and cladding British farm buildings.

Visit www.cembrit.co.uk for more information

New sales manager appointed for ARM Buildings Paul Marland has been promoted to the position of UK sales manager by Staffordshire based pig-housing company, ARM Buildings. r Marland will be working alongside and reporting to Roger Smith, the company’s sales director.

He joined ARM Buildings in 2001 and his previous role as estimator has given him a perceptive insight into customer requirements, having gained considerable experience in the various designs

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42 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

and specifications of numerous types of piggery construction projects. As such he has been responsible for preparing costings, specifications and quotations for customers, in addition to dealing with equipment sales and general enquiries.

Married with three children, he lives in Rugeley where his spare-time hobbies include playing the guitar, bass and keyboards, as well

as cooking, walking and the cinema.

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| Buildings

Farmlite Rooflights shed light on leading dairy farm When a leading dairy farm in Somerset required a new rooflight system for a farm building, Brett Martin’s Farmlite GRP rooflights rose to the challenge providing long term, high quality natural light that will help to improve internal living conditions for more than 200 dairy cows. olt Farms Ltd dairy complex in Blagdon required a new roof due to the deterioration of the original fibre cement roof and the badly yellowing old-style rooflights. With the south facing roof taken up with solar panels, the new rooflights on the north facing roof had to offer exceptional daylighting levels from only 25% of the entire roofing area. Working closely with the client, Alistair Hill Construction installed

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over 1,500m2 of high performance Farmlite GRP rooflights to bring as much diffused natural light into the building as possible in order to create the ideal environment for dairy cattle.

The unique composition of Farmlite GRP rooflights means they resist significant yellowing for at least 20 years, a considerably longer period of time than is commonplace for cheaper, lower grade rooflights typically found in the agricultural sector. This means Farmlite

rooflights can provide long term structural durability and an even distribution of quality natural light throughout the building for in excess of 25 years.

With the entire floor area set to benefit from a wealth of high quality natural light for many years to come, Brett Martin continues to make a positive contribution towards improving daylighting levels and meeting the strictest environmental regulations at farm buildings across the UK and Ireland.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 43

| Buildings

The customer in Scandinavia ordered two tanks each 12 metres long by 2.55 metres wide with a capacity of 100m3

Get building ventilation right to drive performance and welfare Adequate building ventilation is critical to animal performance and welfare, as Jamie Robertson, honorary research fellow at Aberdeen University, explains… he simple truth is that most livestock buildings are not designed for purpose and ventilation is often overlooked or misunderstood. Yet poor ventilation has a massive impact on incidence of respiratory disease; it increases moisture levels, which can lead to an increase in bacteria and disease; and escalates heat levels, leading to heat stress.

Natural ventilation works on the principle of allowing warm stale air to escape from the roof of the building and thereby drawing fresh, cool air into the sides of the building in its place.

Good ventilation therefore relies on sufficient air gaps at the ‘inlets’ and ‘outlets’.

Getting ventilation right isn’t complicated and doesn’t have to add cost to your building.

Here are some top tips to ensuring your buildings have sufficient ventilation: Don’t assume that your new building will be ok Too many farmers assume that a new building will provide acceptable ventilation, whereas standard designs often do not. This is not the fault of builders – generally they are selling on price - so don't assume it will be OK.

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Open Ridge design

Well ventilated building

Work out the inlet and outlet requirements based on your stock The main influence on inlet and outlet requirements is the type, size and number of livestock being accommodated. DairyCo and EBLEX publish simple guides to working out air outlet requirements. Once the outlet is established, make sure the inlets are at least double the outlet area, and preferably four times.

Design your ventilation for the specific building in question There is no ‘one size fits all’ for good ventilation. When it comes to outlet ventilation, open ridges work best, particularly those with upstands like the Marley Eternit open ridge, as the upstand deflects the wind, creating negative pressure in the ridge and drawing stale air from the building.

Avoid the widely used vented ‘cranked’ ridges, as the outlet area these provide is completely inadequate for most circumstances, and under no circumstances fit a closed ridge.

When it comes to inlet ventilation, it should ideally be equally balanced down both sides of the building.

Finally…

Never choose steel roof sheets in livestock housing. Steel has none of the required properties for livestock roofs and leads to increased condensation, temperature fluctuations and noise – all of which affect welfare and health. Always use fibre cement sheets, such as Marley Eternit, for livestock building roofs.

A comfortable cow is a happy cow All animals have what is known as a ‘thermal comfort zone’. A temperature range within which the animal’s comfort is optimal. In the case of dairy cow this zone is between -13°C and +25°C with a body temperature of between 38.4°C and 39.1°C. ith livestock being housed for up to 12 months of the year, attention is being focused on ventilation as a key spoke of the wheel to profitability and animal welfare alongside nutrition, water, bedding and breeding stock.

High yielding cows are prone to heat stress, therefore while we may wish and long for summer sunshine our dairy herds are thinking quite the opposite.

• Heat stress can lead to: • Reduced food intake.

• Increased water intake.

• Lower conception rates.

• Lower calf weights.

• Increased mastitis.

• Reduced yield.

Here at Hydor we have over 50 years of ventilation experience within a variety of livestock applications and now, in partnership with Mole Valley Plus, have an extended range of products designed to meet the challenging variety of buildings

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and livestock held within.

The use of fans to provide positive control of air speed and direction can improve cow health, welfare and productivity. The type and number of fans varies from farm to farm, building to building, depending upon usage, location and the herd being housed.

“Many farmers are obsessed with extracting air from livestock buildings and believe that knocking a hole in the gable end wall and installing a fan will solve the problem’ says John Lack , Hydor’s General Manager. ‘In most cases this achieves little and can often result in airflow being shortcircuited.”

“Where the air enters a building, is far more important than where it leaves and with most buildings being of Yorkshire board construction this results in multiple air entry points” John continues.

“In this situation, there is no control over either the speed or distribution of the fresh air with some areas subject to draughts while ‘dead’ pockets of stale air

44 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

remain in others.”

In such buildings, Hydor advise a tunnel ventilation system, using either the Hydor HV belt-driven fan units (available in sizes up to 2m in diameter) or the Hydor air recirculation fan, ideal for long direct thrusts of air (various sizes and duties up to 630mm).

For calving and smaller units there are two size options, either 450mm or 630mm of the positive pressurised systems, using perforated polythene ducting

which will deliver an even flow of clean air right down to animal level without creating draughts. “The air is evenly distributed and farmers don’t have to worry how and where it leaves.”

With continuing increases in temperature over time, along with increasing herd sizes and housing timeframes the use of fans to create airflow to help maintain a healthy, fresh environment is increasingly important.

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| Buildings

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July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 45

| Buildings

Grain store ventilation control with Crop Cool Wireless The HGCA recommend 6 cubic feet per minute (cfm) per stored tonne of crop.

Even with the correct levels of air it is equally as important to ensure that the ventilation is well managed. Differential temperature control is key to this and as farmer’s use of it has increased so the technology has moved forward to bring new levels of monitoring and control to our stores. or effective cooling, air temperatures need to be 4-6°C lower than the temperature of the crop. The Crop Cool Wireless system monitors storage temperature, compares it to ambient air temperature and then decides when the fans should be turned on and off.

This will invariably be between 2am and 6am during early autumn; a time of day when most farmers are not in the grain store but when rapid crop cooling can take place.

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Crop Cool Wireless really is a system for all budgets and expectations and in the coming year we expect to build on its growing reputation here in the UK. The HGCA state that in some situations differential temperature control can save up to 40% in electricity costs over a manually controlled system.

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The beauty of Crop Cool Wireless is that it can evolve from a basic monitoring package to a full blown store control and crop data logging system over time. The wireless temperature probes feed information back to the Dicam controller which then coordinates ventilation fans according to temperature and/or humidity.

The farmer can build up crop storage trend curves for his ACCS inspection through the Barn Report software which is available for Crop Cool Wireless. Stores can be monitored remotely from either a PC or smart phone, the latter with the newly developed app. Crop Cool Wireless really is a system for all budgets and expectations and in the coming year we expect to build on its growing reputation here in the UK. All of the store control is kept on site and this overcomes any intermittent broadband problems associated with cloud based systems.

For effective and cost effective cooling you cannot beat regular monitoring of the storage temperatures and cooling rates. With modern technology this does not mean you have to be

in attendance but fan running times need to be correct and storage temperatures need to be monitored so that any potential problem areas can be dealt with quickly.

A crop is truly only worth something when it has been sold, its full value realised with no quality based deductions.

Available now from Evans and Pearce Limited. Tel 01935 850750 or visit www.evansandpearce.com

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| Buildings

Temporary stabling provides flat-pack solution to the Equestrian world We’ve all opted for the ease of flat-pack furniture at some point, and with more and more equestrian events popping up across the country, the demand for a quick and simple stabling equivalent is higher than ever.

Harvest is upon us! Will your grain be safe?

Glossy combines & ‘smart’ tractors are the fashion statements of farming. Drill down into what happens with all that golden corn once it’s off the field & you have what the Cereals Event call – ‘Post-Harvest technology’. A fancy name for moisture meters & crop cooling. hat’s Agrisupplyservices business – not fashionable – but it preserves your precious crop, your 12months of careful & expensive nurturing to have something to sell to recover your costs + hopefully a small profit?

Did you hold back on your crop protection in the field? No - so don’t hold back from protecting your grain in your store. It’s far less costly.

The grain trade insist on right moisture – So get a decent moisture meter – You can buy one for just £345.00 - Unimeter Digital – it won FW award for Best- forValue last year in their tests.

The HGCA keep telling us why we get Insects in our grain. Its very simple - we miss cooling targets.

Any farmer with a reasonable building can store grain properly.

A low cost plan is to use very

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here are many advantages of choosing temporary stabling, with the most obvious being the ease of assembly. With the front, side and backs coming separately, they can suit both internal and external purposes.

They can also be taken apart just as fast as you can assemble them, ready to move on to the next event or be packed away in storage, without taking up too much room.

Not only are they easy to pack away but the structures are so durable that you can keep the stable where it is for as long as you like – far from ‘temporary’ in a lot of cases!

Graham Heath Equestrian provided temporary stabling for the yearling action at this year’s

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Bolesworth International, GHE Business Manager Tracy Barnett said: “It was a fantastic event and the temporary stabling went down Graham Heath Equestrian provided temporary stabling for the yearling action at this year’s Bolesworth International, a storm. The quality of the temporary structures from Graham Heath Equestrian really are second to none, which a lot of people wouldn’t expect from so called ‘flat-pack’ stabling.”

For more information on pricing and sizes of temporary stabling from Graham Heath Equestrian, please call 01270 781158 or visit www.gh-equestrian.co.uk

robust PolyCool Pedestals, with 1.1kw fans & store grain for as little as £3/t. Add another 75p for an automatic CropCool Controller or low energy Evolution Fan with control built-in.

Charles Goldingham asks: Surely, for as little as £3.75/tonne, it’s worth it for your peace of mind?

For expert advice – Call - 01452 741112 or visit www.agrisupplyservices.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 47

| Security

Nationwide appeal for information on hundreds of stolen sheep

Police are investigating a series of rustling crimes which has led to nearly 500 animals being stolen within six weeks & the possibility of their meat entering the market illegally.

ustlers have been targeting lambs and their mothers in a spike in cases shortly before farmers would probably have been sending the lambs to market or slaughter.

At least 480 lambs, ewes and rams have been stolen between 12 May and 18 June, costing some farmers £10,000 or even more in a single raid.

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The thefts could have been carried out ‘to order’, or the animals are being given new identities and then sold or sent to slaughter by the thieves.

Last week near Langport, 150 ewes and lambs were loaded into a waiting trailer after the flock had been moved into another field in the middle of the night. The estimated value is about £30,000.

Livestock trucks and trailers have also been stolen in separate raids.

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In the most recent related incident on Tuesday (23 June), two men were disturbed while trying to steal a trailer from a farm near Yeovil Two cows have also been stolen from a shed, and, as yet, none of the animals stolen in this series have been recovered.

Sgt Stuart Williams of the Rural Crime Team said: “Anyone involved in this crime, whether they are buying animals they know are stolen or their meat, is helping destroy honest businesses and lining the pockets of criminals.

“All the thefts are being investigated, and our units are stopping and checking vehicles capable of carrying livestock day and night to check tags and paperwork.”

As well as the roadside checks, we’ve been sharing information with the farming community through our 2,860-member Farm Watch, as well as with counterparts in neighbouring forces, abattoirs and markets across the country to try finding the stolen sheep.

There is a possibility that the sheep are being re-tagged and sold or slaughtered seemingly legitimately without raising any alarm. Many lambs have been untagged when stolen because regulations do not demand they are until reaching a certain age or are leaving the farm.

Supt Geoff Wessel, the force’s lead officer for rural crime, said: “This isn’t a new crime trend we’re experiencing, there are reports of rustling throughout the year, but this is an unusual level of activity.

“No one should be in any doubt as to the seriousness of rustling in relation to the impact it has on farming, and the involvement of organised crime groups.

“Whoever is doing this is determined and well organised with a good knowledge of animal handling as well as the means to store or dispose of the animals

they’ve stolen without anyone noticing, or giving them new identities and passing them off as their own.”

Also stolen in this series have been 21 pedigree rams worth £10,000, but with a value far greater Farm Inverness than that Garguston when taking into- account their breeding potential.

A victim who asked not to be identified said: “It’s sickening what these mindless thieves do. The sheep have probably suffered in transit and not been killed humanly either.

“Farming is not an easy job; for us it is seven days a week, and during the lambing season we can work up to 20 hours a day to make sure we save the lives of new-born lambs. To see all that cruelly taken from you makes you feel like giving it all up.

“We now have to drive round every day, with our hearts in our mouths, wondering what has been stolen overnight. All we are trying to do is an honest day’s work to put food on the plates of the British public, so why should we have to live in fear of these cruel, coldhearted people.”

Sgt Williams added: “We have been encouraging our farmers to take all the security measures they reasonably can, so while the thieves remain at large I ask anyone with information to call the Rural Crime Team on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, and to report any suspicious activity immediately. If a crime is in progress or the offenders are still nearby, please call 999.”

For the NFU, Somerset County Advisor Matthew Uren said: “We would urge farmers to be vigilant. If unfamiliar vehicles are loading livestock on a neighbouring farm, please get in touch with the livestock keeper to make sure that the vehicles are there legitimately.

Remember to report suspicious activity to the police and make a note of any details.”

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| Buildings

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July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 49

| Buildings

Featured Dealers:

Andrew Symons Holsworthy Devon EX22 6HL T: 01409 254 040 www.andrewsymons.co.uk Sharnford Tractors Ltd Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 5EH T: 01455 209300 www.manitou.co.uk

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Robert D. Webster Driffield East Yorkshire YO25 4RF T: 01262 420226 www.robertdwebster.co.uk The Burdens Group Ltd Sutterton Lincolnshire PE20 2ET T: 01205 460 466 www.burdensgroup.com

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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| Machinery

AXION 800 range expands Two new models have been added to the award winning AXION 800 range for 2015, in addition to additional functions and equipment options across the range. he two new additions to the range, the AXION 800 and the AXION 820, have maximum power outputs of 205hp and 225hp respectively. This means that CLAAS now offer a total of six AXION 800 range models ranging from 205 to 264hp, optionally available with the HEXASHIFT power shift transmission or continuously variable CMATIC variant and with the two operation concepts of CIS and/or CEBIS. As with other models in the range, the new AXION 800 and 820 are powered by an FPT TIER 4f engine, which is one of the most fuel efficient engines on the market.

New CIS colour display CIS versions of these new AXION models are also the first to feature the new colour A-pillar display, which shows all of the HEXASHIFT transmission functions at a glance and combines and improves on the

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capabilities of the two black-andwhite displays in a single 7-inch display. With a new user interface as well as additional indicators and adjustment options for the transmission, ELECTROPILOT and F-keys, the colour CIS display is very similar to that used in CEBIS. CIS with new colour A-pillar display is available as an option for all models in the AXION 800 model series as well as the ARION 600, 500 and 400 with power shift transmission.

New additional options Other new options now available for the AXION 800 and ARION 600/500 ranges include energy-saving LED work lamps as an alternative to the xenon work lamps. Thanks to their LED technology, these are particularly long-lasting and also relieve the load on the tractor’s alternator and battery due to their reduced power consumption. New outside mirrors have also been introduced, which can be equipped with a second wide-angle rearview mirror on both sides.

AXION 850 outperforms the rest First it was the ARION 650 that set a new Power Mix fuel efficiency standard when tested by the DLG, then the AXION 950 and now the latest AXION 850 has also joined the party.

cross all tests, the 264hp AXION 850 used a miserly 248 g/kWh of fuel and 21.5 g/kWh of AdBlue, which is 12% less than the old AXION 850 and around 15% below the overall average from all tractors tested of 293 g/kWh. The key to these results is down to the efficiency and low power loss from the HEXASHIFT transmission, but also the impressive performance from the AXION 850’s 6.7 litre FPT engine.

When ‘Dyno’ tested, at rated

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engine speed the AXION 850 pushed out 228hp, rising to a maximum power output of 264hp when at 1800rpm.

Maximum torque was achieved at 1400rpm with a 44% torque rise at an engine speed drop of 35%.

Out in the field, the AXION kept up its excellent performance, recording a power output of 171hp when ploughing at an engine speed of 1407rpm, but using just 247 g/kWh of fuel.

Similarly when power harrowing at 1663rpm, power output was 198hp for just 227 g/kwh of fuel and similar power output figures were achieved when mowing.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 51

| Groundcare

Ride on Time Steve Pickwell, Kubota Product Manager for groundcare talks us through why specifying the right ride-on for the job will save time and money. he role of a modern farmer has become increasingly varied. The range of duties he or she is now required to carry out day-today has prompted the need for a more varied spread of machines.

Ride-on mowers have always been a popular choice for groundcare professionals needing an efficient machine that can speed up cutting time, but in recent years, farmers have also started to recognise their importance to help maintain large areas of land.

Farmers need to make sure that they have the right tools to carry out a whole host of tasks. Ride-on

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mowers, and specifically those with high dump functionality, are extremely versatile and allow users to get a great deal more done during their working day, significantly reducing the time needed for double collecting and minimising waste levels.

High dump mowers, such as Kubota’s G23, have been developed to operate at top speeds of up to 17km, a critical factor when taking into account the vigorous time schedules that farmers need to adhere to.

Farmers using a high dump machine can discharge cuttings directly onto a truck or utility vehicle, or alternatively, under trees or wherever is required on

52 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

site, by simply adjusting the hydraulic parallel link system up or down to allow for a high dump clearance of 1930mm.

When deciding on which rideon mower to choose, a key consideration to take into account is the capacity. A Kubota mower with a high dump option, such as the G26-II, can carry up to 640 litres before grass cuttings need to be disposed of. This is particularly beneficial when mowing on large estates where the operator needs to keep travelling back and forth to suitable areas to dispose of waste.

Price is of course a deciding factor when comparing brands, too, but users need to take into account the cost of maintaining

the mower, the aftersales service on offer, the lifespan of the machine and its residual value.

Before purchase, customers should always drill down into the tractor also on stand detailsMGX-II of the package, and a good one should factor in all these elements.

Farmers need to make sure that they have the right tools to carry out a whole host of tasks For more advice on choosing the right ride-on mower, visit our website to find a list of approved Kubota groundcare dealers http://www.kubota.co.uk/dealers

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| News

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Seddons (Plant and Engineers) Ltd Bolton, North West England 01204 854600 www.seddonplant.co.uk

Groundserv Sutton, Greater London 020 8641 7979 http://groundserv.stihl-dealer.co.uk

World of Power Buxton, Derbyshire 01298 213145 www.worldofpower.co.uk

KO Machines Ltd Wolverhampton, West Midlands 01902 798771 www.komachines.co.uk

Charles H Hill Ltd Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire 01526 388281 www.charleshhill.co.uk

Garden Discount Centre Ltd Great Yarmouth, Norfolk 01493 488228 www.gdclimited.co.uk

Ermin Plant (Hire & Services) Ltd Gloucester, Gloucestershire 01452 526616 www.erminplant.co.uk

Spaldings Limited Lincoln, Lincolnshire 01522 507500 www.spaldings.co.uk

Lakedale Power Tools Croydon, Greater London 020 8683 0550 www.lakedalepowertools.co.uk

Cardiff Lawn and Garden Cardiff, West Glamorgan 02920 569 311 www.cardifflawnandgarden.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 53

| Tyres

Check your tyres for a reliable harvest Michelin’s Technical Manager, Gordon Brookes is urging farmers to prepare for a smoothrunning harvest and shares his top 10 tips for effective tyre and wheel management. ime, weather and crop constraints make it essential that machinery is ready for use and leaving checks until the last minute can result in unexpected machine downtime,” explains Brookes, who has 28 years’ experience at Michelin under his belt.

1. Check your combine’s tyres for damage During previous harvests tyres may have suffered accidental damage, leaving them with bulges, cuts or tears. Checking the tread area and sidewalls right down to the wheel trim now guarantees that any problems can be detected as soon as possible. Leaving damage unchecked can result in costly tyre failure and harvest interruptions.

2. Check for flat spots Long periods of inactivity can leave tyres with a ‘flat spot’ due to one section of the casing being deflected, creating massive vibrations on the road. To combat this, mark the affected area of the tyres, move the combine into direct sunlight with other sections of the tyres deflected. If possible - inflate the tyres above your standard operating pressure for a couple of hours, whilst ensuring the manufacturer’s maximum inflation pressure is not exceeded. Warming the tyres in the sunlight will prompt the casing to return to its normal shape.

3. Check your tyre pressures Ensure that tyres are inflated to the correct pressure in readiness for harvest, considering maximum cyclic load in the field and whether the combine will be used on side slopes or intensively on the roads.

4. Tyre choice If you need new tyres, or a new machine, take tyre choice seriously. Tyre choice can

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54 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

make the difference between a good harvest and a great one and for most combines and foragers there is now a tyre that contains Ultraflex Technology, which limits soil compaction and disturbance on headlands whilst offering greater operator comfort, manoeuvrability and load capacity.

5. Transport width Is your combine too wide for the road or gateways and would a narrower tyre speed up the harvesting process? If so, there are now tyres for combines that are narrower but have a greater contact with the ground. For example, a Michelin 900/60 R32 conventional tyre assembly could be replaced by a Michelin IF 800/70 R32 assembly, giving a 15 per cent larger footprint whilst making the combine 200mm narrower.

6. Rear tyres Rear tyres can affect the efficiency of the combine but are more commonly neglected.

Rear tyres should be operated appropriately in line with manufacturer recommendations.

Farmers often don’t always realise that many of these tyres are designed for industrial machinery and require very high pressures which can cause damage on headlands. It’s therefore important to allocate the same time specifying rear tyres as you would the front set.

7. Regular tyre inspections Daily tyre inspections can often be overlooked but are essential in prolonging tyre life and machine availability. Spotting cuts and tears as they appear helps ensure they can be repaired in a timely manner and limits machine downtime.

8. Watch those wheels To prolong tyre life, wheels need to be kept in tip-top condition too. Kerbing or hitting a pothole can affect a machine’s wheel

alignment, leading to rapid and uneven wear on the rubber.

9. Putting the brakes on It’s common sense advice that accelerating slowly and braking progressively maximises tyre life. Easing off the brakes and making a conscious effort to accelerate gently can pay dividends in keeping rubber in service for longer.

10. Other tyres are just as important Make sure that all machinery involved in the harvest is in excellent condition and tyres inflated to the correct pressure, not just the harvester itself. Consider grain carting as an example – is the road work intensive? If so, the tractor and trailer tyres need to be inflated accordingly to reflect this intensive operation.

Concluding, Brookes says: “Don’t be afraid to ask for expert tyre advice, it is a free service.

The worst possible time to suffer tyre-related downtime is during the busy harvest period, so it really pays to ensure your machines are set up perfectly and ready to roll in advance.”

Farmers can seek expert tyre support through their local Michelin Exelagri dealer; a network of more than 40 dealerships in the UK and Ireland which offer a range of services including expert advice on tyre specification, guaranteed emergency repairs – even during periods of intense farming activity – and geometry to achieve the right set-up on even the most complex agricultural machinery.

Michelin also operates the largest team of dedicated account managers in the agricultural sector, who are on hand to visit customers.

For a full list of Michelin’s Exelagri dealers visit www.michelin-agricultural-tyres.co.uk. You can also tweet @MichelinAgriUK for more information.

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| ATV

A big thumbs up for Suzuki ATV Suzuki’s Courtesy ATV scheme has once again helped to keep a farmer’s business going during the busy lambing season. he scheme, which offers customers the use of a new Suzuki ATV when any utility ATV is taken to an authorised dealer for service or repair work – regardless of the make or model – was set up in recognition of the fact that ATVs are such vital tools for farmers’ everyday tasks.

Taking part in the initiative in March, Chris Anderson and son David, of Shetland, were able to continue tending to their sheep and young ewes, while their

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machine was undergoing a service.

With assistance from Suzuki dealer, Garriock Bros. Ltd, the farmers were loaned a Suzuki LTA500XP KingQuad for three days and they were so impressed with the machine that they decided to purchase one for use at both of their holdings in Gulberwick and Skeld. By enabling Chris and his son David to get to the far reaches of their land easier and quicker than before – and saving time and effort when sheep feeding – the Suzuki KingQuad 500 with Power Steering will be a welcome

56 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

addition to the team.

“The KingQuad 500 Power Steering is an excellent all-round machine,” reported Chris Anderson. “The addition of power steering gives ease of maneuvrability, great control and responsiveness. Plus, the low box allows you to reduce revs and speed, which is essential for control when on steep ground and rough terrain.”

Speaking of the initiative, Ian Leiper of Garriock Bros. Ltd praised Suzuki’s unique offer, “This has been a great marketing tool for both Garriock Bros. Ltd and Suzuki in Shetland as it allows our potential new customers to 'try before they buy' and confirms to them the quality, build and design of Suzuki ATVs.” He continues, “We have also been able to offer this Courtesy ATV to existing Suzuki customers who put their quads in for service,

giving them a taste of the latest product developments from Suzuki. I am not aware of any other manufacturer who offers anything like this – so I give a big thumbs up to Suzuki on this one!”

The farmers were loaned a Suzuki LT-A500XP KingQuad for three days and they were so impressed with the machine that they decided to purchase one for use at both of their holdings in Gulberwick and Skeld To take advantage of Suzuki’s Courtesy ATV scheme and to find your nearest Suzuki ATV dealer, visit: Suzuki-gb.co.uk/atv or follow SuzukiATVsUK on Twitter and Facebook.

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| ATV

Honda (UK) expands ATV line-up with two new models Honda (UK) has extended its range of All Terrain Vehicles, introducing two new models with electric power steering to the line-up in response to customer and dealer demand. he new models, which build upon enhancements made to the Foreman and Fourtrax range launched by Honda last year, are: Fourtrax TRX420FA6 (Available immediately) • Automatic DCT • Independent Rear Suspension • Electric Power Steering • Available in Red only Foreman TRX500FM2 • Manual Transmission • Swingarm Rear Suspension • Electric Power Steering

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www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

The above model is available in both red (from July) and green (from August). Pre-orders for both can be placed immediately.

The Electric Power Steering (EPS) system incorporates new ECU mapping with the following key features: • Improved linearity in steering response • Reduced low-speed steering effort for enhanced manoeuvrability • Decreased kickback traits for improved all-around steering action The TRX420FA6 boasts

increased capability, comfort and performance, courtesy of notable developments including independent rear suspension (IRS) and dual-clutch transmission (DCT), plus a stiffer, lighter, double-cradle frame and enhanced fuel injection system.

The new Electric Power Steering system and all of the recent enhancements are a result of customer and dealer feedback on handling and comfort, specifically in relation to utility usage.

Honda’s aim is to broaden the product offering to provide the most functional and capable ATV

range on the market, whilst maintaining its commitment to the highest levels of quality, durability and reliability.

The TRX420FA6 boasts increased capability, comfort and performance The new models will be available with a two-year warranty from Honda Authorised Dealers.

The TRX500FM2 is priced at £7,200 and the TRX420FA6 £6,995 excluding VAT.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 57

| ATV

It’s horses for courses...

What do you need in a 4x4 workhorse? Are you looking for a fast, efficient off-roader to get around the land, tow a trailer and carry some equipment? Or do you want to carry passengers, larger loads and have the benefit of all-weather protection? t may seem unusual for a manufacturer to start a debate about the virtues of its own side by side utility vehicle versus the

I

ubiquitous quad bike or ride-on ATV. And yet Polaris have done just that on the grounds of ‘horses for courses’ and, they point out, if you’re in the market for a new Ranger side by side you can have one at pretty much the same price

58 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

as you might pay for an equivalent powered quad.

Coming from the makers of the Sportsman, one of the biggest selling quads of all time, it starts to make sense when you compare the two types of vehicle.

Take the long-standing workhorse, the ride-on ATV and its agricultural beginnings, offering an eager, go anywhere vehicle purpose built to serve the needs of the farmer. Subsequently the quad becomes the vehicle of choice as well for groundsmen, landscapers, foresters and anyone needing to go places off road where their 4x4

pick up will damage the ground and come to a halt. Hauling small amounts of equipment, towing trailers, herding livestock, the quad offers nimble handling, tight turning circles and plenty of ground clearance, with the power to haul you and your kit into otherwise inaccessible areas. if you’re in the market for a new Ranger side by side you can have one at pretty much the same price as you might pay for an equivalent powered quad.

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| ATV

Today’s ATV is a sophisticated and no less capable mode of 4x4 transport, performing its daily tasks to the satisfaction of the millions whose work calls for its off-road capabilities.

Then along came the side by side or UTV, a utility vehicle to facilitate carrying passengers in relative comfort, while offering similar off-road capabilities to its ATV cousins: in the case of Polaris,

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Independent Rear Suspension coupled with the legendary Polaris ride and handling, with loads of suspension travel, and massive pulling power. A Polaris Ranger ETX for example, with a starting price of £6,999 plus VAT, matches many of the equivalent ATVs on the market in terms of cost and power as well as class leading towing and payload capacities. A 31hp engine with Electronic Fuel

Injection provides fuel economy with 1,500 lbs (680kg) towing capacity. It has 1,000 lbs (454kg) payload capacity and a rear box with gas-assisted dumping that carries up to 500 lbs (227kg) of materials or equipment. Ideal for a two person team to get about the park or estate with everything they need on board.

What’s more, there are the safety and comfort aspects to be considered. A Rollover Protection System for safety protection and the facility to fit the latest Lock & Ride Pro-Fit cab system turns the Ranger ETX into an all-weather off-

road vehicle to provide a degree of comfort simply not available with an ATV. Altogether a smoother, more comfortable ride with lots of optional creature comforts, so is it a Polaris Ranger versus an ATV? Of course the decision is up to you, and what you consider is the right ‘horse for your course’.

The new Polaris Ranger ETX starts at £6,999 plus VAT and the Ranger 570 at £7,799 plus VAT. For more information, contact Polaris Britain Ltd. 0800 915 6720 or visit their website at www.polaris-britain.com

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 59

| Motors

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

Quad Bikes R Us Waldon House Farm Great Tottenham, Essex CM9 8PN Tel: 01621 893 227 www.quadbikesrus.com

SK Motorcycles 82 Great Northern Terrace, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN5 8HJ 01522 569 419 www.skmotorcycleslincoln.co.uk

Exeter Quads Exeter Devon EX5 1AR Tel: 01392 877621 www.exeterquads.com

Quad Extreme (E D Distribution) Otley Road, Baildon, Shipley West Yorkshire BD17 7HP 01274 714544 www.quadextreme.co.uk

NG Quads 2 New Road, Brixham Devon TQ5 8LZ 01803 883555 www.ngquads.com

Jacksons Motorcycles Summerlands Trading Estate Kendal, Cumbria LA8 0FB 01539 560 926 www.jacksons-motorcycles.co.uk

NSL Motors Weyhill Service Station Andover, Hampshire SP11 0PH 01264 772 661 www.nslmotors.co.uk

WJ Shields and Sons Hall Farm, Main St, York North Yorkshire YO30 1AA 01904 470263

60 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

Quad Zone Mill Cottage, Kidderminster Worcestershire DY14 9HP 01299 832699

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| Motors

Jeep Renegade cops full police livery in extended test It looks great in one of the nine optional colours already available, but now the new Jeep Renegade has a new colour scheme: blue and yellow stripes. his striking Renegade police car is the result of a new partnership, announced this week, between Jeep’s Swindon-based dealership, T H White Fiat Group Brand Centre, and Wiltshire Police. In a first for the dealership, T H White has agreed an extended six month test drive with the force.

At the end of the test period, Wiltshire Police plans to buy the Jeep, which has been fitted with full police graphics, blue lights and sirens, and use it out of Gable

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Cross Police Station, Swindon.

The car, in 1.6 Diesel Sport specification, combines best-inclass off-road ability with worldclass on-road driving dynamics.

Inside, functional details crafted from high quality materials and using innovative colours ensure the Renegade will become an excellent addition to the force’s drivers. It'll be a practical one too, courtesy of best-in-class interior space and clever, functional storage areas.

Stephen Botham, Fleet & Services Manager at Wiltshire Police, negotiated the deal with

Suzuki shifts up a gear New Transmissions For S-Cross DDiS and Vitara with Petrol engine. uzuki GB PLC is pleased to announce the availability of a new technology transmission for the S-Cross DDiS ALLGRIP model. The Twin Clutch System by Suzuki (TCSS) is the first transmission of its type that Suzuki has offered to the market and is confident that it will appeal to diesel buyers in the ever growing Crossover market sector.

The new transmission is available from this

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Lee Jones, Fleet Sales Manager – EMEA Region, FCA and T H White Fiat Group Brand Centre’s newly appointed Fleet Sales Specialist, Emma McArdle.

“We’re delighted to add the Jeep Renegade to our fleet of vehicles,” says Andrew Carr, Hub Superintendent, Gable Cross Police Station, Swindon. “It is the first Jeep we’ve used as a marked vehicle and we’re looking forward to the start of what we are confident will be a rewarding relationship between Wiltshire Police and T H White Fiat Group Brand Centre.”

“Handing over the Jeep Renegade to Wiltshire Police was a great moment,” says Emma McArdle. “We’re sure it will be the “We’re delighted to add the Jeep Renegade to our fleet of vehicles” ideal vehicle for all their needs, both on and off-road, and we look forward to seeing it out and about on the streets of Swindon.”

month on the SZ5 S-Cross DDiS ALLGRIP and will cost £1,350 versus the conventional six speed manual.

TCSS is a six speed automated manual transmission that incorporates hydraulically controlled clutches and a gear change assembly that enables it to be driven in a similar way to an automatic gearbox. The system utilises one clutch for 1st, 3rd and 5th gears and the other for 2nd, 4th and 6th gears. Operating the transmission in this way ensures that whether the driver is accelerating or decelerating, the desired gear is instantly available.

Coupled to the latest Euro 6 compliant 1.6litre DDiS engine, the new transmission provides even faster gearchanges than could be achieved with a conventional manual and is an ideal match for the 320Nm of torque available from just 1,750rpm. Gearchanges can also be manually operated via paddles behind the steering wheel.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 61

| Motors

An SUV that fits the bill to perfection The second generation of the mid-range SUV from Mercedes-Benz goes by the name of GLC and represents a big step forward on several fronts. n a technical level the new SUV clearly makes its mark with the excellent standard of safety that is a brand hallmark, featuring state-of-the-art assistance systems and outstanding energy efficiency. Fuel consumption has been cut by up to 19 per cent in comparison to the previous model. At the same time, the AIR BODY CONTROL multi-chamber air suspension that is without parallel in this segment, the extended range of DYNAMIC SELECT dynamic

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transmission modes and the 4MATIC permanent all-wheel drive increase not only the ride comfort, but also the vehicle's sporty agility – whatever surface it is driving on. Visually, the body follows the clear and sensual design idiom which was demonstrated so successfully by the GLC Coupé showcar concept in the spring, and which serves as the standard for future SUV families.

"Our new GLC represents a further, systematic step in the implementation of our successful SUV philosophy. It combines the ultimate in driving comfort with a sporty touch, impresses on the

Toyota announces new 2.8-Litre diesel engine for revised Land Cruiser Toyota’s mighty Land Cruiser gains a new engine this summer, ensuring the go-anywhere SUV remains one of the finest all-round propositions on the market. t the same time, equipment specifications have been upgraded and extra models have been added to the lineup.

New 2.8 D-4D engine The three and five-door Land Cruiser both adopt the new 2.8-litre D-4D unit, which replaces the current 3.0-litre engine. The focus is on improved driveability with better torque delivery, plus lower fuel consumption and reduced CO2 emissions.

The 2,755cc, 16-valve DOHC engine produces a maximum 174bhp (130kW).

Matched with the current six-speed manual transmission, it develops peak torque of 420Nm between 1,400 and 2,400rpm. A new six-speed automatic transmission (replacing the previous five-speed) allows even more pulling power to be delivered, with an extra 30Nm on tap between 1.600 and 2.400rpm.

The new automatic benefits from control systems that help Land Cruiser achieve around a nine per cent improvement in fuel economy and CO2 emissions. Provisional

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62 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

figures show combined cycle performance at 39.2mpg and 194g/km for the five-door model.

Higher equipment specifications The introduction of a new powertrain is accompanied by attractive new standard equipment features.

The entry-level Active grade models now come equipped with DAB digital radio for better quality radio reception. The options list has been extended to include Toyota Touch 2 with Go, which adds intuitive and comprehensive navigation functions to the vehicle’s high-resolution, touchscreencontrolled multimedia system (£750).

Customers can also specify leather seats for the vehicle. On three-door models this also includes heated front seats and leather door trims (£1,395); on the five-door Active the package includes power adjustment for the front seats and triple-zone automatic air conditioning (£2,795).

road and – more than ever – off it as well, and appeals to the eye with the new design and equipment line," says Thomas Weber, member of the Management Board of Daimler AG and responsible for Group Research and MercedesBenz Cars Development.

The Icon model also adopts DAB and the more sophisticated Toyota Touch 2 with Go Plus, adding voice command recognition, 3D city mapping and a text-to-speech function. At the top of the range, Land Cruiser Invincible gains the same new features, plus all the elements included in the new optional Safety Pack (details below).

Option packs Land Cruiser’s new Safety Pack option (for Active and Icon models, £2,635) equips the SUV with a wealth of features to help avoid accidents and support safer driving on and off road. They include Adaptive Cruise Control and Pre-Crash Safety system; Lane Change Assist; Rear Cross Traffic Alert; Blind Spot Monitor; and a Multi-Terrain Monitor, which gives a 360-degree view of the vehicle’s immediate surroundings.

A Protection Pack (£595) is offered for all five-door models, adding side mouldings, a rear bumper protection plate and a boot liner.

Extended model range The introduction of the new engine also heralds an increase in the Land Cruiser model range with the re-introduction of the Active grade five-door/seven-seat version, available, with either manual or automatic transmission.

The three-door/five-seat Land Cruiser Active remains in place, exclusive with manual shift.

Prices and availability The revised Land Cruiser range will be available to order from 1 July with customer deliveries from 1 August. All models are covered by Toyota’s five-year/100,000-mile new vehicle warranty. Prices start at £35,895 (3 door) & £37,695 (5 door).

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

Great Wall Bath Somerset Tel: 01225 473014

MTC Great Wall Cambridgeshire Tel: 01733 309782

Haven Motor Holdings Ltd Sussex Tel: 01403 891700

Garland Great Wall Hampshire Tel: 01252 367373

www.bathhonda.co.uk

www.mtcars.co.uk

www.havenmotors.co.uk

www.winchestermotorgroup.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 63

| Motors

The Amarok Trendline.

A lot more style for a lot less.

Only £269 a month* on Contract Hire.

^

The Amarok Trendline comes with all the rugged practicality you’d expect from an Amarok.

It also comes with a degree of style and luxury you might not expect. The interior is cosseted in comfort-providing carpet and upholstery with an armrest on the centre console. Chrome and silver detail adds its own sophisticated touch.

As for the exterior, it’s no less impressive. The upper front grille displays a similar chrome detail. There are body-coloured door handles, body-coloured mirrors and extended wheel arches. With front fog lamps, the Amarok Trendline sits on 17-inch Aldo alloy wheels.

This offer is for business users only. For more information, why not call us today or drop by our showroom?

£269 m o r f e n i k Trendl ^ o r a . m e A r i e H t Th c a * On Contr . h t n o am ^At the end of the agreement and with final payments full ownership will transfer to the customer. *Plus VAT and initial rental. Business users only. Based on a 36 month, 10,000 mile per Van Centres. Offers may be varied or withdrawn at any time. Further charges may apply when vehicle is returned, subject to the contract fair wear and tear guidelines and mileage. VAT payable number lenders to assist with your who may pay us for introducing you to them. Terms and conditions apply. Freepost Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle Finance.

64 |of Farming Monthly | purchase, July 2015 www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

Listers (Coventry) Van Centre

Listers Van Centre (Worcestershire)

347-367 Bedworth Road, Longford, Coventry, West Midlands.

Telephone: 0247 767 0747.

North Bank, Berry Hill Industrial Estate, Droitwich. Telephone: 01905 412269.

Find us on your sat-nav using CV6 6BN.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/listersworcestershire

Find us on your sat-nav using WR9 9AU.

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

Telephone: 0208 045 3483.

Find us on your sat-nav using N11 3UT. www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/alandaynewsouthgate

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/listerscoventry

JCT600 Van Centre (Hull)

Greenhous Volkswagen Van Centre

Breeze Van Centre (Southampton)

Saxon Way, Priory Park West, Hessle, Hull, East Yorkshire.

Telephone: 01482 908620.

Ennerdale Road, Harlescott, Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

Telephone: 01743 384303.

331 Salisbury Road, Totton, Southampton, Hampshire.

Telephone: 0238 184 9391.

Find us on your sat-nav using HU13 9PB.

Find us on your sat-nav using SY1 3LD.

Find us on your sat-nav using SO40 3ZU.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/JCT600Hull

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/greenhous

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/breezesouthampton

JCT600 Van Centre (York)

Greenhous Volkswagen Van Centre (Bilston)

JCT600 Van Centre (Sheffield)

Centurion Park, Clifton Moor, York.

Telephone: 01904 848227.

Trinity Road, Bilston, Wolverhampton.

Telephone: 01902 219303.

Europa Close, Europa Link, Sheffield.

Telephone: 0114 404 0028.

Find us on your sat-nav using YO30 4WW.

Find us on your sat-nav using WV14 7EF.

Find us on your sat-nav using S9 1XS.

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/JCT600York

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/bilston

www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/jct600sheffield

Brian Currie Van Centre Summerson Road, Bleak Hall, Milton Keynes.

Telephone: 01908 990 190.

Find us on your sat-nav using MK6 1LE. www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/van-centres/brian-currie-van-centre

annum [non-maintained] Contract Hire agreement. 6.0p (plus VAT) excess mileage charges apply. Offer available for vehicles ordered between 1st April and 30th June 2015 from participating at a prevailing rate. Finance subject to status. Available to 18s and over. Subject to availability. Finance providers may pay us for introducing you to them. We can introduce you to a limited

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 65

| Motors

MTC Subaru Cambridgeshire 01733 822 943

Cross Roads Warwickshire 01608 433 163

Cambridge Subaru Cambridgeshire 01223 633 706

Proveeda Suffolk 01473 849 991

www.mtc-subaru.co.uk

www.crossroads-subaru.co.uk

www.cambridge-subaru.co.uk

www.proveeda-subaru.co.uk

Perkins Essex 01371 483 379

Unity Leicester Leicester 01162 149 060

Burrells Motor Group South Yorkshire 01302 515 767

Maidstone Subaru Kent 01622 528 968

www.perkins-subaru.co.uk

www.unityleicester-subaru.co.uk

www.burrellsmotorgroup-subaru.co.uk

www.maidstone-subaru.co.uk

66 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

Mitsubishi Motors UK sales almost double Sales of Mitsubishi vehicles in the UK have more than doubled compared to the same period last year, according to SMMT figures released recently. or the calendar year through May 2015, Mitsubishi Motors (UK) passenger car sales are up 133 per cent, against an overall increase in the market of 5.7 per cent.

The company is seeing significantly better sales across the entire range of models, resulting from higher levels of marketing investment, a growing dealer network and the impact of the dramatic success of its Outlander plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV).

The Outlander PHEV became the UK’s favourite plug-in vehicle in March this year, when it overtook the Nissan Leaf’s all time

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sales. In May 2015 it outsold its nearest competitor by nearly three to one, indicating a strong market preference for the versatility and practicality of hybrid plug-ins over pure battery electric vehicles. The Outlander PHEV has a range of 32.5 miles in electric mode alone – more than enough to accommodate the average daily commute. The vehicle’sofficial fuel consumption figure is 148 miles per gallon and it has emissions of just 44g of CO2 per kilometre.

The Outlander PHEV accounts for over half of the 11,842 ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEV’s) bought in the UK this year. Sales of the vehicle are strong among company car

The Outlander PHEV accounts for over half of the 11,842 ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEV’s) bought in the UK this year drivers, who benefit from significant taxable benefit in kind savings (just 5 per cent), and corporate fleets that benefit from a 100 per cent first year write down allowance against profits, and reduced National Insurance contributions.

Across the range, calendar year to date, the iconic Mitsubishi Shogun is up 39 per cent, the L200 pick-up is ahead by 30 per cent and the ASX (Active Sports Cross-over) is up by 23 per cent.

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 67

| Motors

68 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

Guy Salmon Portsmouth

Kentdale Kendal

02392 177196, guysalmon.portsmouth.landrover.co.uk

01539 814444, kentdale.kendal.landrover.co.uk

Guy Salmon Knutsford

Lakeland Torver

01565 632525 guysalmon.knutsford.landrover.co.uk

01539 441317, lakeland.torver.landrover.co.uk

Barretts Ashford

Stafford Land Rover

02380 215800 01233 506070, barretts.ashford.landrover.co.uk

01785 214140, stafford.landrover.co.uk

Barretts Canterbury

Duckworth Market Rasen

01227 475475, barretts.canterbury.landrover.co.uk

01673 799393, duckworth.marketrasen.landrover.co.uk

Ripon Land Rover

Duckworth Boston

01765 646464, ripon.landrover.co.uk

01205 449758, duckworth.boston.landrover.co.uk

Chipperfield Land Rover

Hunters Southampton

01923 263030, chipperfield.landrover.co.uk

02380 215800 hunters.southampton.landrover.co.uk

Cambrian Aberystwyth

Westover Land Rover Salisbury

01970 624841, cambrian.aberystwyth.landrover.co.uk

01722 414400, westover.salisbury.landrover.co.uk

Hunters Norwich

Conwy Land Rover

01603 944836, hunters.norwich.landrover.co.uk

01492 580000, conwy.landrover.co.uk

Lloyds Kelso

Guy Salmon Wakefield

01573 224345, lloyd.kelso.landrover.co.uk

01924 695658, guysalmon.wakefield.landrover.co.uk

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 69

| Motors

All-new Hyundai Tucson pricing announced Hyundai Motor UK has officially announced the pricing and specification of the company’s new compact SUV, All-New Tucson, which will go on sale in the UK from September 2015. rices will start from £18,695 for the entry level S trim, which includes standard features such as: DAB digital radio with MP3 compatibility; Bluetooth® connectivity, with USB and AUX connections; 16" alloy wheels; air conditioning; and automatic headlights with dusk sensor.

Customers of the SE derivative, priced from £20,495, will benefit from additional equipment, including: 17” alloy wheels; rear parking sensors; heated front seats; Lane Keep Assist System (LKAS); projection headlights with static cornering lights; and dual zone climate control.

From £21,295, SE Nav buyers can enjoy the addition of Hyundai’s new-generation 8" touchscreen satellite navigation featuring: TMC, reversing camera, MapCare, Tom Tom Live

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Services and a shark fin antenna. SE Nav also comes with Hyundai’s innovative Speed Limit Information System (SLIF), which uses the front camera and information from the navigation system to identify road speed signs and display the speed limit in real time.

Customers who opt for the Premium equipment level will experience features including: 19" alloy wheels (excluding 1.7 CRDi Blue Drive which has 17" Alloy Wheels); leather upholstery; front parking sensors; Rear Cross Traffic Alert; automatic windscreen wipers with rain sensor; Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB); Blind Spot Detection (BSD); and heated rear seats (outer rear seats only). Prices for the Premium derivative start from £25,045.

The range-topping Premium SE model, available from £28,345, features: heated steering wheel; keyless smart entry with engine

start/stop button; Smart Parking Assist System (SPAS - Automatic Transmission only); smart electric tailgate; LED headlights; panoramic sunroof with electric tilt and slide function; and ventilated front seats.

Tony Whitehorn, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor UK, commented: “The SUV market is of huge importance to Hyundai, with over 130,000 SUVs sold since we first launched Santa Fe in 2001. The outgoing model, ix35, is our second best-seller in the UK so far this year which just proves how critical this sector is for our brand - Tucson will look to develop this success, thanks to its striking design and the enhanced level of technology and equipment it offers our customers.”

For further information on the All-New Tucson, visit: www.hyundaimedia-tucson.co.uk

One-of-a-kind Defender marks 2,000,000 milestone Celebrating 67 years of iconic Land Rover production, a unique vehicle has been built to commemorate the UK production of the two-millionth Series Land Rover and Defender. ith a bespoke design and an allstar cast of special guests helping to complete the momentous build, ‘Defender 2,000,000’ has been created to be a fitting tribute to almost seven decades of Land Rover production in the Solihull plant, UK. In December 2015, collectors and Defender fans will be given the opportunity to own this unique piece of Land Rover’s history when it is auctioned by prestigious and globally renowned auction house, Bonhams. Reflecting Defender’s heritage, all proceeds will be donated to Land Rover’s humanitarian and conservation partners – the International

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Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the Born Free Foundation.

Dr Ralf Speth, Chief Executive of Jaguar Land Rover, said: “Over 67 years, the Series Land Rover and in turn Defender has been the transport of choice for explorers, charity organisations, farmers and even royalty. Throughout history it has helped pioneers to reach the unreachable. What started life as an agricultural workhorse has transcended the automotive world to become a worldwide design icon. I was honoured to join the production line team in Solihull to help build this unique vehicle. It was a special experience which will no doubt become a fond memory.

“The auction of this milestone

70 | Farming Monthly | July 2015

vehicle is an opportunity to own a piece of Land Rover’s history, as Defender enters its final phase of manufacturing in Solihull. Giving people the chance to buy this truly distinctive Defender to raise funds for the IFRC and Born Free Foundation is a suitable way to celebrate the role that Defender has played in supporting our humanitarian aid and conservation

partners over the decades.”

www.farmingmonthly.co.uk

| Motors

AUGUST MOTORS Wiltshire 01722 622 633 www.augustmotors-isuzu.co.uk

CROSS ROADS Warwickshire 01608 433 021 www.crossroads-isuzu.co.uk

LIFESTYLE EUROPE Kent 01892 629 140 www.lifestyleeurope-isuzu.co.uk

ARCHIE MOSS Leicestershire 01530 553 785 www.archiemoss-isuzu.co.uk

DUCKWORTH ISUZU Boston 01205 535 417 www.duckworths-isuzu.co.uk

MARK WEATHERHEAD LTD Cambridgeshire 01954 574 562 www.markweatherhead-isuzu.co.uk

BOB GERARD LTD Leicestershire 01162 149 052 www.bobgerard-isuzu.co.uk

DUCKWORTH ISUZU Market Rasen 01673 558 892 www.duckworths-isuzu.co.uk

RIVERSIDE EASTERN LTD North Yorkshire 01723 821 625 www.riversideeastern-isuzu.co.uk

BURRELLS MOTOR GROUP South Yorkshire 01302 515 763 www.burrellsmotorgroup-isuzu.co.uk

GARLAND MOTORS Hampshire 01252 884 026 www.garland-isuzu.co.uk

YORK VAN CENTRE North Yorkshire 01904 275 211 www.yorkvancentre-isuzu.co.uk

CORDWALLIS GROUP Oxfordshire 01865 565 991 www.cordwallisgroup-isuzu.co.uk

JEFFRIES OF BACTON Suffolk 01449 424 758 www.jeffriesofbacton-isuzu.co.uk

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July 2015 | Farming Monthly | 71

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