FARMING
Voice Of A Farmer James Cossins is a 5th generation farmer in the Tarrant Valley.
The main topic of conversation in the UK farming world at the moment has been the lack of rain this spring with virtually no rain being recorded in Dorset during April.
encouraged to carry out a ‘Climate Check Audit’ designed to measure the efficiency of the farm, and spot the good and the bad in our farming activities. The process involves giving information on how much produce was sold off the farm, and the inputs which were required to produce these goods.
Our farm diary from 1921, 100 hundred years ago, states that the year was one of the driest on record with the river Tarrant drying up in July and not flowing until January.
As we operate a mixed farm of livestock and crops, both can benefit from each other - we produce home-grown feeds, and creating our own fertiliser from the animals, thus saving on inputs that need to be purchased. Overall we ended up with an average score compared with similar types of farms. I think this showed us that there is still plenty to do to help benefit the climate.
Also many crops failed to make it to harvest - let’s hope history does not repeat itself. I am sure all farmers, growers and gardeners are hoping for some warm rain. Related to the weather of course is the debate around climate change, which is constantly in the news. The possible reasons are very complex and very varied depending on which scientist you listen to. Farming is trying to do its bit by setting out to measure what effects farming practices have on the environment and how we can reach net zero. Through our milk cooperative Arla, all producers have been
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The good points showed that a high proportion of the milk produced came from homegrown forages, and the crops benefitted from the manures the cattle produced thus reducing the requirement for purchasing so much fertiliser.
Improvements suggested were in perhaps covering slurry stores to reduce ammonia emissions, also to produce more of our own protein thereby reducing the need to import so much. It is early days in this process, but at least we are beginning to take the aim for being Net Zero seriously. The pictures for this month show how far the process of crop spraying has come forward in terms of safety for the operator and the crop. The top picture was taken in the 1970’s, with virtually no protection for the driver and limited means of apply the product accurately compared to the below modern equipment with tractor cabs and GPS driving assistance to allow for a very accurate application of the products.
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