AHDB Food & Farming

Welcome to the first AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds podcast of 2020!

In this short episode AHDB Communications Manager Jason Pole explains the recent changes to the Recommended List (RL). Speaking to Paul Gosling, head of the Recommended List team, the two discuss the launch of the online Variety Selection tool and how it works. The new tool brings the features of the RL into a digital format and includes a new metric: ‘Agronomic Merit’ which combines a number of agronomic statistics into a single measure. Looking ahead, this spring will see the launch of the RL app for smartphones.

Jason also gives a run-down of updates to the RL, including the inclusion of 28 new varieties, with highlights including improved disease resistance and more specialist and quality traits.

We are also currently recruiting for two vacancies for the RL crop committee: a wheat trader for the Wheat Crop Committee and an agronomist for the Oilseeds Crop Committee. If you’re interest in either role please visit: ahdb.org.uk/news/candidates-needed-to-recommended-varieties for further information and how to apply.

All the information about the RL can be found on the AHDB website at: ahdb.org.uk/rl, as well as the harvest results and videos explaining how to use the tables. Scroll further down the page to link to the new Variety Selection Tool discussed in this week’s podcast.

January 2020 should be seen as a huge opportunity to set the record straight, hold our heads high and shout about the positives of livestock farming in the UK.

We've produced a pack of support materials to help positively manage the reputation of meat and dairy during January 2020 and beyond.

The packs contain evidence-based resources and social media infographics to support the meat and dairy industry in having positive conversations with a consistent narrative. Visit here for further information. 

As with meat, the key message with dairy is balance. Different food groups work best when consumed together in moderation as part of a balanced plate approach. Milk and dairy foods are important sources of several nutrients which contribute to our positive well being, including calcium, iodine and protein.

Read the recent blog from Will Jackson, AHDB's Strategy Director Beef & Lamb here. 

Welcome to the AHDB Dairy Strategic Farm podcast, part of our Farm Excellence podcast series. Throughout December, you will hear from a number of farmers in our Farm Excellence network, who will tell their story of the inspirational work they are doing with the help of AHDB to improve the performance and profitability of their business. 

  

In this episode, we hear from Karen Halton and Joe Carter about their experiences as Strategic Dairy Farms and why they think dairy farmers should make the most of the opportunity. We also hear from Nic Parsons, AHDB’s Head of Dairy Development, who provides a broader picture of the Strategic Dairy Farm work and gives a glimpse of the exciting things to come in 2020.

 

For further information on how to get involved with our Farm-Excellence network visit ahdb.org.uk/farm-excellence. Get involved today!

We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

To find events near you, visit: ahdb.org.uk/events

This podcast is part of our Farm Excellence podcast series. Throughout December, you will hear from a number of farmers in our Farm Excellence network, who will tell their story of the inspirational work they are doing with the help of AHDB to improve the performance and profitability of their business. 

 

In this episode, we hear from Jen Waters and Richard Bows, who are both part of our Pork knowledge exchange team. Jen talks about the work we are doing on Pork strategic farms and our three main themes – water, tails and precision. Richard tells us about our Gilt Watch campaign, which has brought together more than 30 independent producers to monitor gilt performance.

 

For further information on how to get involved with our Farm-Excellence network visit ahdb.org.uk/farm-excellence. Get involved today!

We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

To find events near you, visit: https://ahdb.org.uk/events

Find our water-related resources at: https://pork.ahdb.org.uk/environment-buildings/water-soil-and-air/water-quality-and-quantity/

The Tail Biting WebHAT (Web based Husbandry Advisory Tool) provides information about the key risks in pigs and practical suggestions to help reduce them on-farm. 

Download our practical guide to environmental enrichment for pigs.

Welcome to the AHDB Beef & Lamb Strategic Farm podcast, part of the Farm Excellence podcast series. Throughout December, you will hear from a number of farmers in our Farm Excellence network, who will tell their story of the inspirational work they are doing with the help of AHDB to improve the performance and profitability of their business. 

In this episode, we will speak to two strategic farmers; one who has been part of the programme for two years, and one who has only just embarked on his journey with the AHDB initiative.  

Sequence of speakers:

For further information on how to get involved with our Farm-Excellence network visit ahdb.org.uk/farm-excellence. Get involved today! 

The first episode in the Farm Excellence series of the AHDB podcast focuses on cereals & oilseeds. The Monitor Farm programme comprises a network of farmers from across the UK and Northern Ireland committed to driving innovation and best practice. They host regular meetings at their farms in which they discuss issues facing agriculture in their region.

 

This November saw the Monitor Farm Conference take place in Nottingham: an event for Monitor Farmers to come together and collaborate. We caught up with three of our newest Monitor Farmers: Richard Ling (Diss Monitor Farm in Norfolk), Rory Lay (Loppington Monitor Farm in the West Midlands) and Ashley Jones (Saltash Monitor Farm in the West Country). They discussed their views on this years’ conference, what makes a good leader and why they decided to become Monitor Farmers.

 

Visit the website to find out more information about our Farm Excellence programme.

Welcome to the Farm-Excellence podcast series produced to tell the story of the inspirational work farmers, growers and AHDB are doing under the umbrella of Farm-Excellence. 

The pace of change in the agriculture sector seems only to increase as all farming businesses adapt to address the challenges and opportunities. 

This 7-part series aims to spill all the  inspirational work these farms are doing to drive positive change within the agriculture and horticulture industry. 

We will speak to:

For further information on how to get involved with our Farm-Excellence network visit ahdb.org.uk/farm-excellence. Get involved today! 

Our next episode will speak to our Cereals and Oilseeds monitor farm, Rory Lay on 13th December 2019. 

Could this be one of the wettest autumns on record? Two farmers tell us about the actions they’ve taken to keep their farms afloat during extreme rainfall.  

 

Five years on from the Somerset Levels floods, cereals and beef farmer James Winslade reveals how social media anchored the news agenda around the troubles, which helped protect his business today. 

 

With reservoirs fully topped up after the drought, South Lincolnshire grower David Hoyles tells us about the decisions he’s made to reduce damage to water logged land and manage labour.

 

Using insight from the markets, AHDB’s Phil Bicknell will share how this season’s potato harvest has fared. He talks about the relationship of farmgate prices with retail and the implications for early season planting and livestock production.

For more information please visit:

AHDB's Weather page 

We take look at the factors affecting the British liquid milk market with Patty Clayton, AHDB’s lead analyst for dairy.

 

In this episode we discuss how much milk is produced, where it’s processed, the challenges affecting Wales and Scotland as well as resources available to help dairy farmers plan for the future.

 

For the latest industry data, analysis and insights from the dairy sector, visit our market web pages.

 

Sign up for our weekly Dairy Market Weekly email for the latest market news and analysis.

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

In this month’s Pork-focused episode, we’ll be focusing on welfare and looking at what Defra’s updated Code of Recommendations for the Welfare of Livestock means in practice for pig keepers. We’ll also be hearing about some of the key highlights from last month’s meetings for small-scale pig keepers and finish with a quick look at the Chinese pig market.

The updated Welfare Code sets out a number of new requirements for pig producers, but for the vast majority, it should not be too onerous. It will come into force on 1 March 2020.

The Code can be used by enforcement bodies, including Animal and Plant Health Agency inspectors and local authorities, when investigating allegations of poor welfare, to look at whether animal welfare standards are being met. It applies to England only, although devolved administrations will aim to align their new codes as closely as possible to Defra’s.

There are new elements, notably related to tail docking, enrichment and record keeping, as well as a clear signal from Government that it would like to see farrowing crates phased out over time.

Tail Biting WebHAT: The Tail Biting WebHAT (Web based Husbandry Advisory Tool) provides information about the key risks in pigs and practical suggestions to help reduce them on-farm. It takes you through a series of steps, to repeat on an ongoing basis, to help you and your vet monitor and reduce the risks.

Environmental enrichment for pigs: This guide aims to give practical advice to pig farmers surrounding the complex issue of providing suitable environmental enrichment to pigs.

Lux meter: A light (lux) meter is used to measure the amount of light distributed over a particular area at a specified distance from the light source. For information on lighting for pig buildings, click here.

Pig Hub: https://www.pighub.org.uk

Real Welfare: Real Welfare involves on-farm assessment of pig welfare using a set of five objective and repeatable measures.

Claire Barber: [email protected] or 0247 647 8913

Emily Boyce: [email protected] or 07776 594790

Sign up to receive the latest information from AHDB.

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.