Liz Wright, Editor of Smallholder welcomes news and views from readers
Buying British should be top of list The NFU has responded to a poll by the RSPCA which says 73 per cent of consumers are buying higher welfare chicken after watching the recent television shows by celebrity chefs.
Duchy College, near Camborne, is offering a brand new part-time course this spring called The History of Plant Hunting and Plant Exploration' that will give students the chance to learn how the more exotic species of plants arrived into Cornwall, and the unique role that its gardens played in the establishment of plants new to Britain and wider Europe.
The Government must have the courage to tackle an animal disease which has brought widespread human and economic misery, harm to animal welfare and pushed some parts of the farming industry to breaking point - according to experts at the CLA, the Country Land and Business Association.
More than 10,000 people have registered their support for Britain's pig farmers by signing the on-line petition at www.pigsareworthit.com, calling for fair prices for farmers.
The UK Agriculture Industry's Climate Change Task Force report Part of the Solution' will have its international launch this Monday March 3 at the European Parliament.
The National Sheep Association and the Livestock Auctioneers Association have joined forces to organise a Bluetongue Information Evening in Cornwall on Wednesday March 5.
Whatever the connection with wood or the woodland environment, people are invited to attend the Woodland Forum Day on Saturday, April 5 at Neroche Hall, Nr Bickenhall and then on to nearby Wych Lodge.
Seminars to help farmers, smnallholders and livestock keepers understand and contribute to the new proposals for responsibility and cost sharing of animal disease outbreaks is are being held across the country beginning this week.
The Animal Health Office in Taunton has issued a letter this week to poultry breeders in the south west following the outbreak of avian flu H5N1 confirmed in a mute swan from Abbotsbury on January 10.
Defra's continued support for Catchment Sensitive Farming for another three years and its plans for water companies to work directly with farmers to tackle pollution issues are important for the industry, the NFU said.
Keep feeding the birds over winter: that's the message from research by a University of Exeter scientist from the Tremough Campus, Penryn. Published in the prestigious Royal Society journal Biology Letters, the study shows for the first time that the extra food we provide garden birds in winter makes for a more successful breeding season in the spring.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) today, Friday, announced a six per cent increase on Hill Farm Allowance (HFA) payment rates compared to 2007. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) will start making the 2008 payments this month.
NFU Deputy President Meurig Raymond has again rejected Government plans to charge farmers for animal disease control when he spoke at a conference in London today.
The lifting of the export ban to the USA is great news for the British pig industry says the British Pig Executive (BPEX)
The ban was imposed because of the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease and not only has the US now lifted it for the whole country except Surrey, but the decision has also been backdated to August last year.
Seminars to help farmers and livestock keepers understand and contribute to the new proposals for responsibility and cost sharing of animal disease outbreaks is are being held across the country.
Defra has today, Friday, confirmed that another two dead wild mute swans, collected on January 28 as part of wild bird surveillance in the same area in Dorset have tested positive for highly pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza.
