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WFU at the Royal Highland 21st July 2008 Members of WFU worked in conjunction with the Home Grown Cereals Authority to demonstrate the production of biofuels from oilseed rape as part of the Grain Chain at this year's Royal Highland Show.
Demise of UK Pig Industry 18th July 2008 Over the last ten years the UK pig population has declined by 39% and we have gone from producing 116% of what we consumed down to 69%. The fittest, often the largest, units are surviving but over half of specialist pig units lose money.
Have You Got the Eggs Factor? 9th July 2008 A £5,000 prize is up for grabs for someone who can cook eggs with panache. Contestants will be assessed on their ability to poach an egg successfully and their 'signature dish' featuring eggs, to be cooked in under ten minutes. More information is available and details of how to enter can be found at www.eggrecipes.co.uk/eggsfactor or on the British Egg Information Service website http://www.britegg.co.uk
 Royal Show 7th July 2008Members of the Warwickshire branch of WFU promoted British cheeses in the educational area of the Royal Show this year, which over 5,000 school children visited on the first two days of the show.
Pesticide Meeting 31st May 2008 On Friday, 6 June, the British Crop Production Council (BCPC) is hosting a Forum for key stakeholder organisations in the UK food chain, from producers and their advisers, through suppliers, to consumers, to describe the new EU pesticide legislation proposals and to examine their impact on food supply and price. Presenters will include the PSD, the NFU and the Arable Group. To attend or for information, please contact Dr Colin Ruscoe.
 Open Farm Sunday 31st May 2008Over 400 farms across the England, Scotland and Wales will be taking part in this year’s Open Farm Sunday on the 1st June. Each event will be unique with its own activities - based around the host farm’s own individual story. Activities during the day may include a farm walk, nature trail, tractor & trailer rides, pond dipping, activities for kids, mini farmers market or picnics. You might like to visit a local farm and see what’s planned or even give them a ring to offer to help. See www.farmsunday.org
High Food Prices 31st May 2008 Food inflation reached 6% in December 2007, the highest rate since 1991 when general inflation was in double figures. The price of butter and eggs rose by 30% and bread and milk rose by about 15%. The agri-food sector accounted for 6.9% of the total economy. 20% of total consumers’ expenditure was on food, drink and catering. Farmgate share of a basket of food staples was 36%, hardly changed since 2006. The agri-food sector provided a total of just over 3.6 million jobs, 14% of all employees in Great Britain. Self sufficiency in food continues to decline. It is estimated to be 74% for indigenous type food. (DEFRA)
 WFU Conference 2008 13th May The WFU Conference was hosted by the Welsh branches and chaired by the Baroness Byford. WFU President, Ionwen Lewis, introduced the event by stating that food security should move up the political agenda. Click here for a full report....
Competition Commission 13th May 2008 The Competition Commission has published its final report on its investigation of the grocery market. The inquiry was referred to the CC from the OFT on May 9th 2006 and the final report is the culmination of 2 years of work with over 700 submissions and 81 hearings. For the final report please visit www.competition-commission.org.uk
Open Farm Sunday29th April 2008 Farmers across the country are being encouraged to open their farm gates to the public for Open Farm Sunday on Sunday 1 June 2008. The campaign is organised by LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming). Farmers welcome family, friends and neighbours onto their farms. and it is an excellent opportunity for children and adults to learn more about where their food comes from and the environment around them - from food and health to wildlife, employment and energy farms matter! For further information visit www.farmsunday.org
 Year of Food and Farming 29th April 2008 At the beginning of this month support for the Year of Food and Farming exceeded a milestone of 20,000 pledges. Over 17,000 young people have now pledged to take part in the Year and nearly 3,000 organisations have offered their support – more and more people are pledging to take part in the Year of Food and Farming every day!
World Food Crisis Deepens 29th April 2008 37 countries worldwide are facing a food crisis, with world food prices having risen 45% in the last nine months and food import bills increasing by 56%, according to the UN’s Food & Agriculture Organisation (FAO). There are ‘serious shortages’ of rice, wheat and maize, and food riots reported in a number of developing countries.
 Melton's Pork Pies get PGI 29th April 2008 Melton Mowbray Pork Poies have at last achieved Protected Geographical Indicator status. Now only pies made in a traditional manner and within the vicinity of Melton Mowbray can now be called Melton Mowbray pork pies, after the EC awarded them PGI status.
WFU Conference 2008 30th March 2008 The WFU Conference 2008 is to be hosted in Glamorgan on 28th April by the Welsh branches. Entitled "Agriculture - are we all facing up to our responsibilities", speakers include Mariann Fischer-Boel and Elin Jones. For more information, contact Sally Joseph Tel: 01656 783149 or Email:sallyjoseph@tiscali.co.uk
End of Food From Britain 27th March 2008 The Government has announced that it is to withdraw financial support from Food From Britain, which was set up to promote British food at home and abroad. Unless private sector money is found to support the organisation it will close by March 31 2009.
Brazilians Not up To EU Standards 27th March 2008 The Commission has reduced the number of Brazilian holdings approved for export to the EU after the FVO (EU vets) identified major problems with cattle traceability on 11 separate holdings. The list now contains only 95 holdings, which is less than 1% of the farms which were allowed to export to the EU before the introduction of the new controls. This represents around 80,000 animals out of a total Brazilian herd of approximately 180 million.
British Pigs at an All Time Low 23rd March 2008 Pigmeat returns are still running at well below production costs, which explains why more producers are leaving the industry permanently. The signs are that the June 2008 UK Pig Census will for the first time show in living memory (even mine) the UK herd size of below 400,000 head.
Teacher Placements 23rd March 2008 Are you a setting other than a school offering educational activities to young people? Would you like to help trainee teachers to develop their understanding of partnership working, learning outside the classroom and creativity? Could you offer placements to trainee teachers in your setting? Trainee teachers are looking for placements to work Outside the Classroom. If you are able to offer a placement, please check www.teachingoutsidetheclassroom.com or Email info@teachingoutsidetheclassroom.com
Customers Want 'Local' March 2008 The IGD has published ‘Shopper Trends – 5 years on’ which is a ‘definitive’ guide to shopper attitudes. The report found that there is growing demand for products that are healthy and that display ethical and environmental credentials. Within these trends, provenance is increasingly important at a retail and foodservice level.
Retailer Ombudsman March 2008 The Competition Commission’s recommendations for a new and strengthened code of practice covering the relationship between all retailers, with a turnover of more than £1b, and a recommendation to establish an ombudsman to oversee its implementation, are a positive step forward that will help enhance supply chain relations.
Support British Pigs 7th March 2008 Hundreds of pig farmers took to the streets of London on Tuesday to campaign for fairer prices for their animals. The 'Pigs are Worth It' rally highlights the plight of an industry losing more than £20 per animal. Organisers, the National Pig Association bussed in farmers from across the country along with their stalwart Winnie the Pig who returned to Parliament Square for the first time since 2000. Stand By Your Ham!
Brazilian Beef 30th January 2008 A temporary ban on Brazilian beef imports into the European Union has been brought in from today as a vital safeguard against foot-and-mouth disease. The ban will remain until all Brazilian farms licensed for export have been vetted by European experts and given the all-clear. Euro-MPs have been demanding action for months in the face of growing concern about foot-and-mouth disease in Brazilian cattle.
Diet and Behaviour 30th January 2008 The Associate Parliamentary Food and Health Forum launched a report on "The Links Between Diet and Behaviour" following a year long inquiry into the links between diet, mental health and behaviour. More detailed information about the inquiry, including minutes of all the meetings and presentations given by witnesses, is available on the Forum’s website at: www.fhf.org.uk/inquiry
Farmhouse Breakfast Week 2008 21st January 2008 This week is Farmhouse Breakfast Week, sponsored by the Home Grown Cereals Authority, and all week oragnisations, including the WFU, will be hosting breakfasts around the country to spread the message about the importance of starting the day with a proper breakfast. For more information see www.farmhousebreakfast.com
Cookery Back in Schools 24th January 2008 The Government have at last taken heed of what WFU has been telling them for the past 20 years and decided that cookery should be a compulsory subject for all 11 to 14 year olds in school. WFU believes that all children should know where their food comes from and how to cook a nutritious meal from scratch rather than rely on less healthy processed food.
 Red Tractor 21st January 2008Assured Food Standards report that the value of products marked with the Red Tractor logo rose £1.5 billion to £7 billion during 2007 (The Grocer, 5th January, 2008). The Red Tractor food assurance mark guarantees that food has been produced to high standards from the farm right through to the supermarket shelf. Buyers of produce marked with the logo can also be confident that the food is UK farmed.
Chicken Run 9th January 2008 WFU despair at the slanted point of view given on Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Chicken Run programme. The welfare standards to which chicken and eggs are produced in the UK are among the highest in the world and strike a fair balance between the welfare of the animals and the affordability of the product. The so called “expert” journalists and commentators appear to be unable to understand the difference between “battery” systems, which are used for egg production, and “broiler” houses, in which table birds are grown. Some consumers also believe that growth hormones are still fed to chickens.
Climate Change 9th January 2008 The latest survey results released by Farming Futures find that more farmers are taking on-farm action to mitigate climate change. Farming Futures - a communications collaboration between the NFU, CLA, ARF, AIC, Forum for the Future and Defra, has been monitoring farmer's attitudes towards climate change since December 2006, as well as working to raise awareness of climate change, and stimulate on-farm action.
Rural Development Programme Approved 12th December 2007 On the 6th December the Secretary of State announced that the RDP fro England has been approved by the EU's Rural development Committee. The legal decision formally approving the Programme should be published by the new year, allowing full implementation of the new Programme in January. Expressions of interest are now needed from farmers, foresters and horticulturalists.
Year of Food and Farming 12th December 2007 WFU members helped to launch the Year of Food and Farming in London last week in Lambeth Town Hall.
WFU Dairy Chairman Reaches Final 11th December 2007 WFU Dairy Cahirman, Barbara Hughes of Cheshire WFU, is one of three finalists for the GMTV Christmas Programme coming from a farm on 20th December 2007. She will be on Lorraine Kelly this Thursday, 13th December at 8.35am. Do watch - knowing Barbara it will be great viewing. You will have seen her picture in the recent WFU 'Save Our Moos' campaign with the Cheshire ladies outside No 10 Downing Street. Good luck Barbara!
CAP Web Debate 6th December 2007 Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, is inviting stakeholders to a web-streamed general hearing on the Health Check of the CAP and asking farmers, environmentalists, consumers and NGOs to share their opinion on her blog - blogs.ec.europa.eu/fischer-boel The European Commission has launched a special website for the health check and called two big conferences.
Export Refunds for Pig Meat 6th December 2007 The Eurpean Commission has introduced export refunds for fresh and frozen pig meat to help ease the current difficult market situation. Refunds will be EUR 31.1/100kg for carcases and cuts and EUR 19.4/100kg for bellies. They will be payable for exports to all destinations and will be available from 30 November. The Private Storage Aid (APS) scheme which was set up last month and has been suspended since Tuesday 27 November will close. This is a result of the difficult situation in the EU pig meat sector resulting particularly from high feed costs.
Cereal Import Duty Suspended 6th December 2007 The European Commission today proposed the suspension of import duties on all cereals except oats for the current marketing year - which ends on June 30, 2008. This is a reaction to the exceptionally tight situation on the world and EU cereals markets and the record price levels. he EU pig meat sector resulting particularly from high feed costs.
187m Euro to Fight Disease 6th December 2007 The European Commission has approved a financial package of EUR 186.57 million to support programmes to eradicate, control and monitor animal diseases, including rabies, in 2008. This reflects the high level of importance attached to disease eradication measures, for the protection of both animal and public health.
NFU calls for a Ban on Brazilian Beef 29th November 2007 NFU President Peter Kendall has called on the EU Commission urgently to consider banning imports of beef from Brazil, in the light of further reports of serious breaches in cattle identification regulations in a country where foot and mouth disease is endemic.
Bird Flu Contained
29th November 2007 Defra has published its epidemiological report into the recent Avian Influenza outbreak at a farm in Norfolk. While it draws no definitive conclusions as to its source, epidemiological investigations indicate a 99.8 per cent match to infection found in wild birds in the Czech Republic in mid 2007. Testing on surrounding poultry premises, and testing of wild birds in the area, all indicate the infection did not spread beyond the initial two infected premises.
WFU Conference 2008
27th November 2007
Please note that the date of WFU's Conference 2008 in Wales has been altered to accommodate the main speaker, Mariann Fischer Boel, the European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development. It will now be held on the 27th - 29th April 2008. More details to follow.
Climate Change
21st November 2007 Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Hilary Benn addressed the Farming for the Future Conference in London on 19 November 2007. He talked about the challenges facing farmers and ways they can help influence climate change and economic competitiveness in Britain. Link to minister's speech.
Save Our Moos
17th November 2007 
WFU members will hand in a petition signed by thousands to 10 Downing Street this week to "Save Our Moos". WFU is concerned that the low prices that dairy farmers receive for their milk will result in many more going out of business. There will be fewer cows in the country and less milk for the customer. Low milk prices are not sustainable.
Why Farming Matters
16th November 2007
New WFU DVD
16th November 2007 A new teaching resource all about UK farming has been launched by the Women’s Food and Farming Union and HGCA as part of the Year of Food & Farming initiative. The DVD ‘Beyond the farmgate – the farmer and you’ is suitable for all age groups but specifically fits the curriculum for Key Stage 2 and 3. It is an update to the hugely popular ‘Through the farmgate’ video WFU has used in schools since 1996.
 WFU AGM 2007
16th November 2007 WFU held its AGM at the NABIM offices in London this week. Guest speakers were Alex Waugh of NABIM and Lord Chris Haskins. WFU's new Patron, Baroness Byford, presented the awards. The WFU launched it's new educational DVD, "Beyond the Farm Gate - the farmer and you". |
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In a show of strength to harness consumer support, the WFU, together with The Townswomen's Guild, the National Farmers Union, the National Council of Women, the English Beef and Lamb Executive (Eblex), The Campaign to Protect Rural England and Farmers Guardian, this week launched 'Why Beef and Sheep Farming Matters' aimed at raising awareness of the current crisis facing the sector and encouraging people to buy British.
WFU is proud to support British Food Fortnight
