Here we are in the depths of winter at a time when days are short and nights are long. The grass is hardly growing right now and much of what there is lies under water. So it’s hard to think about the time when spring will come and we will be turning our cows out…
Have you heard about the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) Dairy Fund? In July 2012, the Prime Minister announced that £5m would be made available to the dairy sector under the RDPE to help dairy producers increase their competitiveness and achieve added value to boost their market returns. The aims of the fund…
Not to be outdone by the Danes (Arla), Dutch dairy company Friesland Campina have released a video about milk. It has a very modern feel and shows cows quietly grazing under the stars as urban society rushes to and fro. The film again demonstrates the power of images of cows grazing grass. I know Friesland…
I have just had the unenviable task of putting down (shooting) a six month old calf on the farm. The animal in question has been suffering from a respiratory infection for a number of weeks and was obviously in great discomfort, despite our attempts to nurse it back to health. This is a task which…
Tomorrow I am heading north to Scotland to talk to farmers about Free Range Dairy. Despite the perceived challenges to grazing cows in the northern reaches of the UK, there has been quite a lot of interest in my initiative from ‘north of the border’. I have always maintained that a farmer who grazes his…
Resistance to antibiotics is one of the greatest threats to modern health experts say. The Health Protection Agency warns that some bugs such as E Coli and Gonorrhoea have developed resistant strains, following the unnecessary use of antibiotics to tackle mild infections. This Sunday (November 18th) is European Antibiotics Awareness Day, which hopes to raise…
NFU Cymru will tell The House of Commons Welsh Affairs Committee that dairy farmers must not suffer a repeat of the year of “turmoil” they have endured in 2012, when they meet to discuss the future of dairy farming in Wales tomorrow. Absolutely right – like all UK milk producers they should not, must not…
You can now make the Pasture Promise online. Just follow the link on the home page or click here. All you need to do is provide your name, address and contact details. We are getting more farmers signing up every day and we are well on the way to establishing a network of like minded…
Sainsbury’s have announced that they are dropping the Red Tractor logo on packaging in their stores. This decision follows a review of the information they put on packaging, partly they say, in response to confusion amongst consumers over too many labels on food. Sainsbury’s also say forthcoming changes to EU laws on food labelling…
I hear that Mary Berry, writer of cookery books and Great British Bake Off judge, has a new series on BBC2 called The Great British Food Revival and one episode is all about ice cream. Mary has labeled many ice creams as being almost 99 percent “synthetic junk”. Apparently it only has to contain…
Even my eternal optimism is being seriously challenged by the weather we have had in the first week of October. We have 80 acres of knee-high grass waiting to be cut for a third time, to make silage. We have 200 acres of wheat stubbles untouched since the combine clawed its way around the fields…
Have you seen any good films lately? Well, if you haven’t, may I recommend a real ‘feel good’ movie from Arla Foods? Closer to Nature isn’t packed with high octane action for the adrenalin junkies, but it does contain some wonderful scenery and, for those of you who are animation fans, look out for the…
So, things are looking up – milk prices are on the rise. In recent weeks the UK’s major milk buyers have announced an increase in the price they will pay to farmers this autumn. Arla have said they are going to increase their standard litre price by 2.5 pence from October 1st. At the same,…
I have just read an interesting article by Pat Tomlinson from Old Mill accountants and financial planners, about the role of cost of production based pricing for milk. Mr Tomlinson says “Call me old fashioned, but when I studied basic economics (albeit last century!), the price of a product was determined by the relationship of…
Back in December 2011, I put a post on the Free Range Dairy website about the continuing growth of ethical food brands during the economic downturn. This was linked to a report in The Independent, which stated that Fairtrade food sales rose by 36 percent in 2009-10. Much of the recent campaign by UK milk…
Many dairy farmers will feel in need of charity after the suffering they have endured this summer. But, I am not suggesting we set up an appeal to raise money for beleaguered producers, Free Range Dairy is about winning public support through the milk we produce. I am currently looking at how we formally register…
Things feel like they are really moving on with Free Range Dairy. The feedback on defining standards for production has been excellent and we now moving forward from a simple belief in the value of pasture-based milk production, to making that milk available to UK consumers. I make no apologies for declaring that Free…
One thing that is becoming very apparent from the feedback I have had regarding the definition of Free Range Dairy herds, is that achieving 180 days at grass has been very difficult (if not impossible) on a number of farms this year – particularly in the north of England and in Scotland. A farmer from…
Thanks to all those who came along to the recent farmer meetings and others who have emailed me with suggestions on how we take Free Range Dairy forward. It is evident that there is considerable interest in milk and dairy products from pasture-based herds, both from consumers and farmers. So, now it’s time to let…