[caption id="attachment_6110" align="alignleft" width="300"] Flashback to 2016: Deputy Minister for Farming and Food Rebecca Evans being served breakfast by FUW President Glyn Roberts.[/caption]

Often the best conversations are had whilst sitting around the table and enjoying good food. Putting aside just a small amount of time each day to enjoy breakfast together allows us to talk, reflect on recent events, and gives us some time away from the usual everyday distractions before the day starts.

Eating together brings people together and because the Farmers’ Union of Wales wants to continue to build closer working relationships with Welsh Government to ensure that the voice of Welsh farmers is heard, it is hosting the annual Farmhouse Breakfast in Cardiff for Assembly Members, decision makers and key stakeholders.

The breakfast is being held on Tuesday, January 24 at the Pierhead building, Cardiff Bay and will see the Union getting politicians round the breakfast table for talks about the future of agriculture and family farms in Wales in a post-Brexit world.

Alan Davies, the FUW’s Managing Director, is looking forward to the event:

“I am really excited about this breakfast in Cardiff Bay. The FUW has a long history of staging this event and it is such a great opportunity to bring everyone together over good food and have some constructive talks about how we can safeguard the future of agriculture here in Wales.

“This breakfast campaign also provides an opportunity to promote the quality premium local produce that farmers grow for us every day of the year and throughout Farmhouse Breakfast Week the FUW will shine a spotlight on the importance of our rural economy, which is sustained without a doubt by our farmers and the businesses that rely on them.

“The food and drink sector is important and farmers are at the head of that food production chain. We have some of the best animal health and welfare standards here in the UK and the food we produce is absolute top quality. So let’s celebrate the industry and appreciate the amazing job our farmers do for us every day of the year, which guarantees that we have fresh, locally produced food on your tables.”

A warm welcome and mouth-watering smells await those joining the Gwent and Glamorgan breakfast functions, which have been organised as part of the FUW’s Farmhouse breakfast week campaign (January 21 – January 28).

The events are being held on:

• Friday, January 27, at Lesser Hall, High Street, Cowbridge;
• Thursday, January 26, at Ty Oakley Farm, Hafodyrynys, Crumlin
• Friday, January 27, at Llanellen Village Hall, Llanellen, Llanfoist, Abergavenny.

The FUW campaign aims to raise the profile of Welsh produce and get politicians, key stakeholders and the general public to really understand the important role the food and drink sector plays in their everyday lives.

“It is about showcasing the most important meal of the day in a bid to raise awareness of the health and nutritional benefits of breakfast and the huge variety of top quality farm produce available in Wales – ranging from bacon, sausages and eggs to speciality dairy products, breads and cereals.

“It’s also an opportunity to show decision makers and key stakeholders who are joining us how vital a part farmers play in maintaining our rural communities, in sustaining a viable and profitable agricultural sector and of course producing excellent food.

“But we want you to be a part of what we do too and I would like to extend a very warm welcome to you all and hope many of you can join us at one of our breakfast functions,” said FUW Gwent and Glamorgan County Executive Officer Glyn Davies.

For more information please contact the Abergavenny office on 01873 853280.

Sheep and goat keepers in Wales are being reminded to submit their annual inventory form by February 1, to avoid potential penalties.

The form can be submitted by either logging onto the EID Cymru website, or by returning the paper form in the pre-paid envelope.

Once the form has been submitted keepers will receive a receipt, which should be kept for record keeping purposes. Should you no longer keep sheep and goats

and aren’t planning on keeping any in the next 12 months, you need to de-register as a keeper with APHA (0300 3038268).

FUW Policy Officer Charlotte Priddy said:

“The annual inventory of sheep and goats is a legal requirement and it is vital that you recorded all the sheep and goats of which you are the registered keeper, by CPH location on 1 January 2017. The number of sheep/goats you declare must include breeding sheep, rams, ram lambs, store and finished lambs, cull ewes/rams, goats and any other sheep.

“It is important that you do this to avoid a potential cross-compliance penalty and an increased likelihood of an inspection.”

If you require assistance, contact the EIDCymru service helpline 01970 636959 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

What could the future in farming look like once the UK has made an exit from the European Union? With speculation of what Brexit might mean in terms of timescales, trade deals, and legislation changing on a daily basis, the industry is facing a level of uncertainty and risk not seen for generations.

To explore the topic further the Meirionnydd branch of the Farmers’ Union of Wales has invited a panel of high profile speakers to join them for their annual general meeting on Friday, January 27.

The meeting, sponsored by HSBC, is held at the Rugby Club Dolgellau and will start at 7pm.

Speaking on the night are Mr Tom Jones, a past FUW Vice President who represents Wales on the European Social and Economic Committee in Brussels, and is a Non-Executive Director at the Wales Office. He has  vast experience of representing the agricultural industry and rural areas and also the voluntary sector over many years.  He has a distinguished record of public service. Dr Prysor Williams, will also be on the panel of speakers. He is a Senior Lecturer in Environmental Management at Bangor University and has contributed immensely towards research projects and publications.

Agricultural Manager for HSBC in Mid Wales, Mr Huw Tudor, a farmer’s son from Llanerfyl, Montgomeryshire will also address the meeting as part of the panel discussions.

“This is undoubtedly the biggest issue to affect farming in the near future  and it is no overstatement to say that the farming industry and our rural economies are facing the biggest challenge since the Second World War.

“Many of our young farmers, some in their teens and twenties, were heartbroken by the referendum result and what its implications would be for them and the future of our countryside. So what better incentive could there be for us as an industry and politicians on all sides of the debate to work to ensure there is a bright future for those who will take our places in the decades to come.

“So I invite you to join us for the evening's discussions and explore some ideas on the future for agriculture post-Brexit with us,” said FUW Meirionnydd County Executive Officer Huw Jones.

For more information on the event contact the Dolgellau office on 01341 422298.

[caption id="attachment_7512" align="alignleft" width="300"] Last year's Ceredigion breakfast was a great success - so why not join one of the breakfasts this year?[/caption]

Start your day the Welsh Italian way at the end of January and join the Ceredigion team of the Farmers’ Union of Wales for breakfast.

Two breakfast have been organised as part of the FUW’s Farmhouse breakfast week campaign (January 21 – January 28), which aims to raise the profile of Welsh produce and get politicians, key stakeholders and the general public to really understand the important role the food and drink sector plays in their everyday lives.

The first breakfast is being held on Thursday, January 26, at Neuadd Goffa Felinfach, Lampeter and starts at 8.30am.

A further breakfast starting at 8.30am is held on Friday, January 27, at La Calabria, Rhydgoch, Ffostrasol, Llandysul, where a passion for good food and a love of the Welsh countryside and its people are the driving force behind the Italian family-run restaurant.

Gino Vasami, who farms 110 acres at Rhydgoch farm, Ffostrasol, converted the old milking parlour and set up the La Calabria restaurant for his son Tony in November 2003.

Gino’s father Antonio was captured by the British in the siege of Tobruk, North Africa, and brought to prisoner-of-war camp near Ffostrasol at Henllan. While in captivity Antonio worked on farms in Ceredigion, falling in love with the land and its people.

[caption id="attachment_7513" align="alignright" width="200"] I am excited about the 2 farmhouse breakfasts we are hosting at the end of January and we want you to be a part of what we do[/caption]

On his release he went back to Italy for one year but returned to Ceredigion with his family to farm in 1946. Antonio purchased Hill View farm and started off with just 18 acres and four milking cows. Over the generations the family has gone from strength to strength and expanded the family business to three holdings.

Tony and Gino farm in partnership with Tony Hack and his wife Arlene, of nearby Glasfryn farm and, using their own milk, the family also produce ice cream following an old Italian family recipe for the restaurant.

Mared Rand Jones, the County Executive Officer for Ceredigion, who is organising the breakfast functions, said: “I am excited about the 2 farmhouse breakfasts we are hosting at the end of January and we want you to be a part of what we do.

“I would love you to join us for breakfast; to share not just great food but also your thoughts and worries about the state of the industry, tell us your stories and help us to understand how we can help each other. And there is no better time and place to do all that than over a cuppa with some great food - which is a guarantee at the Felinfach and La Calabria breakfasts.

“So, if that’s something we can tempt you with why not give us a call in the office on 01570 424515 to book your seat at our breakfast table?”

[caption id="attachment_7509" align="alignleft" width="300"] A New Zealand type approach is one the Welsh farming industry would fully support, because it is a genuine partnership between government and farmers in which politicians recognise the need to cull wildlife to control TB[/caption]

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has rejected proposals to split Wales into five bovine TB regions in its response to a Welsh Government consultation, highlighting the need to tackle the disease in badger populations.

The Welsh Government proposes splitting Wales into two high, two intermediate and one low TB level regions, with different rules applying in each region. The proposals would mean a heightening of Wales’ cattle TB rules, which are already amongst the strictest in the world.

But following a consultation with its twelve county branches, the majority of FUW members rejected the proposals, highlighting the need for meaningful controls which address transmission of the disease from badgers to cattle.

FUW TB Spokesman Brian Walters said: “The consultation paper acknowledges that the level of disease found in badgers in Wales is 6.6 percent, around 1420% higher than the level found in cattle - which is 0.4 percent.

“Members made it clear that the proposal to split Wales up into five regions and further add to what are already the strictest TB controls in Europe would only make sense if badger numbers were reduced in the areas where they are passing the disease on to cattle.”

In 2012, the Bovine Tuberculosis subgroup of the EU Task Force for Monitoring Animal Disease Eradication criticised Welsh Government politicians for replacing a previously planned badger cull with a badger vaccination programme, stating: “There is no scientific evidence to demonstrate that badger vaccination will reduce the incidence of TB in cattle. However there is considerable evidence to support the removal of badgers in order to improve the TB status of both badgers and cattle.”

The latest official report on the badger vaccination programme, which lasted four years and cost £3.7 million, concludes that “Consistent trends in indicators of bTB incidence have not yet been seen…”

By contrast, the government’s official scientific advice had concluded that a badger cull in the area would have led to a significant reduction in the number of herds with TB and cattle slaughtered and actually saved money, despite costs being similar to those of the vaccination programme.

Amongst the proposals consulted upon by the Welsh Government was the adoption of a New Zealand type ‘informed purchasing’ approach to cattle trading, but during a recent Welsh Assembly Climate Change Committee hearing Dr Paul Livingstone, who previously led New Zealand’s successful eradication programme, said nothing was being done in Wales about the disease in badgers, describing the issue as ‘the elephant in the room’.

“A New Zealand type approach is one the Welsh farming industry would fully support, because it is a genuine partnership between government and farmers in which politicians recognise the need to cull wildlife to control TB.

“Without that commitment by Welsh politicians we will never achieve the success seen in New Zealand, Australia and other countries which have implemented successful eradication programmes by tackling the disease in both cattle and wildlife,” added Mr Walters.