The Montgomeryshire branch of the Farmers’ Union of Wales has elected three new county officials at its recent county executive meeting. 

Taking over the reign as county chairman from Bryn Francis, is Iwan Pughe Jones. The county wishes to thank Bryn Francis for his dedication to the Union and the farming industry over the past 3 years. 

Additionally the county wishes to thank the outgoing County President, Mr Gareth Vaughan for his service. The newly elected Montgomeryshire county president is Mrs Lynda Brown and Mr Wyn Williams has been elected as county vice chairman.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has welcomed news that the long standing ban on importing Welsh lamb into the United States is to be lifted soon. The announcement was made by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday 22 September. 

The FUW has long discussed the prospect of lifting the unjustified ban with the USDA in various meetings over the past decade. Hybu Cig Cymru - Meat Promotion Wales have highlighted that the potential market for PGI Welsh Lamb in the USA is estimated to be worth as much as £20 million a year within five years of the export restrictions being removed.

Speaking from his Carmarthenshire sheep farm, FUW Deputy President Ian Rickman, said: “Now more than ever we need to explore other export markets while also protecting our long established markets in Europe. The US market is one we are keen to develop much stronger relationships with and the news that this ban could soon be lifted is most welcome news for our sheep industry.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has welcomed the announcement by Minister for Rural Affairs, North Wales and Trefnydd, Lesley Griffiths, that subject to sufficient funding being provided by the UK Government, farmers will continue to receive the Basic Payment Scheme until 2023 and that there will be a two year extension to the Glastir Advanced, Commons and Organic scheme contracts.

The Glastir contract extension represents a budget commitment of £66.79m over two years for Welsh farmers. All existing eligible contract holders will be offered an extension via their RPW on-line accounts.

Responding to the announcement, FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “This is very welcome news for the farming industry. With so much uncertainty around at the moment, this offers some stability for the next two years. A reassurance the industry very much needs, particularly as trade deals with large global agri-exporters are made by the Uk Government. 

The Farmers’ Union of Wales and FUW Insurance Services Ltd. welcomed members, customers, friends of the Union and politicians at Usk Show on Saturday 11 September, where farming matters discussions took centre stage. 

The event, which was one of a few to go ahead in person this year, was a busy and successful day, which celebrated the very best of Monmouthshire farming and rural life. Joining the FUW Ltd. group on the day were the DPJ Foundation, Wales Rural and Wildlife Crime Coordinator Rob Taylor, and police officers from the Gwent Police force. The county office also arranged a raffle and childrens competition.

FUW Glamorgan and Gwent County Executive Officer Sharon Pritchard said: “We enjoyed welcoming friends, family, members, FUW Insurance Services customers and many politicians to our marquee on the day. We were pleased to be able to support this event, meet people in person and discuss the most critical farming matters with local politicians.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW), in cooperation with the DPJ Foundation and police forces across Wales, is putting the spotlight on an increase in domestic violence in all of our communities since the Covid 19 restrictions came into place last year.

There are many consequences of domestic abuse, including the development of anxiety, depression and other mental health conditions, and the FUW made a commitment to keep the spotlight on mental health issues for as long as it remains a problem in our rural communities and the last 12 months have been tough for many.

For many people home is not a place of safety and Covid-19 restrictions have increased the isolation suffered by many which is often exacerbated in our rural communities. It has also been more difficult for victims of domestic abuse to seek help at a time when incidence of domestic abuse has increased, which is even more acute in some of our isolated rural communities.

According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales from March 2020 to 2021 there had been a 7% growth in police recorded domestic abuse crime but support services have seen a bigger rise, with many victims not seeking justice through the criminal justice system. Victim support have seen a 12% increase in the number of domestic abuse cases referred and many charities such as the DPJ foundation have seen an increase in calls regarding domestic abuse over this time. 

Farmers from Ceredigion have raised their concerns around bovine TB and current tree planting targets with local Member of the Senedd, Elin Jones. Hosting the meeting was Farmers’ Union of Wales Ceredigion County Chairman Morys Ioan, who farms with his wife Helen, at Fferm Drefach, Cross Inn, Llandysul. 

The farm has been in the family for over 150 years and Morys is the 5th generation to farm Drefach. Morys and Helen own 24 acres and rent a further 244 acres. They keep 200 sheep and also rear 450 beef calves from dairy herds as stores and finishing cattle. 

Morys has recently come home to run the family farm and a lot of improvements have been made to the land including the planting of 4,000 hedging plants through the Glastir Small Grants scheme. Work has also begun on an approved calf rearing unit on which the farm business will be focusing on for the next 5 years. Working with local dairy farms, Morys is currently working on a way to accommodate the bovine TB situation as part of the business.  

Farmers’ Union of Wales members from Carmarthenshire and Union officials recently discussed critical climate change issues facing the agricultural industry with Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters MS.

Union officials acknowledged that given the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the role played by soils and plants in sequestering carbon is attracting significant attention, with a particular focus by the Welsh Government on planting trees.

FUW Carmarthen County Chairman Phil Jones said: “The FUW supports the overall aims of the Welsh Government with regards to environmental issues but we are concerned that a number of recent policy proposals to increase tree planting targets from 2000 hectares per year to 5000 ha/pa could see agricultural funding being diverted towards forestry and woodland with a lack of clarity on the consequences for Wales’ family farms and rural communities.”

Primary school pupils from all over Wales are being invited to enter a Christmas card design themed around farming for the FUW’s Christmas card competition.

The FUW is asking children aged from four to 11 to design a Christmas farming scene for its Christmas cards, which will be sold to raise money for the Union’s charity The DPJ Foundation.

FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “The competition will be split into Welsh language and English language categories. Children can use any media in their entries, such as crayons, coloured pencils, felt tipped pens or paint which must be completed on an A4 sheet of paper and emailed to us in jpeg format.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales is reminding rural communities to stand side by side with those suffering from poor health and reach out to loved ones, ahead of World Suicide Prevention day (Friday 10 September). 

World Suicide Prevention Day is an opportunity to raise awareness of suicide and to promote action that will reduce the number of suicides and suicide attempts globally.

The International Association for Suicide Preventation has highlighted that one in every 100 deaths worldwide is the result of suicide and The World Health Organisation estimates that one person dies by suicide every 40 seconds. The latest available statistics from the Samaritans (2019) highlight that in England and Wales there were 5,691 suicides, an increase of 321 on the previous year. The suicide rate for females under the age of 25 has increased by 93.8% since 2012, its highest level yet.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales and FUW Insurance Services Ltd. are looking forward to welcoming members and customers to the Usk Show on Saturday 11 September. 

The event, which is one of a few to go ahead in person this year, will be held at Usk Showground, Gwernesney, Usk and promises to be a busy and successful day to celebrate the very best of Monmouthshire farming and rural life.

FUW Glamorgan and Gwent County Executive Officer Sharon Pritchard said: “We are very excited to welcome friends, family, members, FUW Insurance Services customers and everyone who wants to find out more about the Union to our marquee on the day. We are pleased to be able to support this event, meet people in person and are hopeful that events such as this signal a return to normal.”

Farmers and the wider public in Pembrokeshire are being urged to remain vigilant as credit card scams have been circulating in the county. The warning comes as the Farmers’ Union of Wales county office has received numerous phone calls from members raising the alarm.

According to Citizens Advice, scammers have been exploiting the pressures that the Covid-19 pandemic is putting people under and have noticed a significant increase in the number of scams relating to financial services in the last 12 months. These can include fake “Get Rich Quick” investment schemes or someone pretending to be from the individual's bank, asking them to transfer money or personal details.

FUW Pembrokeshire County Chairman Mike Kurtz said: “Our county office has received numerous phone calls about members having potentially fallen foul of a credit card scam in recent months. People of all ages and backgrounds get scammed and it’s important to be on your guard.”

Concerns for the Welsh agricultural sector are stacking up as details of a free trade deal with New Zealand are on the horizon. The deadline for the trade deal has been mooted to be the end of August, according to the UK Government. 

The UK and New Zealand free trade deal is said to have been worth over £2.3 billion in 2020, with the figure likely to increase as a result of a wide-ranging trade deal.

FUW Vice President Dai Miles said: “The biggest problem with these trade deals is the volatility it will add to UK markets for all sectors. Currently with the demand from China, meat and dairy products from New Zealand and Australia are going there. If that demand in China drops, the UK will be exposed to potentially very cheap imports with no way of controlling their volume or price. 

The announcement that a raft of additional restrictions on animal movements will be introduced in England and Wales and confirmation that live animal exports will be banned has been described as ‘utter hypocrisy’ by the Farmers’ Union of Wales.

The UK and Welsh Government announced on Wednesday 18 August that animal movement rules - which are already amongst the strictest in the world - would be tightened up significantly, despite standards in other countries not coming close to those already required in the UK. The announcement also confirmed that the new proposals would come in alongside a ban on live animal exports.

FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “The decision to tighten the Welsh and English rules while opening the door to more foreign food produced to far lower welfare standards is utter hypocrisy. 

Pembrokeshire beef, arable and sheep farmer Mathew Van Dijk and Farmers’ Union of Wales officials from Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire have raised concerns of the farming industry with Member of the Senedd for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire Sam Kurtz.

The meeting was held at Arnolds Hill Farm, Slebech, Haverfordwest, which together with Square Farm next door, is a 300 acre holding which is home to around 150 head of cattle and 50 breeding sheep.Between the two farms, Mathew Van Dijk and his partner Cath Davies keep Limousin and Limousin cross suckler cows. The calves are reared to 20 - 24 months old and they also keep some pedigree breeding bulls.  The couple also grow 32 acres of spring barley, 7 acres of winter barley and 112 acres of maize.

Speaking to Mr Kurtz, Mathew highlighted that the main issues affecting the business going forward were reduced bull sales at the market because of the on-going bovine TB crisis, a slow planning application system, the agricultural pollution regulations and uncertainty surrounding support payments going forward. 

The Farmers’ Union of Wales is to discuss the merits and drawbacks of limiting the amount of carbon credits that can be sold from Welsh land, carbon trading quotas and other approaches that might be applied in Wales. 

During a recent meeting of the FUW’s Land Use and Parliamentary Committee, members expressed extreme concern that a large proportion of the carbon locked and sequestered in Welsh land could be sold to other countries and companies outside Wales, undermining the ability of Welsh agriculture or even Wales as a whole to become carbon neutral.

They also highlighted ongoing concerns that Welsh farms were being purchased by companies from outside Wales in order to cash in on Wales’ carbon.

The committee therefore agreed that a quota system should be introduced to reduce this risk, and it was agreed at a subsequent meeting of the FUW’s Presidential Policy Team that the pros and cons of such limits should be the subject of detailed discussion by all FUW committee chairmen and the presidential team. 

A Flintshire organic dairy farmer has raised industry concerns around bovine TB and the Water Resource regulations with regional North West Member of the Senedd Carolyn Thomas, when the family welcomed her to the family farm.

John and Jenny Wrench, who are the third generation on the tenanted holding, farm in partnership with John’s parents Stephen and Anne, as well as grandparents John and Vera, at Beeches Farm, Saltney Ferry in Flintshire. 

The 186 hectare holding was once a beef, sheep and arable farm. However, as corn prices didn’t change over 20 years whilst machinery costs trebled, the margins on beef became tighter and livestock worrying increased, the family decided to start dairy farming. They now have 130 dairy cows and hope to increase this to 250 milking cows. The family also keep 100 young stock. 

The decision to convert the holding to dairy in 2020 was not an easy one to make and put enormous financial pressure on the family. To future proof the farm business, the Wrench family have invested heavily in winter housing and feeding infrastructure for their dairy cows. Whilst the landlord has been supportive, they have made all the investments themselves. 

Solutions to the ongoing farm safety dilemma were discussed at a webinar organised by Farmers’ Union of Wales Insurance Services Ltd. (FUWIS) as part of the virtual Royal Welsh Show. 

Keynote speakers on the day included Tony Succamore,Sales and Operations Director of FUW Insurance Services Ltd; Georgina Davis, Business Development Manager (Midlands) at British Engineering Services; Health and Safety Executive representative Christopher Maher and Farm safety expert and instructor Brian Rees. Chairing the webinar was Farmers’ Union of Wales Deputy President and FUW Insurance Services Ltd. board member Ian Rickman.

Opening the event, Mr Rickman said: “It saddens me to know that despite efforts to highlight the dangers on farms time and time again, we have still not seen a decrease in these figures. Together with our partners in the Wales Farm Safety Partnership, we are working on raising awareness and reducing the risk of harm faced by those in our industry. 

“We have got used to hearing those kinds of statistics over the years but we need to keep putting that message out there and get an improvement on those figures. As farmers we are busy, with silage and hay at the moment, but planning and jotting down a few thoughts on what the risks are could really help.” 

The Welsh National sheep dog trials will be held at Sandilands farm, Tywyn, Gwynedd from 24 to 26 August 2021 - and the FUW Ltd. group is excited to join the event on Union member Geraint Owen’s holding. Mr Owen is no stranger to hosting such events, having previously hosted the 2016  International Sheep Dog Trials.

The FUW will be represented by the Meirionnydd branch and FUW Insurance Services Ltd. and all are looking forward to welcoming members and those participating in the Sheep Dog Trials to the stand.

Geraint Owen of Sandilands farm, Tywyn has had close connections with the FUW over many years, and is a former Chairman of the Tywyn Branch. Sandilands is a Beef and Sheep farm with around 2000 breeding ewes and 150 breeding limousines and limousine cross suckler cows.

Nearly 1000 viewers tuned in to a chat between two world-class extreme sports personalities at a special virtual event organised recently by volunteer led healthy minds organisation in rural Wales. 

The World's Best Machine Shearer, Richard Jones of Glyndyfrdwy and extreme endurance runner and TV presenter, Lowri Morgan shared their experiences with a virtual audience at the hands of experienced broadcaster and host, Nic Parry at the Rhug Estate, recently.

Nerth Dy Ben*, a volunteer-run organisation that aims to give individuals a platform to share positive experiences, in Welsh, organised the event to share the endurance, perseverance and mental strength individuals need to meet extreme physical challenges.

Communities of North Wales can now keep up to date with personalised local policing news, following the launch of a brand new free messaging service - North Wales Community Alert.

North Wales Police are the first force in Wales to launch the alert system which has been funded as part of the Home Office Safer Streets Fund. The system is currently used by several other police forces in other parts of the UK and has seen positive results and greater engagement with communities.

North Wales Community Alert is quick and simple to sign up to and gives the public a voice in our neighbourhood policing priorities. The system includes a messaging service that allows users to tell us what really matters to them.

This is also a great platform to gain a real insight into police activity in your area and what we are doing to tackle any issues. We hope this will help residents to feel safer in your home, out in community and whilst at work.

The conversation around food production and its impact on climate change has gained tremendous momentum. With the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UN FSS) fast approaching and the UK hosting the next major UN climate change summit, COP26, in Glasgow this November, the environment has rapidly returned to being one of the top challenges that we face.

Addressing issues around climate change and food production, the Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) hosted a webinar at the virtual Royal Welsh Show to explore how food production and looking after the environment can and do go hand in hand, placing farmers firmly in a position to deliver sustainable development goals. 

The event, which was chaired by FUW Deputy President Ian Rickman, heard from FUW Head of Policy Dr Nick Fenwick; Laura Ryan from the Global Meat Alliance; Hybu Cig Cymru-Meat Promotion Wales, Industry Development and Relations Manager, John Richards; Dairy UK Chief Executive Dr Judith Bryans and Snowdonia beef and sheep farmers FUW President Glyn Roberts and his daughter Beca Glyn.

Opening the webinar, FUW Deputy President Ian Rickman said: “For years the farming industry and our red meat and dairy produce have come under fire from every corner and camp conceivable. The narrative pushed by the anti-livestock lobby however has been steady and is gaining momentum. Decision makers at all government levels, from Welsh Government right up to the United Nations, are listening. And so are our consumers.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has welcomed a report and recommendations by the Welsh Affairs Committee on the implications of a UK Australia Free Trade Agreement for Wales.

The report, published after two evidence sessions held in July, calls for the UK Government to take a number of steps the union says would increase transparency around the deal and its impacts for Wales and clarify what, if any, safeguards would be in place in worst case scenarios that adversely impacted UK agriculture.

Speaking after the report’s publication, FUW Head of Policy Dr Nick Fenwick, who gave evidence to the Committee, said: “We wrote to the committee in June suggesting that such an inquiry takes place, and welcome the recommendations which, if accepted by the UK Government, would mark a small step towards achieving transparency and a sensible position on the UK-Australia trade deal.” 

The devastating impacts vast tree plantation plans can have on rural communities and Welsh culture were highlighted in a recent meeting between Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) members and Aberconwy MP Robin Millar.  

Hosting the meeting at their farm at Llechwedd Hafod in Cwm Penmachno were FUW Caernarfonshire County Executive Committee member Dafydd Gwyndaf and his wife Anwen. Mr Gwyndaf gave a presentation on how the Forestry Commission, as it was previously known, bought many of the farms on one side of the valley and planted trees on the land from the 1940’s to the 1960’s .  

“Afforestation has resulted in too many people leaving the area and has resulted in over 30% of the houses in the area being turned into second homes or AirBnB. It is having a detrimental effect on the community, it’s culture and consequently the Welsh language. The depopulation of Cwm Penmachno and Penmachno villages is living proof of the result of large-scale afforestation and we don’t want to see the same happening to other communities,” said Mr Gwyndaf. 

Anglesey beef and sheep farmer Gareth Thomas and Farmers’ Union of Wales officials have highlighted industry concerns, including climate change and future agricultural policies, at a recent meeting with local Member of the Senedd, Rhun ap Iorwerth. Gareth is the fifth generation to farm at Tregynrig Fawr, Cemaes Bay, Anglesey, a 620 acre holding. The family finishes off over 600 beef cattle annually and keep a flock of 200 sheep. All beef and lamb are sold to Morrisons. The family have also recently diversified into self-catering holiday accommodation.

The message on the day was clear - farmers want to work with the Government and all political parties to achieve the best possible outcome for the sector, the wider rural economy and the environment.

Speaking during the farm walk, Gareth Thomas said: “Welsh farmers have delivered positive environmental outcomes for the nation for centuries, and must be fairly rewarded for what they have already delivered, continue to deliver and will deliver in the future. Future targets must work alongside sustainable and viable food producing businesses, not against them, to ensure the environment continues to be managed appropriately.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales and FUW Insurance Services Ltd. highlighted and discussed the most critical issues affecting the agricultural industry through a series of webinars at the virtual Royal Welsh Show. 

FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “Last week was a busy one for the FUW team and we had an excellent presence at the virtual Royal Welsh Show. We hosted a variety of webinars ranging from the rural housing crisis, climate change, mental health, digital connectivity and farm safety - each and every one of them touched on crucially important issues for our industry.

“If you weren’t able to join them during the show week, they are available for you to watch in the members section of the FUW website and of course the Royal Welsh show events pages. I would like to thank all of our speakers for their excellent contributions and of course also the Royal Welsh Show for providing the platform so we could, against the odds, still bring a virtual show to everyone.”