A large number of Farmers' Union of Wales officials and members recently visited "an excellent example of a family farm" in Montgomeryshire.

The farm walk at Maesmochnant, Llanrhaeadr Ym Mochnant, Oswestry, was hosted by the Vaughan family and FUW county chairman Alwyn Vaughan welcomed the union's deputy president Glyn Roberts, North Wales' finance and organisation committee special member Eifion Huws and national milk and dairy produce committee chairman Dei Davies to his farm.

At the beginning of the year the family completed work on a new 12-24 herring bone BouMatic milking parlour which now allows them to increase their Holstein Friesian dairy herd to 120.

Much of the work for the new parlour was carried out by Alwyn and his three sons Rhys, Iwan and Sion. Rhys worked alongside his father on the farm while Iwan is a dairy specialist for Wynnstay Farmers and Sion is a builder.

All calves were reared on the farm, Holstein Friesian heifers being reared as herd replacements while all other dairy and beef breeds were sold as clean beef or reared on a bull beef system and sold direct to the ABP Food Group.

The buildings were designed to be dual purpose as all cattle would be sold out by the end of the year to clear the buildings ready to house the breeding flock of 1,000 Welsh Mules and Texel x ewes before lambing.

An additional 70 acres had been bought recently adjoining the dairy farm and the family had undertaken a programme of re-seeding and hedgerow renovation work, coppicing hedgerow trees and double fencing.

This allows them to make more use of grass and grass silage with three cuts being taken this season and a further eight acres of maize silage being bought in from a neighbouring farm.

Approximately 90 ewes lamb in January and the remainder of the breeding flock including 100 ewe lambs are lambed between March and April.

Four-hundred mule ewes were kept on the hill and higher ground. The farm consists of 470 acres in a number of blocks which all lay within four miles of the main holding.

Mr Vaughan said Maesmochnant is a typical example of the Welsh Hafod y Hendre style of farming.

Mr Roberts thanked Mr and Mrs Vaughan for hosting a very interesting and enjoyable afternoon.

He said: "Maesmochnant is an excellent example of a family farm working at its full potential by producing good quality stock to produce good quality milk and good quality meat."

[caption id="attachment_2613" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Alwyn Vaughan (furthest right) showing his farmland to visitors[/caption]

A plea by natural resources minister Alun Davies to local authorities to introduce a voluntary ban on the release of sky lanterns and helium balloons was welcomed by the Farmers’ Union of Wales today.

"The FUW is deeply concerned over the considerable dangers posed by sky lanterns and has regularly called for an outright ban on their manufacture and sale and for their release to be made illegal," said FUW land use and parliamentary committee chairman Gavin Williams.

Earlier this year the FUW criticised the UK government’s decision not to ban sky lanterns despite widespread risks identified by the farming industry. In July a huge blaze at a plastic recycling factory on the outskirts of Birmingham was blamed upon a sky lantern setting fire to 100,000 tonnes of recycling material.

“We welcome the minister’s decision to encourage local authorities to ban sky lanterns on a voluntary level, given that the national government has so far failed to act regarding this matter.

"The risk of livestock ingesting parts of sky lanterns and the fire risk they represent are a huge concern, and we have asked members to continue to report incidents to their county branches so that evidence of their effects can continue to be collected.”

A reminder of the different challenges currently facing the Welsh agricultural industry was highlighted to two politicians during the Farmers' Union of Wales Flintshire county branch annual general meeting on Thursday October 3.

With a common theme of Welsh agriculture and rural issues running through the event, an excellent turnout of members at the Village Hall in Cilcain provided guest speakers, North Wales Conservative AM Antoinette Sandbach and UKIP Wales chairman Warwick Nicholson, with plenty of challenging and thought-provoking questions.

"They were told about the different challenges facing the industry, ranging from the consultations related to reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to the extremely contentious topic of the UK’s membership of the EU," said FUW Flintshire county executive officer Rhys Roberts.

"Both Ms Sandbach and Mr Nicholson provided their viewpoints on how the respective political parties would tackle these issues, whilst also remaining receptive to the members' concerns on what are significant and challenging matters."

The evening was chaired by FUW county branch president Clwyd Spencer and county chairman Tim Faire's annual report highlighted some of the more important events over the previous 12 months within the county including the contributions made by the branch to the National Eisteddfod at Denbigh, ranging from the Crown through to the parking duties.

An interesting and informative evening was capped with light refreshments, provided by FUW Flintshire ladies committee, when there was an opportunity to chat with the speakers face to face.

[caption id="attachment_2608" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] AGM TOP TABLE: From left, Tim Faire, Clwyd Spencer, Antoinette Sandbach and Warwick Nicholson[/caption]

Just before becoming dairy farmer co-operative First Milk's new chairman, South East Cambridgeshire MP Sir Jim Paice will pay a Farmers' Union of Wales-organised visit to a Carmarthenshire family dairy farm which has successfully embraced diversification.

The visit on Monday October 14 will take place prior to Sir Jim addressing the FUW's Eve of Welsh Dairy Show function at nearby Carmarthen Athletic Club when the winner of the FUW/HSBC Bank plc outstanding contribution to the Welsh dairy industry award will be revealed.

Sir Jim, UK agriculture and food minister from 2010-12, will be joined at both events by Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire MP Simon Hart, FUW leaders and officials plus senior representatives from across the dairy sector in Wales.

The farm visit is being hosted by FUW members Dyfrig and Elizabeth Davies (trading as Penycoed Farm Ltd), at Penycoed Farm, Llangynin Road, St Clears, near Carmarthen.

Mr and Mrs Davies have a traditional farm with a flying herd of 300 cattle, calves being sold whilst purchasing maiden heifers between 15 and 30 months, and over the past few years they have successfully diversified by developing a leisure complex known as Llety Cynin (www.lletycynin.co.uk).

They have also invested in creating an under-pass connecting two separate parcels of land, thus avoiding the need for stock to cross a busy road. The future of family farmers and bovine TB issues will be the main topics for discussion during the farm visit.

Sir Jim will take up his new position as First Milk chairman on October 31 when current chairman Bill Mustoe steps down at the company's annual general meeting.

Mr Mustoe is convinced Sir Jim will bring valuable skills to First Milk. "From our meetings with him, he has demonstrated a detailed understanding of the dairy sector, very strong communication skills and a considerable network of contacts," he said.

"Jim has a deep understanding and empathy for farming. As a former Minister of State responsible for Agriculture & Food and Shadow Minister for Agriculture & Rural Affairs for six years prior to that, he brings considerable knowledge and experience of not only the domestic market but also the international dynamics of the dairy industry.

"He has been a champion for farmers at Westminster for over 25 years and we now look forward to him being a champion for First Milk farmers."

Sir Jim agrees the dairy sector has gone through difficult times recently. "But I have long believed there is a good future for British dairy farmers and I look forward to helping to achieve it," he added.

Llety Cynin Leisure Club offers state-of-the-art leisure facilities and fitness programmes to local residents and visitors to the area through a unique selection of membership packages and day visitor tariffs.

"We believe our scenic location as well as our first class facilities - which include a 40-foot heated swimming pool, a luxurious spa and sauna and a well-appointed fitness gymnasium - offer everything people need to lose weight, improve fitness, relax and re-energise," said Mr Davies.

In 2010 Llety Cynin won the prestigious RICS regeneration design award presented to building and natural environment projects demonstrating excellence in their category and a commitment to value for money and sustainability.

"We were extremely proud to win this for the renovation of our 150-year old coach house into a luxury leisure and accommodation facility," Mr Davies added.

"This was even more surprising and pleasing when you consider some of the other entries we had to compete with, including the £675m St David’s Shopping Centre in Cardiff and the new Hafod Eryri Mt Snowdon Visitors Centre."

The Farmers' Union of Wales today reminded farmers that although the Agricultural Wages (England and Wales) Order 2012 will be revoked from next week it will be retained in Wales for the time being.

The Welsh Government Agriculture Sector (Wales) Bill, passed on July 17, "aims to retain the current statutory regime in Wales" that ceases to exist in England on Tuesday October 1.

The Bill's main objective is to "support the functioning of the sector and facilitate the development, enhancement and retention of key skills necessary for the future prosperity of agriculture in Wales".

However, the Attorney General has referred it to the Supreme Court as he is not convinced its provisions are within the legislative competence of the National Assembly. As a result, the current arrangements will be continued in Wales until the Supreme Court judgement.

"Farmers employing staff need to be aware of this and ensure that they continue to follow the provisions of the Order in Wales," said FUW agricultural training and education committee chairman Alun Edwards.

Pay rates and other conditions stipulated by the 2012 Order will continue to apply in Wales. The only exception will be the Grade 1 workers’ rate, currently at £6.21 per hour, which will increase to the equivalent of the new National Minimum Wage rate of £6.31 on October 1.

Further information can be obtained by e-mailing the Welsh Government's sustainable land management branch at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

A genetics showcase and field day for lamb producers organised by Farmers’ Union of Wales Carmarthenshire county chairman Catherine Nakielny at Gelli Aur College, near Llandeilo, highlighted the importance of buying rams that are "fit for purpose".

The practical day focused on genetic improvement and ram management and gave producers and Gelli Aur College students the opportunity to learn to watch out for when buying rams, ram management to reduce production costs and using recorded rams to improve flock performance.

“Constant pressure on production costs means that maximising output whilst controlling costs will become increasingly important in the future,” said Dr Nakielny, FUW's Carmarthenshire county chairman.

“A lot of my focus working within the sheep sector involves looking for marginal gains - relatively small reductions in overall production costs which add up to significantly more profitable lamb production. Rams are a good example of this.

"Using performance recorded rams have been shown in trials to improve margins by £3 per lamb whilst the purchase of ‘fit for purpose’ rams will reduce costs by over £2 per lamb. For a 40kg lamb this equates to a reduction in production costs of over 12p per kg,” added Dr Nakielny.

FUW deputy president Glyn Roberts, who attended the event, said: “It was great to see so many young people there showing an interest in best practise for ram selection.

“The demonstrations of ram MOTs were very useful for farmers and students alike and I would like to congratulate Catherine on organising such an excellent event.”

Students and farmers had the chance to meet some of the best ram breeders in a variety of breeds and hear from a variety of guest speakers about technical advice on breeding, what retailers look for in lamb products and what grants and funding sources are available for the industry.

There are a number of ram breeders who have embraced performance recording and who manage their rams in such a way that they can serve over 70 ewes per year and last three or more seasons.

To help commercial ram buyers identify these breeders Dr Nakielny has developed a new service - The Ram Shop - which lists these progressive ram producers across a number of breeds.

“I would like to thank all who attended the event and of course Gelli Aur College for hosting the day,” added Dr Nakielny, an independent sheep consultant who helps run the 350-acre family upland sheep farm at Talley, Carmarthenshire.

She has listed flocks with some key information about their breeding programmes and ram management systems and helps commercial lamb producers find the best genetics for their own flock at www.theramshop.co.uk.

For further information contact Dr Nakielny at The Ram Shop on 01558 685 808 or via e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

[caption id="attachment_2599" align="aligncenter" width="300"] RAM MOT: Dr Nakielny examines a Texel ram with the help of British Veterinary Association vet Neil Paton[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2600" align="aligncenter" width="300"] EXCELLENT EVENT: From left, Glyn Roberts, Dr Nakielny, FUW senior policy officer Hazel Wright and Gelli Aur College lecturer Mark Needham[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2601" align="aligncenter" width="300"] SHOWING INTEREST: First year Gelli Aur College students learn about performance recording for rams at the genetics showcase and field day[/caption]