A new campaign to cut country crime across Glamorgan has been launched to put an end to opportunist thieves stealing valuable agricultural equipment and tools.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales Glamorgan county team have already been in talks with South Wales Police Commissioner Alun Michael over the increasing number of thefts and vandalism in the region.

Working with South Wales Police, FUW County Executive Officer Rachel Saunders and members of the union’s county executive are putting in place new measures to identify and prevent rural crime.

“There are increasing numbers of incidents where valuable machinery has been taken, and it has proven to be impossible to retrieve it,” said Rachel. “Now, by building closer links between our members and the police, we aim to turn this round and make would-be thieves think again about targeting South Wales.”

First step in the campaign is to build links across the region’s farming community, making landowners - whether they are members or not - aware that there is support out there.

“The problem we have identified is that many farmers just don’t report random crime, for one reason or another. Our message is that everyone in the countryside needs to report even the most trivial offence to the police, and get a crime number,” said Rachel.

Brecon and Radnorshire farmers will have the chance to question four prospective Brecon MP candidates - Labour’s Tomos Davies,  Conservative Chris Davies, Welsh Liberals’ leader Jane Dodds and UKIP’s Liz Phillips - at the Greyhound Hotel, Builth, LD2 3AR on Monday 15 July at 7pm, just before the by-election. 

FUW Brecon and Radnor County Executive Officer Aled Jones said: “It is essential for farmers and landowners to have the opportunity to question and query party candidates as well as hearing their views on the future of rural Wales.

“I urge our members and everyone who has an interest in the countryside to attend this event, so that they can make a fully informed decision when they take to the polls.”

The Official Monster Raving Loony Party candidate Lady Lily The Pink and The Brexit Party’s Des Parkinson have also been invited.

On the agenda - mental health, rewilding, conservation and farming policy challenges 

The Farmers’ Union of Wales is looking forward to exploring and discussing the most important issues facing the farming industry in Wales, such as mental health in rural communities, rewilding and conservation, and future farming policies, at the Royal Welsh Show 2019 (Monday 22 - Thursday 25 July).

Those coming to the 100th Royal Welsh Agricultural Show can look forward to a series of seminars and discussion groups, which are all hosted at the FUW pavillion and sponsored FUW Insurance Services.

The week will kick-start with a seminar on mental health with a specific focus on how bovine TB is impacting farmers across Wales. 

Entitled ‘What impacts do TB breakdowns have on mental health?’, the Union looks forward to welcoming Ceredigion MP Ben Lake, Gareth Davies from farming charity Tir Dewi, Emma Picton-Jones from rural charity the DPJ Foundation, Charles Smith from farming charity Farm Community Network and Linda Jones from the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institute to the discussion panel.

The seminar starts at 11am on Monday (July 22) and is chaired by FUW Senior Policy Officer Dr Hazel Wright.

Looking forward to the seminar, Dr Wright said: “The FUW has recently called on the Welsh Government to establish a Wales Bovine TB Economics Task and Finish Group to provide robust, Welsh specific information on the financial impact of a TB breakdown and the subsequent mental health impacts on farmers. 

“In this seminar we aim to discuss the relationship between mental health issues and the emotional and economic pressures put on farmers following a TB outbreak and whether our industry is receiving enough support.”

On Tuesday (July 23) at 11am, the focus will turn to rewilding and conversation. 

Hosting a special seminar, chaired by BBC Radio 4 ‘Farming Today’ reporter Mariclare Carey-Jones, entitled “Rewilding and conservation: poles apart or two sides of the same coin?”, the Union looks forward to welcoming Gareth Davies of Coed Cymru, Ponterwyd farmer Dafydd Morris-Jones and Bangor University Human Geography lecturer Dr Sophie Wynne-Jones to the panel of speakers. 

The Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) is planning to hold meetings for members and other interested parties across Wales during the summer and into the autumn to discuss the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming and our Land consultation.

The consultation, launched by Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs Minister Lesley Griffiths on Tuesday 9 July, outlines proposals for future farm and rural support which have been revised in light of the comments received in response to the 2018 Brexit and our Land consultation.

It proposes that future support should be designed around the principle of sustainability in a way which brings together the ‘wide-ranging and significant economic, environmental and social contribution or farmers’, through a single Sustainable Farming Scheme based on the principles of providing a meaningful and stable income stream; rewarding outcomes in a fair way; paying for both new and existing sustainable practices; and flexibility allowing it apply to every type of farm.

Responding to the launch of the consultation, Farmers’ Union of Wales President Glyn Roberts said:  “We welcome the fact that the consultation document acknowledges many of the concerns raised by respondents to last years Brexit and our Land consultation, and focuses on farmers and food producers.

Farmers in Flintshire have become victims of a professional gang of quad bike thieves, with more than £15,000 of ATVs stolen in one night.  

FUW member John Wrench, a beef and arable farmer, of Beeches Farm,  Hawarden, discovered the theft of his 2011 Yamaha Grizzly 350, worth £2500, at the same time as three other bikes were taken when six farms in the same area were robbed. 

“The worst thing is that the thieves broke through a security door and roller shutter to get into the shed the bike was kept in, there’s no way we could have prevented the theft,” said John.”It was definitely a professional job.

“It seems they walked through the fields, cutting padlock and chains on six gates and used any tools that they could find to break in,” said John. “The damage was even more annoying than losing the bike, so much so that we shall not be replacing it. We’re going to use an old small 4x4 instead,” he said.  

Meanwhile at the Llanwrst Show, another FUW member, Andy Hughes, was showing a new anti-theft device he has developed to reduce the risk of robbery. The QUADCLAW is hand fabricated in Andy’s workshop at Brynford, Holywell.  “The idea is to reduce the chance of losing your expensive bike from chance thieves,” he said. “There’s been a lot of interest in the claw, the increase in ATVs being stolen is worrying for everyone.”

Rheinallt Hughes, President of Denbighshire Farmers’ Union of Wales and the chairman of the union’s Hill Farming and Marginal Land Committee is a cut above the rest.

Rheinallt, of Llanarmon DC, Llangollen, has just won a place at the Welsh Open Blade Shearing Circuit and is representing Wales for the first time at a World Championships - in France on Saturday.  

He and fellow FUW member Elfed Jackson of Bethesda will be competing in the open blade championships on Saturday 6 July at La Dorate, near Limoges. It’s the first time in the competition for Rheinallt and the 10th for Elfed.

“We came out here last week to acclimatise to the conditions, which is just as well. It has been 40 degrees over here,” said Rheinallt.

FUW President Glyn Roberts wished him well: “Rheinallt puts his all into his work with the union and I know that he will do us proud this weekend.” 

Rheinallt, together with his family, farms approximately 980 acres at Tu Hwnt i’r Afon, Llanarmon DC, Croesoswallt, of which 240 acres are owned and 720 acres rented. 400 acres are in SSSI (moorland) and they are in Glastir and Glastir Advanced.

The family have a flock of 300 Welsh Mule Ewes  and also have a flock of 1300 Welsh Mountain Ewes. The farm is also home to a herd of 20 suckler cows  He and his wife Liz, who is also out in France with the team,  also run a Holiday Cottage Business.