Farming matters such as the red meat industry in Wales, rural crime in north east Wales and potential funding opportunities for farm businesses, were hotly debated at the recent Farmers’ Union of Wales Flintshire branch Annual General Meeting.
The event, held on Monday, 30 October at Plas Hafod Hotel, Gwernymynydd, Mold, was well attended by many farmers and provided a great platform to also discuss the issue of light lamb prices and the need to find new markets for the lighter lambs.
Keynote speakers on the night were Gwyn Howells, Hybu Cig Cymru Chief Executive, Gareth Foulkes Catchment Advisor at the Welsh Dee River Trust and Rob Taylor, Rural Crime Team Manager for the North Wales Rural Crime team.
FUW Denbigh and Flint CEO Mari Dafydd Jones said: “I would first of all like to thank our keynote speakers for the very informative presentations they gave and all those who joined us on the night. It was a great evening and I was pleased to see so many members there.
“On behalf of the FUW I would like to reiterate the plight made by Rob Taylor that farmers should report any cases of rural crime to 101. If it's not reported it affects the police force statistics and it may look like the issues are in decline.
“We also found the presentation by Gareth Foulkes incredibly useful and thank him for detailing the project and the funding available to members within the River Dee Catchment.
“The discussions we had with Gwyn Howells HCC were also very useful and members enjoyed his presentation about the challenges the industry faces over the next few years in light of Brexit.”