When it rains it pours. Looking back over the past twelve months, it has at times felt that a perfect storm has blighted the agricultural sector here in Wales - with challenge after challenge putting a further strain on hardworking Welsh farmers.
Speaking of rain, it’s hard to forget the deluge of wet weather we were forced to endure during the Winter months earlier in the year. One of the wettest winters on record saw little relief until the end of April, with the rainfall disrupting crops and making lambing season - already a stressful time for farmers’ - even more challenging.
It wasn’t just the rain that dampened the spirits, either. Across Europe, Spring saw clouds of discontent and industrial action emerge within the agricultural sector, which were soon to be replicated in Wales. On the back of continued frustration at Government inaction on bTB, the unfit for purpose NVZs regulations, and the newly introduced SFS scheme, who can forget the ‘Enough is Enough’ protests in Welshpool, Carmarthen and Cardiff - galvanising the sense of anger and frustration within our farming communities.
The latter of these sparks of discontent - the Sustainable Farming Scheme - has been an issue I have become particularly familiar with over recent months. As FUW outlined at the time, so many aspects of the Scheme were unworkable - from the 10% tree cover, to the sizable number of Universal Actions, to the omission of SSSIs and common land - there’s little surprise the consultation around the proposals drew a record breaking 12,000 responses.
Since Spring, and the uproar that surrounded these SFS proposals, we’ve had the opportunity to work closely with the Welsh Government and stakeholders to revise these proposals. It’s not always been easy, but I do believe that through the revised Outline, launched at the Winter Fair, that we are now in a better place as a result.
Crucially however, this still only remains the end of the beginning. While there have been some significant changes to the scheme, there is still much work to be done on the detail and we must now ensure that the associated budget and payment methodology deliver real economic stability for our family farms in Wales as we face a backdrop of many other significant challenges.
Beyond the SFS, there have been other important developments in the agricultural sphere in the Senedd - particularly the revised governance structures stemming from Wales TB Eradication Programme Delivery Plan.Yet another year has passed by and we seem as far away from eradicating TB here in Wales as we ever have. As a Union, we remain determined to play our part on the Eradication Programme Board and work closely with the Technical Advisory Group. As we’re reminded all too often, bTB remains a huge issue for Welsh farmers both financially and emotionally. It’s all too clear that we can not continue with the status quo, and we drastically need to change our approach in dealing with this cruel disease.
Speaking of change, July saw all change at Westminster, too - with Labour back in government for the first time in over a decade. With a significant cohort of new MP’s elected in Wales, it’s been a pleasure travelling across the length and breadth of Wales over recent months - from Môn to Monmouth - meeting many of the new MPs, highlighting the challenges facing Welsh agriculture. And there’s a lot to do, of course, as highlighted by the recent protests and uproar following the Budget and proposed change to APR and inheritance tax - and real concern over the impact this could have on Welsh family farms. At a time of great uncertainty and frustration this move - and lack of consultation with the industry - proved to be the straw that broke the camel’s back after a particularly challenging year.
On the home front, we've faced those same challenges here at Gurnos. The Wagyu calves have, by now, all moved on to their new homes. It seems to have gone quite well from our point of view again this year so having increased the number of calves reared from 48 in 2023 to 110 in 2024, have we got the capacity to increase numbers again next year? Something for Sean and I to think about before the spring.
The sheep this year have been a bit of a mixed bag. The challenges have been, less lambs on the ground, caused by a combination of the weather and a stubbornly high barren rate in the flock. Added to this was the usual challenge to keep input costs under control. The upside has been that we seem to have got some control over the emerging tick problem that we are now seeing on the Mynydd Du, and the sheep came off the common this autumn looking a lot better than last year. And of course the prices we have seen this year for our stock still remain strong, long may that continue!
It’s been a difficult year on many fronts, with many challenges to overcome. Despite all this we need to remain positive, “Yma o Hyd! “ and I would like to personally thank all of the staff, FUW and FUWIS, for all their hard work on behalf of us, the members, over the last twelve months. May I also take this opportunity to thank all of you for your continued support of the Union, and wish you the very best for Christmas, and a Happy, healthy new year.
Nadolig Llawen!