The Farmers' Union of Wales has welcomed an extension granted to farmers by the Welsh Government to establish their Glastir and Tir Gofal cereal crops in recognition of the adverse weather across Wales.
“Allowing farmers an additional fortnight to sow their Glastir and Tir Gofal cereal crops is a helpful move for those who have been adversely affected not only by the severe weather we have seen over the past few weeks but also those who have had problems with extremely saturated ground due to the high rainfall over the past twelve months,” said FUW land use and parliamentary committee chairman Gavin Williams.
“Farmers are now able to request a derogation to establish the cereal crop by the end of May, two weeks later than the previous establishment date of May 15, which will allow them to better manage their pasture before closing off their arable fields,” added Mr Williams.
Those seeking additional time to establish their cereal crops this year must contact their local Divisional Office before May 15 to request the derogation. Following the crop being sown, the Divisional Office needs to receive written confirmation of the sowing date, crop type, area and field number.
“The FUW has stressed the importance of flexibility in dealing with those farmers who may be experiencing difficulties in meeting their scheme obligations this year and would encourage farmers to talk to their project officers or Divisional Offices as soon as possible if they believe they may have problems,” added Mr Williams.