[caption id="attachment_6657" align="alignleft" width="300"] Mr Laurence Harris, Mr Daniel Zhou and FUW Deputy President Brian Thomas[/caption]

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has long been involved in forging strong economic connections with China and has today (July 19) welcomed Managing Director of Goodwell China Marketing Services Co Ltd, Mr Daniel Zhou, to its pavilion in order to thank him for supporting the Welsh dairy industry.

Both Mr Zhou, who is visiting Wales, and Laurence Harris of Ffosyficer farm – the heart of the Daioni Organic business, were welcomed by FUW Deputy President Brian Thomas, who said: “I would first of all like to welcome Mr Zhou wholeheartedly to Wales - and what a perfect time to visit us.

“We are always honoured to meet our overseas trading partners and have done so for many years. It was during the 2010 lunch at the House of Lords that we welcomed Mr Zhou Xiaoming, Minister Counsellor of Economic and Commercial Office of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China and it was at the invitation of the FUW that he attended the 2010 Royal Welsh Show.

“Supporting our dairy industry and forging strong links for our export markets is at the forefront of everyone's mind, especially in light of our decision to exit the European Union. Rural Wales needs to be recognised for the part that it can play in building a vibrant Wales with a thriving rural economic powerhouse and businesses like Daioni Organic are a perfect example of just that.

“We must remember that such trade partnerships are only possible because of excellent people like Laurence Harris of Daioni Organic, who produce such wonderful dairy products that we can be proud to export across the world.

“In order to honour and thank our guest Mr Zhou for supporting our excellent and efficient dairy sector, I would today like to present him with the Farmers’ Union of Wales gold medal in recognition of his services to the Welsh dairy industry.”

Well known north Pembrokeshire organic dairy farmer Laurence Harris, who joined the meeting at the FUW pavilion, has taken Daioni Organic – meaning “goodness” – from strength to strength.

The brand’s humble beginnings began with a 150-acre farm in Pembrokeshire, Wales.  Since taking over Ffosyficer farm – still the heart of the Daioni business – from his father in 1970, Laurence expanded the family farm to well over 3,000 acres of fertile pasture.

“We initially set up the business with a single tanker and a couple of lorries and sent our milk to north Wales to be processed and packaged and in 2003 we launched Daioni, the first range of flavoured organic milk drinks in Britain,” added Mr Harris.

From the initial interest shown by local schools to put the product in their vending machines as an alternative to fizzy, sugary drinks, the business has flourished.

Today the range of products has grown to include organic fresh milk and cream, organic UHT/longlife milk, and flavoured milk.

In 2008 Daioni flavoured milk was exported overseas for the first time and is now stocked in outlets around the world as well as in small retailers and major supermarkets across the UK.

In addition, in 2012 Daioni Organic became the first British dairy company to gain organic certification in mainland China and in 2014 they opened their Hong Kong office to focus on Asia Pacific sales.  Today exports account for over 25 percent of the business turnover.

Around twenty local people are employed by the farming business which today is solely owned by the Harris family and continues to go from strength to strength.

“We pride ourselves on the quality of our organic milk, from home-grown cows that freely roam the grassy climbs of West Wales. Through the combination of happy cows, fertile soils and abundant grass, we have found the winning formula for delicious, flavoursome and quality milk,” said Mr Harris.

[caption id="attachment_6654" align="alignleft" width="300"] FUW meets with mobile network representatives Alex Jackman from EE, Paul Jones from O2, Graham Dunn from Vodafone and Simon Millar from Three, and Wales Office Minister Guto Bebb at joint Ofcom meeting.[/caption]

The lack of network coverage in rural Wales was high on the agenda today on the second day of the Royal Welsh Show (Tuesday, July 19) when the Farmers’ Union of Wales joined forces with Ofcom at its pavilion alongside the main ring.

The FUW and Ofcom held wide-ranging talks with representatives from the four mobile network operators - EE, O2, Vodafone and Three to provide the operators with an opportunity to update the invited audience on the progress being made to improve coverage in rural Wales.

Achieving widespread and reliable mobile coverage across Wales is challenging due to geographical, topographical and technological constraints. Data from Ofcom’s recent Connected Nation report shows that the percentage of premises with outdoor voice 2G and 3G services by all four operators in Wales has reached 93 percent at Coverage on A and B roads by all four operators is around 50 percent with  only one operator reaching 76 percent.

There remain areas in Wales with no mobile coverage from all four of the network operators as well as complete not-spots where there is no coverage at all. In geographic terms Wales has more voice not spots than the UK (13percent). A similar pattern is seen with data coverage. Wales has about the same level of data not-spots as the UK overall at 21 percent of the landmass not covered by a data service from any operator.

FUW deputy president Brian Thomas, who was delighted that the union was once again hosting this event at the Royal Welsh Show, said: “This is the sixth consecutive year at the show that the FUW has collaborated with Ofcom in providing a platform for discussion on the wide ranging communications issues facing rural Wales.

“A lot of work has been done over the past five years to improve services for mobile phone coverage and broadband access but with ever increasing demands on the farming community to carry out their business duties online more needs to be done to accelerate the process by which these twenty-first century services are readily and reliably available.

“The farming industry, in increasing numbers, is reliant on smart phone technology such as apps and it is second nature for the up-and-coming younger generation to use their phones in innovative ways – so if rural businesses in Wales want to remain at the forefront of progress then more needs to be done to support them.

“Further to this, online IACS, BCSM online and EID are just a few examples that farmers throughout Wales require reliable and fast internet connections for, which could be accessed through the appropriate mobile phone coverage if no broadband line is available.

“So as an Union we cannot stress the fact enough that more needs to be done to help rural communities and farm businesses by providing them with the essentials that every twenty-first century business needs.”

Ofcom is working with the mobile network operators and other stakeholders to improve mobile coverage across the UK. In 2013, Ofcom awarded a 4G licence to O2 which requires the company to extend indoor coverage to 98 percent of the UK population by 2017 at the latest.

This will mean coverage of more than 99 percent of the UK population when outdoors. Under the terms of the licence O2 is also obliged to ensure coverage to 95 percent of each of the nations, including Wales, within the same timescale. The other mobile operators have indicated that they intend to match O2’s 98 percent coverage obligation for 4G mobile. This will see a marked increase in mobile broadband coverage into many areas still unserved by 3G.

In addition, all four network operators have committed to invest significantly to improve rural coverage as part of a legally-binding agreement with the UK Government to extend a basic voice and text service over 2G to 90 percent of the UK’s landmass by 2017. This is not a Wales specific target but it will lead to a considerable reduction in the number of not spots.

Rhodri Williams, Ofcom’s Director in Wales, said that: “Improving mobile coverage in Wales is more challenging but no less important. Wherever Ofcom can meet those challenges we will. There are of course steps that can be taken by organisations in Wales to help facilitate the extension of mobile networks. One example is ensuring that planning regimes make it as easy as possible for the operators to build masts. This is a vital step in improving coverage.”

In addition, the FUW welcomed the announcement made by Wales Office minister Guto Bebb who told the Ofcom reception that there will be a summit this autumn to discuss poor signal coverage in Wales.

Mr Bebb told those attending that: "It is vital for small and medium-size companies and home-based enterprises to develop and grow their business in the rural Welsh economy.

"We now rightfully expect our mobile devices to work reliably wherever we are, be it at home, at work, in a car, or in the fields of Powys.

"That's why, building on the discussions at this event, we will convene a summit with Ofcom, the mobile network operators and other key stakeholders to formally consider the issues surrounding poor mobile connectivity in Wales."

[caption id="attachment_6650" align="alignleft" width="300"] Discussing #FarmingMatters with Waitrose representatives Heather Jenkins, Duncan Sinclair, Liz Reese and Stephen Lloyd were FUW Montgomeryshire County Chairman Mark William, FUW Senior Policy Officer Dr Hazel Wright, FUW Policy Officer Charlotte Priddy and FUW Vice President Eifion Huws.[/caption]

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has met up with retailer Waitrose at the Royal Welsh Show today (Monday 18 July), to discuss farming matters.

The positive discussion focused on Waitrose’s commitment to continue supporting UK producers once the UK has made an exit from the European Union.

“We were pleased to hear that Waitrose will continue to support Welsh and UK food producers, and we will be highlighting the importance of the family farm during meetings with other retailers throughout the show,” said FUW Senior Policy Officer, Dr Hazel Wright.

“Our family farms are the cornerstone of the wider rural economy.

“Farming matters to our economy, food security, supply chains and culture. We must ensure that politicians and those who work directly and indirectly with the industry are aware of this importance.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales is calling on politicians to ‘do a 360’ at the Royal Welsh Show in order to see the importance of agriculture to the wider economy.

“If politicians and visitors to the show stop and turn around 360 degrees they will see a vast array of different businesses which are all reliant on agriculture, some employing just one or two, some employing thousands,” said FUW President Glyn Roberts.

“The show is a microcosm of our wider rural community and economy, and for every business here there are thousands more across Wales and the UK which are directly and indirectly reliant on agriculture.”

Welsh Farm Business Survey figures show that, despite having average incomes which fall well below that of the average UK household, farms can typically contribute between £100,000 and £250,000 to the local and wider economy each year.

“Let’s not forget that circa 60,000 people are employed on farm holdings in Wales, in addition to the thousands employed in businesses which are reliant on agriculture such as contractors, feed and machinery merchants, mechanics etc,” said Mr Roberts.

A 2001 Welsh Assembly Government report classed around two out of every five rural businesses as being involved in the farming industry, while the Central Science Laboratories has estimated that agriculture supports over 10 percent of Wales’ full time employees.

“Farming is the backbone of rural areas and is the linchpin of rural communities - so this is not just about farming; it is about the wider recognition that farming matters to our entire economy, how money circulates, and how communities are sustained and our culture continues to thrive.

“This needs to be recognised in the forthcoming discussions and negotiations regarding Brexit, while we also need a post Brexit agricultural policy which protects family farms, rural economies and the environment, while also enhancing food security,” he added.