THREE major staff awards were made at the Farmers' Union of Wales annual business conference (ABC) in Aberystwyth which heard that the union's insurance arm is now the third biggest broker in Wales with gross premium income growing at an average of £160,000 per month during 2011.

The Highest Insurance Book Growth award went to Meirionnydd area officer Dei Charles Jones, of Llanuwchllyn, Bala, for a book that grew by 32 per cent.

The award for the county that gained most new members during 2011 went to Caernarfon with 46 new members. County executive officer Gwynedd Watkin and area officers Dylan Evans and Dafydd Jones received the award jointly on behalf of the county staff.

The Efficiency Award for the best managed insurance portfolio went to Carmarthenshire area officer Meinir Davies, of Llanddeusant, Llangadog.

[caption id="attachment_3530" align="aligncenter" width="300"] MOST NEW MEMBERS: From left, Emyr Jones, Gwynedd Watkin, Dafydd Jones, Dylan Evans and Glyn Roberts.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3531" align="aligncenter" width="300"] HIGHEST BOOK GROWTH: From left, FUW president Emyr Jones, Dei Charles Jones and deputy president Glyn Roberts.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3532" align="aligncenter" width="300"] EFFICIENCY AWARD: From left, Meinir Davies, Glyn Roberts and Emyr Jones.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3527" align="aligncenter" width="500"] From left, FUW president Emyr Jones, vice president Lorraine Howells, Cefin Evans, FUW vice president Richard Vaughan, deputy president Glyn Roberts, vice president Brian Walters, Gareth Jones and FUW finance and organisation committee member Eifion Huws.[/caption]

The Farmers' Union of Wales insurance services arm is sponsoring two Ceredigion farmers on an "awesome" bike ride in the Himalayan Mountains next month to raise funds for Wales Air Ambulance. 

Cefin Evans, of Cwmwythig, Capel Bangor, and Gareth Jones, of Morfa Farm, Llanrhystud, have stepped up their training to take part in the "Yak Attack" - the highest mountain bike race on earth and one of the toughest mountain bike stage races on the world calendar. 

Taking place in the mighty Himalaya, comprising of 10 stages, covering 400km and with a total altitude gain of over 12,000m, the race throws every obstacle under the sun at the adventurous riders daring to take it on. 

There's the altitude with the course peaking at 5,416m, where oxygen levels are only 50 per cent of those at sea level. There's the weather - up to 30 degrees centigrade over the first four days and then rapidly decreasing to a frostbite inducing -15c (before wind chill) as the race crosses the Thorong La pass. 

Then, after all that, there's the terrain with potentially bike-wrecking rough descents, soft sand climbs, streams, suspension bridges, mud, landslides and invariably snow. 

"Previous competitors have said things like it is the most awesome riding they've ever done, it isn't racing, its torture," said Cefin when he and Gareth met the FUW's presidential team at Aberystwyth before leaving for the race start point at Katmandu. 

"Yak Attack is not just a race - it's a life experience," said Gareth. "It's like a roller coaster, literally and emotionally, and will leave us battered and bruised but with unforgettable memories of a beautiful country inhabited by beautiful people." 

Both cyclists have agreed to use the race to raise money for Wales Air Ambulance. They plan to hold a fund-raising event at the Marine Hotel, Aberystwyth, on February 10 and will fly to Katmandu from Heathrow Airport on February 29. 

Wishing the cyclists a safe journey, FUW president Emyr Jones said: "The union is pleased to help them achieve such a memorable life experience and, at the same time, raise money for a worthy charity which my predecessor as FUW president, Gareth Vaughan, successfully adopted as his chosen charity in his final year in office."

[caption id="attachment_3524" align="aligncenter" width="450"] ABNORMALITIES: A lamb affected by arthrogryposis - persistent flexion of the joints - which is one of the congenital abnormalities associated with SBV infection.[/caption]

THE newly-elected chairman of the FUW's animal health committee has urged Welsh farmers to be vigilant following confirmation by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) of an outbreak of the Schmallenberg Virus (SBV) in the UK for the first time. 

Catherine Nakielny said: "At the inaugural meeting of the new committee on January 20 delegates had an update on this concerning disease from chief veterinary officer for Wales Professor Christianne Glossop. 

"I would reiterate her warning that all farmers in Wales need to be on the lookout for any unusually high incidences of abortion or congenital abnormalities - deformed lambs, swollen heads, weak lambs etc. They should report anything unusual to their veterinarian," Dr Nakielny added. 

On January 23 AHVLA revealed they had finished the initial analysis of samples received as a result of its enhanced surveillance for this new disease. 

"We have identified the Schmallenberg Virus in some of these samples and as we continue surveillance we may find further cases," an AHVLA spokesman warned. 

The samples came from the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and East Sussex which are in the area identified as potentially being at risk from infected midges blown across the Channel from the affected areas and AHVLA suspect this is the most likely cause of transmission. 

"Since August 2011, both the Netherlands and Germany have reported outbreaks of a disease in cattle with clinical signs including fever, reduced milk yield, inappetence, loss of body condition and, principally in Dutch herds, diarrhea," the spokesman said. 

"Herds experienced outbreaks of disease lasting two to three weeks, with individual affected animals recovering over several days. More recently (November 2011 onwards) there have been reports of miscarriages and stillbirths associated with congenital (present at birth) abnormalities affecting mainly sheep but also cattle and goats. 

"Tests carried out on cases in Germany and the Netherlands have identified a novel virus that has tentatively been named Schmallenberg virus (SBV). This virus appears to belong to a group of viruses that are spread by insect vectors, principally midges and mosquitoes, although a vector that may be responsible for transmission of SBV has not been identified yet. 

"According to an initial risk assessment carried out by public health authorities in the Netherlands and a follow-up risk assessment by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, although there are still some uncertainties, the risk to human health from SBV is likely to be very low. 

"Nevertheless, farmers and veterinary surgeons are advised to take sensible hygiene precautions when working with livestock." 

Further information, including an AHVLA briefing note on the current situation, can be found on the international disease monitoring page on the Defra website. Contact your local AHVLA Regional Laboratory or SAC Disease Surveillance Centre if you require further guidance or information.

The Meirionnydd branch of the Farmers' Union of Wales holds its annual general meeting on Friday evening January 27 and an appeal was made today for a strong representation of members from all parts of the county for this special event which will consider the future of the farming industry.

It will be held at the Royal Ship Hotel, Dolgellau, starting at 7.30pm, and the two speakers will be deputy minister for agricultural, food, fisheries and European Programmes Alun Davies AM and former FUW vice president Tom Jones, Plas Coch, Dolanog, near Welshpool, who currently represents Wales on the European Economic and Social Committee in Brussels.

The meeting will be an ideal opportunity to consider the future of the industry in the short and medium term and, undoubtedly, there will be special emphasis on the Common Agricultural Policy review and the recent document on the way forward for Wales.

The meeting will also include a presentation from the county executive officer Huw Jones on the union's activities during 2011.

Further details about the event can be obtained by contacting the FUW County Office on 01341 422298 or by e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.