[caption id="attachment_4559" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Alun Edwards[/caption]

County delegates to the Farmers' Union of Wales agricultural education and training committee have visited the Glynllifon campus of Coleg Meirion Dwyfor, near Caernarfon, as part of the committee's remit to maintain links with agricultural and land-based colleges across Wales.

Earlier, they re-elected Meirionnydd delegate Alun Edwards, who runs a mountain beef and sheep farm at Rhydymain, near Dolgellau, as committee chairman and were then taken on a tour of the facilities by Caernarfon delegate and Glynllifon campus development director Eurwyn Edwards.

The campus has recently secured £10.3m of funding to improve the facilities available to students. Some £2.3m of this money has been spent on refurbishing the Glanarfon building - where the meeting was held - and the student hostel.

The tour included a visit to the newly-built £8m "Learning Village" which houses a range of modern and up-to-date teaching facilities, classrooms, computer rooms and a library.

The new eco-friendly building has been designed to comply with the BREEAM Excellent standard (BREEAM sets the standard for best practice in sustainable building design, construction and operation) and makes use of solar voltaic panels, is heated using a biomass boiler and uses rainwater collection. This is all topped off with a roof covered in vegetation.

Great care was needed during the construction of the building to prevent the disturbance of a nearby roost of lesser horseshoe bats thought to be one of the largest in Europe.

While some minor completion works are still needed, mainly to the information technology and interactive teaching equipment, the building was open to students and was equipped with the latest technology and facilities.

The tour of the campus was concluded with a trip around the college farm including visits to the dairy farm, woodland areas, grazing fields and the site were the Urdd National Eisteddfod will be held in 2012.

FUW president Emyr Jones, who joined the delegates on the tour, said: "I was very much impressed by what I saw and heard.

"Thanks to this multi-million pound investment the campus now features a wide range of modern teaching aids designed to provide the next generation of young farmers with the vital skills they need to join our industry which must encourage new blood at every opportunity."

Gwent delegate Jenny Cockitt, of Duffryn, Llanellen, Abergavenny, was elected vice chairman of the committee.

[caption id="attachment_4555" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Some of the walkers on the pebble beach alongside Cardigan Bay at Llanrhystud nearing the end of their three-mile walk.[/caption]

The first fund-raising event for Farmers’ Union of Wales president Emyr Jones’ chosen charity - Cancer Research Wales - was a roaring success with more than £2,000 raised.

Around 100 FUW members and supporters of all ages took part in a three-mile walk at Morfa Farm, Llanrhystud, Ceredigion, and at the end many lit a candle in memory of their loved ones.

“This was our first fund-raising event and it was lovely to see old friends and a few new faces who wanted to come out and support the charity on the day,” said Mr Jones.

“I wish to thank everyone who took part and made the day so special for the union and Cancer Research Wales.

“We are looking forward to many more fund-raising events over the next year and hope to have as much support for those as we have had for this one ,” added Mr Jones.

This year's Farmers' Union of Wales Denbighshire county branch annual dinner will be held at the White Waters Hotel, Llangollen, at 7.30pm on Friday, November 18.

Branch chairman Eryl Hughes said: "Our members are looking forward to the annual dinner and to welcoming colleagues from all over Wales."

Dilwyn Morgan, a well-known Welsh comedian and compere for S4C Noson Lawen and various television and radio programmes across Wales, will provide the entertainment.

FUW members from all over Wales are welcome to attend the dinner. Tickets are available from the FUW Denbighshire office 01824 707198, priced at £20 each.

The Farmers' Union of Wales insurance arm has grown rapidly within four years of being set up to become the third largest insurance broker in Wales, the union revealed today.

FUW Insurance Services are also celebrating being listed as one of the 100 largest brokers in the whole of the UK in the latest edition of the "Top 100 Independent Brokers" supplement published by Insurance Age magazine today.

"Being listed in this prestigious publication is a major achievement but to have done so within such a relatively short time after setting up as a broker is particularly pleasing," said FUW operations director Mark Roberts.

The Aberystwyth-based business has 13 branch offices across Wales and employs 30 field staff and 12 at head office specialising in insurance cover for all forms of farming and rural trades.

"We aim to be the number one rural insurance broker in Wales for personal insurance, commercial insurance as well as farm insurance and this listing has given us a greater impetus to provide our clients with excellent insurance solutions supported by a high level of personal service on a local basis through our network of area officers," Mr Roberts added.

FUW president Emyr Jones said: "The listing is good news for our members and ensures that the FUW is ideally placed to meet the needs of our existing members and to encourage the recruitment of new members wishing to gain access to our broker panel members and their services."

Contact your nearest FUW Insurance Services area officer by clicking on www.fuw.org.uk or calling 01970 820820.