[caption id="attachment_4469" align="aligncenter" width="250"] Andrew Nelson,left, and Emyr Jones[/caption]

The crucial importance of good quality grassland in future food production was stressed by Farmers' Union of Wales president Emyr Jones when he attended this week’s Dairy Event and Livestock Show at the NEC in Birmingham.

"It has long been recognised by farmers that grass is the cheapest livestock feed on farms and this still remains the case, particularly for grazed grass," said Mr Jones, who won the British Grassland Society's national grassland management competition in 2008.

Congratulating this year's winner of the competition - Andrew Nelson from Castle Douglas in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland - during the Dairy Event, Mr Jones said: "Whatever production system is used, a well-managed sward will make a vital and cost-effective contribution to milk or meat production.

"Grass is a quality feed that can help dairy farmers achieve 4,000 litres plus from forage.

"Any attempt to reduce the amount of quality grassland on our farms under the latest CAP reform proposals must be vigorously opposed for the sake of food security.

"In the hill farms of Wales growing grass for grazing plays a crucial part of running our family farms profitably and it should be recognised that fertilisers are now creating a much smaller carbon footprint as suppliers make large-scale environmental improvements to their products," Mr Jones added.

Judges of the BGS competition, sponsored by DLF-Trifolium and GrowHow UK, said Mr Nelson shone out as an excellent grassland manager with clear goals and evidence of achieving them.

[caption id="attachment_4466" align="aligncenter" width="400"] “I have kept Welsh Mountain rams ever since I was about 20. I take immense pride and great pleasure improving my flock.”[/caption]

The Farmers' Union of Wales has teamed up with renowned Londoner photographer Chris Clunn to produce a bilingual book of evocative portraits of 61 farmers of all ages living and working on traditional family hill farms in the Snowdonia National Park.

Mr Clunn's previous work has graced many covers and been published in newspapers and magazines worldwide. His images are currently held in the National Portrait Gallery, the Guildhall, the Museum of London, the National Monument archives and various private collections.

He started work on the book, entitled "Meirionnydd", a few years ago after meeting former FUW area officer Elfed Roberts who sold him insurance for a small, run down and derelict stable he has converted into a home at Maentwrog on the edge of the Snowdonia National Park.

"Once the paperwork was done, Elfed left with all the relevant details and a copy of my previous book on the characters of Smithfield meat market under his arm," said Mr Clunn. "Weeks later, he mentioned how much he enjoyed the book and asked if I would be interested in working on a similar project recording the farmers of Meirionnydd.

"I was aware that this was a rare opportunity for an outsider to get to know something about how real rural Wales works. With Elfed and FUW Meirionnydd county executive officer Huw Jones as my guides, this was the perfect introduction to the local farming community, a world of which I knew nothing but was looking forward to finding out about.

"We'll have some real characters for you here Chris, Elfed remarked. He also made me aware that English is very much a second language here.

"So do yourself a favour and at least learn a few words of Welsh - it will help a lot, Elfed added. He was not wrong.

"I hope my photographs go some way into giving an insight into this world of rural farming that I have been fortunate enough to dip into over the last four years.

"I am most grateful to Elfed and Huw, perfect gentlemen with a wealth of knowledge and advice, who have been key in making this whole project happen.

"I couldn't have done it without them and I also offer a very special thank you to all the farmers who have welcomed me onto their land, agreed to have their portraits taken and given this city boy a wonderful education in farming in the old kingdom of Meirionnydd."

FUW president Emyr Jones, who farms near Bala and is the subject of a portrait in the book, said it was a great honour and privilege to be asked by Chris to write a few words of introduction to this unique work.

"During his career, Chris has established a reputation for being able to capture and chronicle the very essence of communities and working lives, and this book confirms to me that he is as capable of doing so in his adopted home of rural Meirionnydd as in his native London.

"Inside the book you will see a portrait of an agricultural society and culture which continues to exist, as it has done for generations, in one of Wales' most challenging and hostile farming landscapes.

"This is the culture I grew up in and in which I continue to be immersed. It is a way of life where agriculture, livestock, and the cycle of the seasons are ingrained in every thought and sentence, and one which I am passionate about protecting.

"It was this passion, and the influence of my late uncle John Jones, Maesywaen, which drove me to become involved in farming politics, and this book gives the reader a glimpse of why my enthusiasm is as strong today as it was all those years ago when I attended my first union meeting.

"While Meirionnydd has its own unique qualities, the type of society captured in these pages extends throughout Wales, from the Welsh-speaking heartlands of the west, across to the predominately English-speaking areas of the south east, where the love of Wales and our agricultural heritage is as strong as it is anywhere.

"Chris has succeeded in capturing something which is so precious, yet so many of us take for granted."

Huw Jones said during the past three years Chris became a regular visitor to the livestock market in Dolgellau, which is considered to be the heart of the farming community in Meirionnydd.

He appreciated the unique qualities of those attending, the farmers who take immense pride in their stockmanship, this being the reason why the market attracts buyers from far afield.

"These farmers make a living in one of the most rugged and harsh environments in Wales, and succeed on difficult terrain and thin soils.

"Chris has captured the simplicity of rural life at its best, his images showing true, honest, faithful characters, hard working, neighbourly and kind, and living close to the land. The farming way of life is that of established families, immensely proud of their heritage and traditions, steeped in history, with the Welsh language and culture close to their hearts.

"They are absolutely determined to protect this rich inheritance for the future and to tackle the many challenges facing the farming community. Chris' images show a deep sense of the overriding importance of continuity and stability on farms and the wisdom and strength of the characters in the book."

The Farmers' Union of Wales has launched a scathing attack on Welsh Government proposals to "gold plate" a new Good Agricultural Environmental Condition (GAEC) on buffer strips next to water courses introduced as part of the Common Agricultural Policy Health Check agreement in 2008.

The FUW believe that proposals to increase the minimum standard imposed by Europe are not backed up by scientific evidence and it feels strongly that the Welsh Government should not seek to gold plate cross-compliance Regulations and adopt a higher standard than the minimum required.

The proposals, which include an option to designate extra wide buffer zones alongside water courses, would also impose an additional level of bureaucracy on an already over-regulated industry at a time when the Welsh Government is allegedly committed to cutting red tape.

"Given the wide ranging description of 'water courses' in the Codes of Good Agricultural Practice, which includes dry ditches and takes no account of the topography or geography of the land in question, the union is concerned that taking an over cautionary approach to buffer strips could have significant economic impacts for farmers in Wales, given the number of 'water courses' in the region and indeed within individual fields," said FUW land use and parliamentary committee chairman Richard Vaughan.

"Over zealous implementation of the restrictions over and above the minimum requirements will mean that a large proportion of buffer strips in Wales would be ineffective, whilst the impact on the viability of farm businesses may be substantial.

"Apart from some discrete areas in Wales, Nitrates are not a major problem. Point source pollution is best dealt with at catchment level rather than by a blanket approach which penalises all farmers," added Mr Vaughan.

"Whilst accepting that the new rules coming into force in January 2012 are not up for negotiation, the union is concerned that the Assembly is even considering more arduous requirements to tackle so-called diffuse pollution, as opposed to dealing with the issue in a pragmatic and proactive way through targeting those areas where there is deemed to be a problem," said Mr Vaughan.

The union believes that tackling diffuse pollution through advice, awareness raising and encouraging good practise is far more productive than the use of blunt tools of cross compliance and increased regulation.

The threatened closure of Wales's only two remaining Defra veterinary centres could seriously delay the detection of animal diseases, the Farmers' Union of Wales complained today.

"If the centres at Aberystwyth and Carmarthen are closed Welsh farmers will be have to send samples for analysis to their nearest remaining centre by courier," said FUW vice president Brian Walters.

According to the Prospect trade union, the closure of six similar centres in England is also part of the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) £2.4m cost-cutting plan submitted to Defra secretary Caroline Spelman yesterday.

"If these closures are approved farmers from all over Wales will have to send their samples to the nearest remaining centre many more miles away in England," said Mr Walters, who runs a dairy farm at Carmarthen.

“These laboratories provide an essential service in terms of testing for and monitoring animal diseases and are at the forefront of the battle to tackle animal health problems.

"Exactly ten years ago we were in the throes of a foot and mouth outbreak which decimated our industry and caused untold suffering.

"Without these laboratories our ability to deal with this type of incident in future will be severely compromised. I have written to the Westminster Government’s environment secretary and to our own animal health minister to highlight these concerns, which could cost the country dearly.”

Mr Walters said the laboratories also played a pivotal role in essential research into animal diseases and many FUW members and staff had taken part in research programmes which involved these laboratories.

“It is often essential to get samples to this type of lab as promptly as possible in order to find out the exact nature of a problem.

"Having such facilities within relatively easy travelling distance for farms is also vital in terms of identifying disease problems which are relevant to an individual business, or may even be important from a national perspective.

“The projected savings of £2.4m represent a small drop in the ocean compared with the cost to the nation of a major disease outbreak and the savings which can be made as a result of the research work which is undertaken at these locations.”

Prosper claims AHVLA wants to close laboratories at Aberystwyth, Carmarthen, Langford (Bristol), Truro (Cornwall), Thirsk (North Yorkshire), Winchester (Hampshire), Luddington (Warwickshire) and Preston (Lancashire) by April 2013, cutting 90 jobs.

Only six regional laboratories would remain at Shrewsbury, Penrith (Cumbria), Starcross (Devon), Bury St Edmunds (Suffolk), Sutton Bonington (Leicestershire) and Newcastle upon Tyne. They will continue to be supported by central work groups at Weybridge (Surrey) and Lasswade (Midlothian).