Freelance agricultural journalist Meyrick Brown is the Farmers’ Union of Wales Agricultural Journalist of the Year for 2009.

Meyrick, of Rhosgranog House, Llandeloy, Haverfordwest, has a lifetime’s practical experience of dairy, beef and arable farming, drawing on his depth of knowledge to become a highly respected journalist covering a range of topical issues and farming industry developments, as well as highlighting farmer success stories.

He writes regularly for the Western Mail and Carmarthen Journal, provides a weekly column for the Observer series in Pembrokeshire and contributes to the Pembrokeshire Farmer, Pembrokeshire Life and Farmers Guardian. He has also assisted in TV and radio research.

In 2006 his "outstanding contribution to the promotion of agriculture in Pembrokeshire" was formally recognised and last year he received the Pembrokeshire Farmers Club Award "for services to agriculture".

Meyrick is married to Janet and the couple have two children - Helen, who is marketing manager for a company exporting medical products, and Angela, who is a ceramic artist and lecturer.

Announcing the winner, FUW president Gareth Vaughan said Meyrick was a very worthy candidate for the award.

"His aim is, and has always been, to widely promote all that is best in agriculture and to draw public attention to matters causing stress among vulnerable sectors of the industry."

The annual award - a shepherd’s crook - is usually produced by prize-winning Aberystwyth crook maker Hywel Evans but in a departure from tradition Meyrick’s crook was previously owned by S4C’s Cefn Gwlad presenter Dai Jones, Llanilar, who donated it to a recent auction and knocked it down to the highest bidder - a member of the FUW staff.

The auction followed a successful charity golf competition at Aberystwyth Golf Club and helped raise £6,000 towards Ceredigion’s host county appeal fund for next year’s Royal Welsh Show.

Westminster’s environment, food and rural affairs committee’s decision to examine the background and implications of Dairy Farmers of Britain’s (DFB) collapse was described today as a significant move towards answering Welsh dairy producers’ concerns.

“Many questions need answering following DFB’s demise which continues to have a devastating impact for hundreds of affected farmers and former employees of the cooperative,” said FUW milk committee chairman Eifion Huws.

“We therefore welcome this inquiry and plan to participate to clearly express our members’ numerous concerns about DFB’s demise.”

The committee will consider:

• the impact of DFB’s collapse on dairy farmers and the industry;
• the governance and accountability structures of DFB;
• Defra’s response to DFB’s collapse; and
• the causes and lessons to be learned from the collapse.

The committee has invited written submissions from interested parties by Monday August 31 and will accept further submissions after a receivers’ meeting on September 7. A programme of oral evidence will be announced in due course.

Anglesey farmer Mr Huws was a member of an FUW delegation that demanded such an inquiry during meetings with Defra minister Jim Fitzpatrick and members of all political parties.

Speaking after a meeting at the Royal Welsh show with Clwyd West MP David Jones to discuss the matter, Mr Huws added: “DFB’s failure created massive financial damage for farmers and employees throughout Wales and beyond with 1,800 farmers seriously affected.

“There is also grave concern that DFB’s receivers may still pursue some producers who had effectively underwritten the cooperative.

“We hope the inquiry will bring much needed clarity in terms of the events that led up to this catastrophic collapse.”

Mr Jones, whose constituency was one of the worst hit by the collapse, said: “A large number of questions arise as a consequence of the collapse of DFB and I am very pleased that the EFRA Select Committee has announced this important inquiry.”

Farmers’ Union of Wales leaders have met the Westminster food, farming and environment minister Jim Fitzpatrick and numerous Welsh MPs of all four main parties to discuss issues of concern to dairy farmers including the recent collapse of the Dairy Farmers of Britain farmers’ cooperative.

Lengthy discussions took place at separate meetings with the FUW which was represented by union president Gareth Vaughan, milk committee chairman Eifion Huws and two dairy farmers from Powys and Anglesey.

They met Anglesey MP Albert Owen, who organised a cross-party meeting, Mr Fitzpatrick and several other Welsh MPs. The other meeting, organised by shadow Welsh minister and Clwyd West MP David Jones, was also attended by shadow Welsh secretary Cheryl Gillan.

The union delegation expressed their concerns about the future of the industry and pressed for an enquiry into the problems building up to the closure of Dairy Farmers of Britain. They were pleased to learn that Labour were in full support of keeping the Milk Quota in future.

Mr Vaughan felt the meetings had been very constructive and productive and was pleased discussions had also taken place into the possibility of an Ombudsman being appointed for the farming industry.

"We are extremely grateful to Mr Owen and Mr Jones for their support and for organising the meetings and are also appreciative to all the other MPs who attended and gave their valuable time to meet representatives from the union and dairy sector."

Mr Jones said later that the FUW delegation spent an hour discussing DFB’s failure and other issues of current concern, including electronic identification of sheep. "Many farmers in Wales and the north of England have lost large sums of money as a result of DFB’s collapse.

"Some are now facing heavy claims by the receivers under the terms of their guarantees. It is hard to see how the co-operative could have collapsed with such large debts without warning signs becoming apparent long before.

"I believe that an inquiry into DFB’s failure is called for and I will continue to press for one in Parliament."

THE Farmers’ Union of Wales will be on hand to give out Ordnance Survey (OS) grid references to Royal Welsh show visitors next week in an exercise that could mean the difference between life and death.

In a joint venture with Wales Air Ambulance, the FUW has produced cards with space for information such as a person’s home postcode and OS grid reference. The card can then be kept near the telephone at the home address to be used in an emergency.

Due to Wales’ scattered population and diverse landscape, many in Wales live in isolated locations far from an accident and emergency service and air ambulances can sometimes reach casualties far quicker than any other response team on the ground.

It is widely believed that a patient’s chances of survival and early recovery are increased if they receive the right care within the first hour, otherwise known as the Golden Hour.

The quick response times and the expert medical care provided by the Wales Air Ambulance crews across Wales ensure that this Golden Hour is achieved every time.

Issuing the cards was the brainchild of the FUW’s Caernarfonshire area officer Dafydd Jones, who lives in the remote village of Ysbyty Ifan, near Betws y Coed.

Following a talk with Tomos Hughes, of the Uwchaled first response team, the FUW printed the cards with the logo: " Ble Ydych Chi - Where are You" with a blank space to fill the post code and the Ordnance Survey grid reference.

Mr Jones said: "As people living in the countryside, especially in a remote part of Wales, we recognise the importance of the Air Ambulance service and also the region’s police helicopter service. They have become a major part of the emergency services’ response team.

"By now we all know of someone who has been in an unfortunate situation needing the service of the Air Ambulance, and if it wasn’t for their quick response and the shortening of travelling time some of those people would not be here today.

"Indeed, the fast response of these services can be the difference between life and death."

A Wales Air Ambulance spokesman said: "Wales Air Ambulance helps to save time, and save lives. You can help too by knowing your grid reference.

"Time really matters in an emergency and Wales Air Ambulance can reach any part of the country within 20 minutes. The grid reference initiative from the FUW will also raise awareness of the work our air ambulance crews do in remote farming areas."