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BBC Radio 4


The latest news about food, farming and the countryside


Farming Today

Agriculture accounts for around 12% of greenhouse gases in the UK, according to DEFRA and there is much work across the industry to cut that figure. 

Arla, the farmer run dairy cooperative plans to reduce its emissions by 30% per kilo of milk by 2030. 

The company has just started trials using a dietary supplement called Bovaer which is added to a cow’s feed to reduce methane emissions. The trial involves around 30 farmers and 3 supermarkets who buy their milk. 

But despite the feed supplement getting the thumbs up from UK and European food safety bodies, there’s been a social media storm of protest, some people calling for the boycott of Arla products because they do not think it should be used, including posting videos of themselves on social media pouring milk away. A scientist and industry expert give their views.

A number of tenant farmers in East Yorkshire say they could be facing eviction to make way for a large solar farm.

Dairy farmers say it is hard to find workers and growers use seasonal migrant workers to pick fruit and veg. The lack of people joining the fishing industry means some older skippers are now giving up early as they can't find a crew, meanwhile one farming apprentice is realising his dream.

And Charlotte speaks to the winner of the BBC Food and Farming award in the "Farming for the Future" category.

Presented by Charlotte Smith

Produced by Alun Beach

07/12/2024 Farming Today This Week: Dairy emissions; solar farm; workers; Food and Farming Awards

Fruit and veg importers say a shortage of government inspectors at ports is reducing the shelf life of products and the current system risks spreading plant disease. At the end of April, the Government introduced its new Border Target Operating Model, a post-Brexit system of biosecurity checks for goods entering the UK. It means products classed as high or medium risk have to be physically checked, including live animals and meat, as well as fruit and vegetables and some plant products. The Government built a checking facility at Sevington in Kent, and said they’d take a pragmatic approach to implementing the checks to avoid queues. Other companies have also built private inspection points, where they too use government inspectors. The British Association of Tomato Growers say they're seeing significant delays in seeds getting to farms and the logistics company, PML Seafrigo, told Farming Today they regularly see consignments of fruit which should be inspected waiting too long for government inspectors to arrive, only to been 'green lit' without a check.

Dairy farming is at a tipping point and many may leave; that's the warning from the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers. Its chair Robert Craig says farmers will need confidence to invest for the future, and at the moment many don't have it. 

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

09/12/2024 Port inspections risk spreading plant disease, dairy industry at 'tipping point'

Turkey farmers are at full stretch across the country, as they get their birds ready for sale. Two years ago it was a very different picture when avian flu hit the poultry industry. In November 2022, the British Poultry Council said the UK had lost 40% of its free-range turkey flock. We visit a producer in Norfolk who lost thousands of birds to the disease. This year, he's back on his own farm, rearing thousands of free-range birds once more.

A House of Lords Committee says agriculture must do more to reduce methane emissions. A report by the Lords' Environment and Climate Change Committee says almost half of the UK's methane emissions come from farming, mostly from livestock. It says farmers need support to use both traditional and high-tech solutions, to 'keep up the momentum' in achieving methane reductions. 

This week we're taking a look at the challenges dairy farming faces, from labour shortages to reducing emissions. An AHDB Levy Board survey in April this year showed a 5% fall in dairy farmers since 2023, but milk production is up as farms get bigger. We visit a third generation dairy farmer who milks hundreds of cows in an intensive dairy system.

Presenter - Anna Hill
Producer - Rebecca Rooney

10/12/24 Avian flu bounce back, methane emissions, intensive dairy

The Welsh government has delivered its budget. Wales received an extra £1 billion from Westminster in the autumn budget which means that all departments have seen seen an increase in the money available to them. There's a 6.6% increase in revenue and a 31% increase in capital funding for climate change and rural affairs. The Welsh government says it's prioritising support for agriculture by maintaining the budget for the main farm subsidy, the Basic Payment Scheme, at £238m next year, with an uplift too in the funding available for wider rural investment schemes.

DEFRA has announced a new Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier scheme is to open next year, with quarterly payments and a rolling application window. There are also new schemes for flood resilience, species abundance and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. However, some farmers are still angry about changes to inheritance tax announced in the budget and are staging a tractor rally in London. 

Donald Trump may not become President until next year but he's already indicated clearly his approach to trade: he's talked about increasing tariffs on imports into the US and protecting American farmers. At the same time, the UK government is drawing up closer ties with the European Union. With war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East, it's a challenging time for global trade. So how will the UK's food producers be affected, and how do we make ourselves competitive in such a disrupted global market?

All week we're taking a look at the dairy industry. Although milk production has been maintained across the UK, the number of individual dairy farms has fallen.

Presenter = Anna Hill
Producer = Rebecca Rooney

11/12/24 Welsh budget, new agri-environment schemes, farmers protest, international trade, dairy farmers.

The chancellor has 'refused to engage' over concerns about the proposed change to inheritance tax on farms - so says the president of the National Farmers Union who was appearing before MPs, just as hundreds of farmers drove their tractors into London to protest about the tax. 

Farmers gathered in central London and in towns and cities across the country in another protest about changes announced in the autumn budget. The House of Commons Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee opened an inquiry to discuss inheritance tax as part of a wider look at the future of farming. 

Our topic this week is dairy farming and today we're looking at a disease which can decimate a dairy herd, TB. In almost 150 years of farming at Strickley, near Kendal, in Cumbria, the Robinson family’s pedigree herd of organic dairy shorthorns has remained TB free. Until last October, that is, when a routine TB test returned the worst possible results. We hear how three generations of one farming family have dealt with their cattle’s TB diagnosis and its aftermath.

Presenter = Charlotte Smith
Producer = Rebecca Rooney

12/12/24 Farmer protests, Efra inquiry into the future of farming, TB and dairy farmers.

A traditional farmers' market in the run-up to Christmas where customers can learn tips on how to cook the food that is on offer from the stalls.

Using lasers and drones to help measure the impact of farming on the environment; and a prison teaching inmates the basics of agriculture to equip them for a career after custody.

Presented by Caz Graham

Produced by Alun Beach

13/12/2024: Farmers market; environmental impact of farming; prison farm

Farmer protests over the Government's proposed changes to inheritance tax have continued this week, with rallies around the country and around 600 tractors making their way into central London on Wednesday. They arrived just as MPs were discussing the issues at the House of Commons' Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee, which was looking at inheritance tax as part of a wider inquiry into the future of farming. 

Fruit and veg importers say a shortage of government inspectors at ports is reducing the shelf life of products and the current system risks spreading plant disease. 

Nearly 6% of dairy producers across the UK left the industry in the last year, according to Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board figures. In Wales the figure is even higher at 17%, according to NFU Cymru. The amount of milk produced has stayed about the same, but the number of individual dairy farms has fallen.

'Tis the season when Christmas turkey farmers are at full stretch across the country, as they get their birds ready for sale. Two years ago it was a very different picture: there were warnings that there could be a turkey shortage after millions of birds died or were destroyed because of avian flu. We visit a producer in Norfolk who lost thousands of birds to the disease. This year, he's back on his own farm, rearing thousands of free-range birds once more.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

14/12/24 Farming Today This Week: Farmer protests, tomato import checks, dairy farmers leaving, Christmas turkeys

Scientists at Cardiff and Aberystwyth Universities have won more than a million pounds worth of funding for a trial which they hope will create a real-time test for bovine TB. The project will use hand-held microwave technology to remove DNA from cattle and badger pooh samples, which will then be tested for bovine TB on the spot. If it works, it'll be a massive boost for farmers across the country, where the disease costs the government alone £150m a year.

All week we're looking at rural pubs, it's not been an easy few years for the sector. CAMRA, The Campaign for Real Ale, estimates that 2024 will have seen the closure of around 1,200 continuing a longstanding trend within the hospitality sector. We discuss the challenges facing them, and hear from a community in mid Wales which has clubbed together to buy the village pub and keep it alive.

Presenter = Charlotte Smith
Producer = Rebecca Rooney

16/12/24 TB testing device, rural pubs and community buy-outs.

As many as 7.5 million poinsettias are sold in the UK every year, and 4.5 million of them are grown here. But UK poinsettia growers say next year's crop could be under threat from what they call "disproportionate" plant hygiene rules, which mean crops are being destroyed unnecessarily. They want Government action.

We visit a pop-up-pub based on a hop farm, which sells beer made from the hops grown there.

And a new Government white paper proposes fundamental changes, with every region of England to get a mayor, and many rural areas which currently have a two tier system of County and District Councils, could see these merged to streamline services.

Presented by Anna Hill
Produced by Heather Simons

17/12/24 - Poinsettia troubles, hop farm pub, local government reform

The figures being used by the Treasury to estimate how many farmers will be impacted by changes to inheritance tax could be inaccurate, because of historical advice given by HMRC. That's according to the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers. The Government has introduced 20% inheritance tax on farm assets worth more than a million pounds. Farmers say the change will affect as many as three quarters of them, but the Treasury says data from previous claims for inheritance tax relief suggest just 500 estates a year across the UK will be impacted.

We visit a pub in Perthshire which has an intimate relationship with the fortunes of the river it sits alongside.

New Government legislation's being proposed to widen the public's access to National Parks in England, and to restore more protected landscapes. The Government says the changes will cut through bureaucracy to achieve more for people and nature.

And if you've bought your festive holly and it's got a lot of berries - you may be one of the lucky ones. We hear from one farmer who say berries are few and far between this year.

Presented by Anna Hill
Produced by Heather Simons

18/12/24 - Inheritance tax figures, anglers' pub, National Park changes and holly berries

Carrot and sprout discount wars are in full swing as the supermarkets vie to be the best value for Christmas. While growers acknowledge what's becoming an annual pricing competition can be helpful for hard-up shoppers, they're worried that this sends the wrong messages to consumers.

At this time of year knitters and crocheters are making gifts and natural wool from local sheep is in demand.

All this week we are looking at the challenges facing rural pubs and their importance to local communities. Two entrepreneurs from Oxfordshire think more pubs could grow at least some of their own produce.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

19/12/24 Christmas veg price wars, woolly crafts, pubs growing food

19/12/24 Christmas veg price wars, woolly crafts, pubs growing food

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