Today's News

30 October 2012

 "We are all beekeepers whether you actually have a hive or not. Plant the right flowers in your garden and the bees will come to you.”
Angela Woods, secretary of the LBKA, UK, The Independent (Oct 28)
Help us #SavetheBees by supporting the Soil Association’s Keep Britain Buzzing campaign and receive your campaign badge and pack of bee-friendly organic phacelia seeds.

How do-gooders threaten humble bee
The London Beekeepers Association (LBKA) is warning that there could be "too many bees" in the Greater London area for the environment to sustain. One beehive needs 120kg of nectar and 20kg to 30kg of pollen a year to sustain its bees; honey production will decrease if there are not enough pollinator-friendly plants to meet demand. Angela Woods, secretary of the LBKA, insisted that the organisation did not want to discourage people from keeping bees, but warned that new hives must be accompanied by extra planting of nectar-rich flowers.
The Independent (Oct 28)
Do your part to #SavetheBees by supporting the Soil Association’s Keep Britain Buzzing campaign and receive your campaign badge and pack of bee-friendly organic phacelia seeds.

Waitrose boss: Industry needs to make Red Tractor credible
The whole of the UK agriculture industry needs to work together to make its kite mark Red Tractor logo more credible to consumers, said Waitrose director of agriculture Heather Jenkins.
Farmers Weekly (30 Oct)

Resistant blackgrass on the rise
Rising herbicide resistance played a key role in last year’s unprecedented levels of blackgrass, according to the latest study of populations across the UK.
Farmers Weekly (29 Oct)

Workers who collected Freedom Food chickens 'were trafficked and beaten’
Gangmasters' licence is revoked and two people are arrested after claims of debt bondage, poor conditions and violence
The Guardian (29 Oct)
Gangmaster raided by Kent police – video
The Guardian (29 Oct)

Making Sense of Food Labels
From meat to dairy, produce to pasta, food labels tout all sorts of claims that probably shouldn’t be taken at face value. Here are some of the most common statements and how to know what you’re really getting in that package.
Time (Oct 30)
Rip Off Food – What’s in a label
BBC One, watch again (29 Oct)

Kendall accuses Krebs in badger cull data row
NFU president Peter Kendall has hit back at claims by eminent biologist Lord Krebs that the union presented ‘misleading, dishonest’ data to back its case for a badger cull.
Farmers Guardian (Oct 29)

Africa can feed itself
Shortages would end if African governments traded with each other rather than importing from outside, says World Bank.
The Guardian (29 Oct)

50% in 10 years: a new global collaboration to restore fisheries
The global 50in10 collaboration aims to restore half of wild fisheries to health over the next decade – but it will take political and organisational willpower
The Guardian (Oct 29)

Farming Today
Following the ban on live ash tree imports, Farming Today hears a warning that the global trade in plants means the UK is wide open to new diseases. The Government announces a review into the risks posed by Chinese lanterns, which farmers claim are eaten by cattle, sheep, and horses - often with fatal consequences. And reporter Heather Simons visits an organic farm in Shropshire, to see how one farmer is preparing his animals for the winter.
BBC, Radio 4, listen again (30 Oct)

And another thing…Top 10 reasons why it's still great to be a farmer
Bad news. There's a lot of it around at the moment. The weather, the postponed badger cull, high feed prices... So here are 10 reasons why it's still great to be a farmer…
Farmers Weekly (26 Oct)