Poacher turned game keeper or fox in the pheasant pen? The jury is still out on the appointment of Sean Rickards as independent chairman of the First Milk (FM) council.

The council is a group of seven elected farmers who oversee my co-op's main board, which is made up two farmers and five men in suits.

Sean Rickards is strong-minded, outspoken and controversial. There is some concern amongst FM farmers, because in the past he has appeared to campaign for non-subsided large-scale farming.

What he can bring to the table is strength of character that will ensure that the board acts on the council’s wishes. He has to accept that FM's survival depends on its debt being borne by the producers who, in the main are small family farmers currently working for nothing.

He obviously impressed the selectors - now he has to impress the farmers.

The Livestock Event 2016

The Livestock Event at Birmingham NEC this year was poorly attended; but the sun was shining and second cuts were being done.

The standard of British Friesian cattle improves year on year and I caught the tail end of a lecture on the Forage Field stand promoting railway wheels on a frame on the back of tractors for compacting silage.

Chop length should be 2" for 30% DM and 4" for 20% DM. If bales are wrapped in the field and liable to bird damage, they should be tipped on end since the plastic is thicker there.

They also discussed whether round bales were better than square bales. Big round bales have overtaken square bales in quality if knives are used to chop. Contractors may be reluctant to use knives since it increases the diesel requirement, but it was suggested that the extra silage in each bale and the higher quality was worth up to £6 per bale.

Potential third cut

For the last month, on the paddocks it has been a constant battle to stop the grass bolting to head, requiring constant topping. Things have settled down again, and we seem to have a strong surge of grass, possibly allowing a third cut of silage in three weeks' time.

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