Rural Support Christmas hamper

Charity Rural Support and local wind energy company Simple Power are launching their fifth annual Christmas Hamper Scheme aimed at helping farming and rural families in need this festive season.

Local food and drink producers are encouraged to lend a helping hand by donating suitable hamper items. With this support, the team hope to match last year’s total of 120 hampers.

“We would appeal to local food and drink businesses to help support us in this vital scheme by kindly donating to the appeal. You can make a huge difference to a rural family in need this Christmas,” said Rural Support chief executive Jude McCann.

To get involved in the Rural Support Christmas Hamper Scheme call 028 8676 0040 or email: Kerri@ruralsupport.org.uk.

Farm safety in Swatragh

The Northern Counties Co-operative Ltd will host a free farm safety evening at the Mart in Swatragh on Thursday 7 December at 7pm.

The workshop will be delivered by the Rural Development Council (RDC) as part of the Farm Family Key Skills Programme.

It will cover the four main dangers associated with working on a farm – slurry, animals, falls and equipment.

The organisers are keen that everyone involved in the family farm should attend, including women.

Registration in advance is essential. Contact Noreen on 079 278 52106 or 028 7940 1246.

Other dates and venues are also available across NI for farm safety training. Contact the RDC on 028 8676 6980 for more information.

NIIAS Winter Fair breakfast

The NI director of Dairy UK, Dr Mike Johnston, is the keynote speaker at a breakfast event organised by the NI Institute of Agricultural Science (NIIAS) on the morning of the RUAS Winter Fair.

Johnston will speak on the topic Post Brexit: whither or wither? He will consider key issues of uncertainty in the dairy supply chain and how they could be addressed by the sector.

The event will take place ahead of the RUAS Winter Fair on Thursday 14 December 2017 in Gowdy’s of Down Royal at 60 Gravelhill Road, Lisburn. A light breakfast will be served from 7.30am.

The cost of the event is £10 for NIIAS members, £15 for non-members and £7.50 for students.

Pre-booking is required by Monday 11 December 2017 by emailing NIIAS Secretary Robert McKnight at secretary@niias.co.uk or phoning/texting 077 5600 9770.

Next generation sheep farmers

Applications are open for young farmers to apply for the National Sheep Association’s (NSA) Next Generation Ambassador scheme.

It is open for up to 12 individuals aged between 20 and 34 years from across the UK, and involves practical and tutorial-based learning in five two- to three-day technical development sessions throughout the year.

Topics covered include sheep health, cost analysis, as well as farm walks on a range of different sheep farming systems.

Online applications close on Sunday 17 December 2017 and are available at www.nsanextgeneration.org.uk/applyonline.

Avian flu derogation to 16 weeks

A change has been made to marketing standards that will allow free-range egg producers to continue to mark their eggs as free-range for up to 16 weeks after the imposition of a housing order to prevent spread of disease.

The UK egg industry had argued that the derogation should be extended from 12 to 20 weeks, but the European Commission has now confirmed that its original proposal of 16 weeks still stands.

The change came into effect from 25 November 2017, and was in direct response to concerns from industry after producers were forced to house birds last winter due to the ongoing threat of avian flu.

With the previous derogation set at 12 weeks, earlier this year eggs had to be sold as “barn eggs” when the housing derogation ran out.

While avian flu remains a significant threat this winter, the risk of infection onto individual premises in the UK is still currently classed by Defra as low.