• Mixed farm switches to all-livestock • Change secures future for business • Other farms can do same process A beef and sheep farmer is switching from a mixed arable system to an all-livestock operation to improve farm resilience and performance. David Cross – who is an AHDB Beef... Read more
Turkey producer Paul Kelly is inviting people in the sector to join the Worshipful Company of Poulters – and support its charitable work. Daring back to 1368, the poulters livery company was founded to regulate London’s poultry, swans, pigeons, rabbits and small game. Today, it operates as a charitable... Read more
Good biosecurity is top of agenda A Staffordshire poultry producer has ramped up biosecurity in a bid to keep his business safe from bird flu. Mark Holt houses 40,000 turkeys in four state-of-the-art sheds at Toft Farm Growers, near Stafford. Formerly a dairy farming business, the Holt family diversified... Read more
UK pork production is expected to remain steady in 2025, suggests the latest forecast from the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board. Limited growth in breeding herd numbers and continued pressure on export markets will be offset by demand from a thriving foodservice sector and consumers looking for convenient, affordable... Read more
• Cost-benefit vaccine calculator • Helps to properly assess risks • Already being used in the field A new weapon is helping vets and farmers decide whether it is worthwhile vaccinating livestock against bluetongue. The Battle Bluetongue tool is a vaccination finance calculator to help beef and sheep producers... Read more
Beef farmers could finish their cattle quicker and more efficiently thanks to a new feedstuff. Available in blends or as a farm pack, ProFinisher boosts daily liveweight gain by up to 6% – so cattle are finished earlier on less feed. Cattle are said to achieve an overall 19kg... Read more
More growers are turning to Biox-M to clean up stores where spuds are sprouting, other potatoes have eyes blinking and some crops are just pleased to be indoors. Biox-M manages a range of situations well, setting up crops and stores for the remainder of the storage season. But ongoing... Read more
New defence against deadly pathogens
Livestock 13/02/2025
A ground-breaking acid technology could help poultry producers eliminate the threat of deadly pathogens. Trials undertaken by Aga2Tech, with support from Innovate UK, indicate an in-water peracetic acid treatment could prevent on-farm poultry infections – offering an effective alternative to antibiotics. Commercial trials involving 250,000 broilers were carried out... Read more
• Reduce impact of climate change • Major welfare benefits promised • Herd health set for improvements A new generation of livestock buildings and digital tools could reduce the impact of heat stress on housed dairy herds. Two companies – Galebreaker and Smartbell – have been awarded a second... Read more
Think beyond sustainable farming payments Livestock producers growing herbal leys simply for Sustainable Farming Incentive payments could be missing out on wider benefits. Not all SAM3 herbal ley mixtures are the same – and choosing the cheapest option for the SFI payment could be a false economy, suggests Agrii... Read more