Issue 75

farmingscotland.comIssue seventy-five • March 2011

75 MAG 16/3/11 8:57 am

FASTCLEAN SCOTLAND LTD

HOT-COLD-ELECTRIC-DIESEL PETROL- PTO DRIVENFROM 1500-3000PSI

SUPPLIERS OF DRAIN JETTINGEQUIPMENT LOW OR HIGH PRESSURE

TEL: 01698-263963 ORMOBILE 07710 329609

MANUFACTURERS OF PRESSURE WASHERS

www.farmingscotland.com

Specialists ForOver 40 Years

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CONTENTS

Eilidh MacPherson

3

farmingscotland

EDITOR: Eilidh MacPherson Marbrack Farm, Carsphairn,Castle Douglas, DG7 3TE

Tel: 016444 60644Mobile: [email protected]

PUBLISHER - Eilidh MacPherson

ADVERTISING –South West & NationalEilidh MacPherson – 016444 60644North West & ArgyllFiona McArthur – 01583 421397Ayrshire & CentralAlison Martin – 01292 443097North EastAmanda Carter – 01330 833838

Cover - Scott Country Potatoes - SAOSText and photography by Eilidh MacPhersonunless otherwise stated

Cover- SAOS

Page 5 - Winners’ own

Page 4- Dr John Vipond

Page 7 - John Watson Seeds

Page 9 - Kingan

Page 10 - Alison Martin

Page 15 - Sandy Milne

Best, Watson Seeds and Kingan Feedsby Bill Soutar.

The Golden Shears took place atthe beginning of the month. GavinMutch was the only Scot to make thegrade in the NZ Top 30 this time.

Lambing time is about upon us. Wehave around 160 due to lamb from thisweekend, with the bulk starting inApril, so it will be multi-taksing for thenext issue.

Off to the Ministerial Launch ofNew Alliance of Scotland’s RuralColleges and SAC in Edinburgh followed by meeting a prospectivemember of the advertising sales teamover afternoon tea at the BalmoralHotel. Better dash and hunt out somealternatives to wear other than theBekina Wellies, waterproofs and Hoggsof Fife tops that seem to have beenpermanent fixtures for the past while!

Firstly I must apologise for a complete blank in my editoriallast month I’d written through

the night, finishing at 6.50am. Thescanner arrived at 7am so no time forany blethers!

Many thanks to all of you who tookthe time to fill out our survey. Thewinners are highlighted on page 5.

This issue we have interviewed fivepotato farmers from across the countryin a new tattie quarterly. Alison Martinconducted the telephone interviewsand pieced the article together. It isquite amazing how different the conditions are in each area.

Dairy Monitor farmer Sandy Milneof Calcary Farm, Brechin, Angus haswritten his first blog this issue, whileHugh Strilngleman reports on MilkPrice Wars.

Other features include lambing byDr John Vipond, Grassland by Andrew

farmingscotlandIssue seventy-five • March 2011


14 World Marketswith NZ correspondent

Hugh Stringleman

46

SheepLambingShearing

9 NutritionBOCM

1013

ArablePotatoes

7 ArableGrassland

15 DairyCalf Rearing

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Farmers may be wondering howthe early snowfalls will affecttheir lambing. Early scanning

results showed lots of lambs and a fastlambing can be expected, so have 1pen ready for every 8 ewes. Latertupped ewe lambs and gimmers havefewer lambs this year but ewes are ingood condition generally with plentyof lambs. However a lot of extra feedwas given to ewes during the snowand with little control over intake forage reserves were plundered.Running out just before lambing is notan option so getting rid of passengersnot in lamb at scanning is a priority.Take the good price on offer and donot give barren gimmers a secondchance.

If you have not scanned, barrenewes can often be picked up in therace four weeks pre lambing whenvaccinating by their shape. Barrennesscan be confirmed by palpating theirstomachs. Barren sheep can also bespotted sparring at the trough anddancing about.

Make best use of what forage isleft by planned feeding. This meansgetting your hands on the backs of theewes and splitting them up accordingto condition score. Try to achieveewes lambing in condition score 2.5i.e. fit. A ewe should start at tuppingat score 3.5 that's pretty fat. Ideallylose no weight in the first month as

this is best for developing embryos.Over the second and third month losing half a score, which is about fourkilos in weight will, for a fat eweencourage her to make a bigger placenta, but for a thin ewe the opposite applies. Severe underfeedingcan affect the foetal ovaries and thiswill reduce lambing percentage atevery lambing for the rest of the adultlife of the foetus. This often happenswith sheep on hill farms and is a safeguard as having twins could provefatal.

In the last two months of pregnancy for lowland ewes takeanother half condition score off. Thiswill save feed – losing 80g/day releases 2 MJ from fat – equivalent todouble the weight lost if fed as compound feed. Losing 5kg saves 10kg of cake worth £2.30. As the eweloses fat she releases fat soluble vitamins A,D and E. If by late pregnancy ewes are already thin makesure supplements are fully mineralisedas their reserves have been used up.Thin ewes in late pregnancy put lessbrown fat reserves down for theirlambs than fit ewes so lamb them onthe most sheltered fields or inside.

Tupping ewe lambs Ewe lambs need feeding differently.

They need to be in finished weightand condition at mating. A Mule ewelamb at mating should be 45 Kg, but

if lighter do not feed heavily to growthem out. These adolescents, ifoverfed after tupping are short ofprogesterone causing no end of problems for the foetus affecting itsviability and lifetime performance.Feeding heavily in mid pregnancy isalso a problem as the ewe lamb willprioritise her own body growth overthe lambs and have undersize placental attachments. Maximumweight gain should be about 50-100g/day.

So if you have had to house ewehoggs because of the snow check theyare not getting overfed. Aim just tokeep them in condition score 2.5-3.0on moderate silage or hay, with up to0.5Kg of concentrate /day by lambing.If overfat they can lose half a condition score in the last two monthsbut keep feed quality high by ensuringa high digestible undegraded protein(DUP) content of the diet using up to100g soya/day for the last 3 weeks.

Supplementing ewes Much new information on how

feeds work has been discovered so itis worthwhile keeping an eye out forchanging trends. We now know theewe redistributes protein in her bodyduring pregnancy, putting as much aspossible into the liver, lungs etc. asthese are under huge stress in latepregnancy. As the lambs grow andtake up space the rumen is

SHEEPfarmingscotland.comIssue seventy-five • March 2011

by Dr John Vipond

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compressed so daily throughput isincreased and as a result feed isdigested for a shorter time in therumen. This effectively reduces thedegradability of feed proteins. This isgood if you have high DUP in the diete.g. soya, or cottonseed meal as thisthen supplies extra, but not so beneficial if the diet has only lowDUP ingredients like beans. This isno time for low quality feeds or beingdependant on urea.

Exposure to cold weather and winter shearing has the same effect onrumen throughput. DUP has severaleffects; it increases colostrum production and its quality and absorption by the lamb and helps theewe maintain her immunity. Feedingan extra 200g/day of soya in the lastthree weeks of pregnancy will reducethe ewe faecal egg count to a very lowlevel. Trials also show feeding 300 gper day for 3 weeks during lactationat a cost of around £2.25 couldincrease lamb liveweight at weaningby as much as 4 kg. due to more milkand less worm challenge. This avoidshaving to drench ewes, reducinganthelmintic resistance building upbut will only be effective where ewesand lambs are run on clean grass.

Due to the weather sheep havehad better feed and mineral supply sofar and all is to play for, do not cutback now on quality feed ingredients.

Feeding The Ewe

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Many thanks to all the readerswho took the time to fill outthe farmingscotland.com

2011 survey. Congratulations to both our

winners, who happen to share thesame surname – Watson.

Kenneth Watson, his wife Yvonneand two sons will be jetting off toSpain for a week in the Octoberbreak. They farm 750 Mule ewes, 20Luings and 20 pedigree Texels andcrop a small acreage of crops atNether Kidston Farm, Peebles.

“We are absolutely delighted towin – we never win anything!” said anelated Kenneth, who has read themagazine since its inception sevenyears ago, when he was informed.

Both Kenneth and Yvonne read themagazine and enjoy the Beef, Sheep,World Markets, Sheep Shearing, ATVand Machinery sections in particular.Kenneth feels that the publication isinspirational.

Of the other titles he reads,Kenneth feels that the FarmersWeekly is value for money, but says

that a major defect is that ‘ it is notlocal.’

Cumbrian farmer, Ian Watson,Newlands Farm, Carleton, Carlislewas the lucky winner of the IslandRetreat.. Three people read the magazine on this farm, which rears250 beef cattle and grows 110 acresof cereals.

Last year Ian and his wife lunchedon the Isle of Skye as part of a bustour. They felt they would have likedto spend more time on the island, sowere totally rapt to win a week at theShepherd’s Cottage on Skye.

Ian informed me that he had onceinterviewed me on a NuffieldScholarship Panel and had followedmy progress ever since! I had optedto study wool and how it could bemarketed across the world. It wasprobably a bit ahead of vogue asPrince Charles is now on a global woolcrusade!

Both winners have enquired aboutproducts and/ or bought them, havingfirst read about them or seen themadvertised in farmingscotland.com.

Watsons are Winners

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Respect for the victims of theChristchurch earthquake mayhave been the crucial ingredient

as Napier shearer John Kirkpatrickannihilated a field of the World’s bestto win his third Golden Shears Openchampionship in Masterton onSaturday night.

Wife Raylene commented shortlybefore the six-man final, which tookplace in stifling–on-stage heat but stillproducing the fourth-fastest time inthe event’s 51 years, that it was thecalmest she had ever seen her husband before any of his 14 GoldenShears finals in the last 15 years.

Often giving the impression of aman carrying a lot of pressure to perform, but still excelling through amyriad of winning efforts, he hadcommented after the February 22earthquake that the pressure wasnothing compared with what the people of Canterbury were enduring.

Already the warm favourite torepeat his 2002 and 2008 GoldenShears triumphs, the 40-year-old settled and got on with the job, winning two of three finals he competed in the weekend beforereturning to Masterton’s WarMemorial Stadium where the Shearshave been held each year since itsinception in 1961..

Te Kuiti veteran Dean Ball, whoultimately had to settle for the minormoney in shearing in the final for a13th time still without winning, wasone who recognised the controlledfocus, and knew Kirkpatrick was theman to beat.

Kirkpatrick did all that was neededas 98 shearers ventured through theheats on Friday and qualified seventhfor the Top 30 quarterfinal Shootoutthat night.

He was then top-qualifier for thesemi-final and then into the final,which cemented the swinging ofshearing bragging-right from KingCountry to Hawke’s Bay.

The top four qualifiers, includingtwo newcomers, eventual runner-upRowland Smith, from Ruawai in theFar North, and Adam Brausch, of

Dannevirke, all do most of theirshearing in the Bay. The other was2006 winner Dion King, of Hastings.

King Country’s hopes, a shadow ofsome races in the 1980s when up tofive from their territory occupiedshearing’s most famed stage, were ledby Ball and icon David Fagan, marking30 years since his first Golden Shears(third in the 1981 Senior final), and amilestone of 25 Open finals whichbrought 16 wins from 1986-2009.

With a packed stadium roaringfrom the start of the showdown justafter 9pm, the blow-for-blow combatof the first few moments soonbecame the jockey-sized Kirkpatrick’squarter-hour as the attention focusedon the dimmer light of Stand 6 at theright-hand end of the board, where heblasted through his 20 sheep in 15min50.823sec. More than half-a-minutequicker than the 25-year-old, two-metres-tall Smith, who was nextto finish, it was a time bettered inGolden Shears history only by Fagan’srecord 15min 27.4sec in 2003 andKirkpatrick’s own 15min 43.8sec infinishing runner-up that year and15min 35.43sec in winning in 2008.

Kirkpatrick was never going tohave to worry that he might add to arecord of seven second-placings, andhis ultimate 1.987pts vistory overSmith was the biggest winning marginsince he was beaten by King five yearsago.

Fagan, to whom Kirkpatrick hadbeen runner-up four times, was morethan a sheep behind at the end butproduced the final’s best qualitypoints to edge into third place overall,while King was fourth, as less thanseven-tenths of a point covered thefirst-group of also-rans.

Ball claimed fifth, for the fifthtime, 0.161pts clear of Brausch, acontemporary and workmate inCentral Hawke’s Bay of 2010 winnerand World champion Cam Ferguson,who was eliminated in Friday night’squarterfinals with an early cut, whichincurred a maximum penalty of fivepoints which put him out of contention.

Kirkpatrick has now won 14 of 20competitions he's contested this season, consistency which made himan eventual $1.90 favourite with theTAB, which reported punting was 50per cent up on last year's record figures, which shearing bookmakerKieran McAnulty said highlighted therocketing popularity of shearingsports.

Canterbury shearer Tony Costerguaranteed that despite the giantstrides made by new faces at the toptable in the shearing season therewere still no new winners of themajor titles, when his superior qualityhelped him claim the PGG WrightsonNational Series final for a third year ina row.

Former Golden Shears seniorchampion Angus Moore, of Ward,made it a South Island quinella in theevent shorn over 15 sheep of five different wool types, and 2006 winnerDion King was third, having won therace in 16min 49.65sec.

Fagan, winner of that title ninetimes, was eliminated along withFerguson in the semi-finals onSaturday morning.

The jubilation Coster, Fergusonand Grant Smith, also of Rakaia, hadshared when shearing New Zealand toa first Transtasman win in Australiafor eight years last October wasdimmed in a stunning payback byAustralians Shannon Warnest, ofWillalooka, SA, Jim Dolphin, ofNaracoorte, SA, and Bill Hutchison,of Gilgandra, WA, in the latest test.

Romping home by more than 11ptson almost no preparation after arrivingin New Zealand, they scoredAustralia’s first win in New Zealandin six years, thanks mainly to 2005win survivor and two-times Worldchampion Warnest’s fastest time of16min 22.047sec for the 12 sheepcomprising 6 merinos, 3 longwoolsand 3 second-shears.

Last off the board, two-and-a-halfminutes later, Dolphin produced thebest quality points, but there was stillsix points between Warnest andDolphin finishing first and second on

total points, with Smith next the bestof the Kiwis.

On top of Kirkpatrick’s win JoanneKumeroa, of Whanganui, made it adouble for those entering the naughty40s in the major Golden Shears titles,when she won the Open woolhandlingfinal, increasing her record number oftriumphs in the event to five, datingback to 1995.

Working in Australia for much ofthe season, she only entered thisyear’s reckoning when winning thePre-Shears Championship atRiverside, near Masterton, lastWednesday.

Reigning New Zealand Openchampion Joel Henare, of Gisborne,had to settle for second for a thirdyear in a row, having reached the finalin all his five seasons in the Openclass.Second-time-finalist and home-townhope Waimiere Peneha was third, andfirst-time Golden Shears Open finalistand sole remaining South Islandprospect Robyne Murray, ofAlexandra, was fourth.

Hat-trickfor Johnny

SHEEPfarmingscotland.comIssue seventy-five • March 2011

Unlucky for some, Gavin Mutchqualified in 13th place in the

Open Heats at the 2011Golden Shears competition. He wasthe only British shearer to make theTop 30. Jordan Smeaton came in atnumber 49 and and Grant Lundie 53,Alan Grant 58 and Una Cameron 74,with Tom Wilson just behind on 76.

In the Top 30, Mutch moved upthe 8th position, making the cut forthe 12-man semi finals. He held hisplace in the semis, so missed out onthe final.

The Tui Open Invitation Final, forthe six who missed out on the final,saw Mutch become master, with a1.174 point lead over James Fagan.Matt Smith, Jason Win, JeromeMcRae and Paul Avery were third,fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.

Too Mutch

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The recent collapse of the banking industry came as quitea shock to us all and we are

now beginning to see the ramificationsof the crisis as public budgets aresqueezed.

In Scotland, agriculture benefitsfrom an independent grass and clovertrialling system run by the SAC, inpart financed by the ScottishGovernment, where the grass andclover varieties included in their annual publication are classifiedaccording to their potential usefulnessfor agricultural purposes, underScottish conditions.

In addition, the classification isbased on accumulated data from thevariety evaluation programmes ofSAC and is reviewed annually. Wheninformation becomes available orolder varieties become outclassed,merit ratings are adjusted accordingly.

A key element in the system is theretesting of varieties that have beenaround for a considerable time and asa result, varieties are downgraded astheir performance declines from theoriginal rating. New trial data fromrecent trials of the important latetetraploid ryegrass group has beenvery significant. Of the fifteen listed,six are now being downgraded, whichis a significant number.

We, at Watson Seeds, have decidednot to use any of these varieties in our2011 Castle mixtures and haveworked hard at securing stocks of thebest varieties in the group, in particular, Dunloy, Twymax andNavan. This is to ensure that we continue to deliver mixtures that willmaximise animal performance.

If evidence were needed of theperformance of the Watson Seeds

grass mixtures, during the lastAgriscot Silage competition in 2010,seven of the top twelve finalists werelong term users of Watson Seeds grassseed mixtures. The importance ofsilage quality is emphasised by the following example:-

Top big bale silages averaged12.1MJ/kg/DM

Per tonne of silage DM this will produce 356kg of beef

For Scotland, average big bale silage is 9.7 MJ/kg/DM

Per tonne of silage DM this will produce 285kg of beef This is a difference of

71 kg of LWG per tonne

Which represents £92 extra income* per tonne of silage

*£1.30kg LWG

We contribute to the cost of thesevital trials, as do all the more enlightened seed merchants inScotland, but Scottish Governmentsupport is vital. The funding is under

review and we need to continue to argue that theinvestment in independentgrass and clover trials is vital ifwe wish to continue to be atthe forefront of animal production.


GRASS

Without that data, we would, overtime, be unsure that we were actingin our clients' best interests and haveto rely solely on data from the breeders of the material, rather thanthe existing independent system thathas worked so well for decades.

A thriving agricultural industry isvital for the future prosperity ofScotland and if ever there was a timefor the Scottish Government to getbehind the industry, it is now.

The Watson Seeds Catalogue for2011 is now available, highlighting allthat is best in grass seed mixtures,utilising first choice grass varietiesfrom the SAC grass list

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NUTRITION

Increased demand for blends following the introduction ofBOCM PAULS' Agribusiness Desk

at Motherwell, two new AccountManagers, and the efforts of our merchant partners, put both staff andequipment under pressure at KingansFarm Feeds near Annan. “This is thekind of problem every businesswants,” explains General ManagerAndrew Bowles, “but a solution hadto be found to reduce the workloadfor staff and ensure that we are ableto give our customers the service theydeserve.”

As an interim measure, an eveningshift was introduced, giving time toplan the best way forward. As we goto press the new equipment, a largemixer under hopper and a state of theart computer control system, has beeninstalled and is being commissioned.

The DSL system chosen, alreadycontrols nine BOCM PAULS' compound feed mills including Penrith,Preston and Newcastle Under Lyme.

In addition to controlling mixing,co-ordinating conveyor and elevatormovements for bulk outloading andadding molasses, the computer systemwill forecast raw material requirementsfrom orders placed, and track incomingraw materials and product deliveries.

The operator can work comfortablyfrom the cab of his loading shovel.Ingredients required for each formulation are displayed on a giantflat screen monitor. Weights from themixer load cells are recorded on thesystem for auditing, traceability, andraw material stock control.

Foreman Kenny McWilliamexplains “We can now load a vehiclein half the time it took using our oldmanual system. We will be able toturn BOCM PAULS' and contractors'vehicle round so much quicker, and

more importantly reduce the waitingtime for our self collect customers.”

The Kingan blend business waspurchased by BOCM PAULS Ltd in2004 as part of their drive to offercustomers a total feed service. Therecent addition of their FeedsMarketing Division, supplyingstraights, co-products and mineralscompletes the circle. The UK is currently supplied by seven BOCMPAULS blending plants, from TurriffFarm Feeds in the north to Exeter inthe south.

Dairy, beef and sheep farmers areunder immense pressure from the rising tides of feed costs and legislation. High performance animalshave exacting dietary requirements.“Not only do we need to optimise animal performance, but we also needto ration for, and monitor feed conversion efficiency,” says AccountManager Greg Leishman. “Dietplan'sFeed to Milk / Meat lets us demonstrate this to our customers,and enables us to ration for fertilityand health.”

“The demand for bespoke blends ison the increase” explains AndrewBowles. “We take account of thefeeds available on farm and designeach blend to balance nutritionalrequirements, including minerals.”BOCM PAULS' unique ingredientssuch as Lintec, Levucell, RapePlus,WheatPlus and Soyaplus are all available for inclusion in blends.

These are difficult times for livestock farmers, but there is nodoubt, that with a rapidly increasingworld population and rising standardsof living, food production has a greatfuture. Kingan Farm Feeds looks forward to playing their role in thatfuture, in partnership with their customers.

Technical Solution Increases Production at Kingan Farm Feeds

by Bill Soutar 90%of farmingscotland.com readers find the magazine an

inspirational read farmingscotland.com survey 2011

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South West of Scotland is theideal area for growing early potatoes because of the

influence of the Gulf Stream andlight to medium loam soils. However,this Westerly location also meansdealing with an annual rainfall ofbetween 38 and 42 inches and thecost of haulage to the pack house, inCentral Scotland (approx 130 miles).

Alec Kyle of Robstone Farm whohas been growing potatoes for 55years is now retired from farming andas Chairman of Girvan Early Growers(GEG). His son, Andrew, has takenover the running of the farm. Alecwas succeeded by Drew Young as chairman of GEG which was formedin 1990.

GEG is a cooperative of six farms,spanning 70 miles of the Ayrshirecoast from Drummore just south ofStranraer, to Monktonhill Farm,

Troon. Altogether they work 550acres of potatoes, 75 acres of carrots,and 10 acres of Swedes. They supplyapproximately 50% of the market forearly potatoes from Ayrshire. Theirfacility at Girvan incorporates 800tonnes of cold store and 22,200square foot of shed where they clean,grade and size. GEG works closelywith Cygnet PB, who supplies theirseed and markets the crop.

For over 100 years, Ayrshire potatoes were grown within sight ofthe sea, often in the same fields yearafter year. Most of the land used nowis a mile or two from the sea, on landwith a less intensive potato history.The 50-70 acres of potatoes, whichare grown close to the water, are protected from salt burn by polythene, which also keeps the heatin and helps to promote early growth.

Using polythene adds 10% to

growing costs. In addition to the costof material, polythene has to be laidand removed, and can only be usedonce before disposal. Instead of paying the local landfill £50-£60 pertonne simply to dump it, GEG sendsits used polythene to Cardiff to berecycled at no cost.

GEG grows only to order. Itselects land carefully to suit the needsof the varieties chosen by customersto ensure optimal quality, rotatingrented land to accommodate at leastfive years between potato crops.

Epicure, the traditional AyrshirePotato, is now grown only in smallquantities. Current varieties areRocket, Maris Peer, Carlingford,Saxon and Osprey, and this yearCassablanca will be grown as a higherproportion of the crop for the firsttime. A very small amount ofCabaret is grown as a chipping potato.

This winter the coast saw very little snow cover, but a good five orsix weeks of hard frost with temperatures down as far as -10 and -12 ˚C broke the soil down well andwill have killed off pests. In manyprevious years there's been no frost atall, leaving the soil 'like pudding.'

A dry window before rain startedat the end of January allowing carrotsto be drilled. At the time of writing(22nd February), seed potatoes arechitting or sprouting in the store topromote early growth and it looks likeconditions will be dry enough at thebeginning of March to start ploughing,which will immediately be followedby deep ridging, de-stoning anddrilling potatoes. Crop % 80% Ware –20% earlies, 50%small salad, 10% bakers20% Seed – 50% used by cooperative, balance to open market

ARABLEfarmingscotland.comIssue seventy-five • March 2011

Ayrshire – Girvan Early Potatoes

Tattie Talk

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Alan Gordon in partnership withhis father James and uncleDouglas trade as W .O. Gordon

Bindal & Co, Bindal Farm,Portmahomack, Tain. Just over 140miles North West of Arbroath, landup here is 'as coastal as it gets.' They'are on a peninsula, so they farm fromcoast to coast.

“Annual rainfall is 25 inches, with atemperature range of -7 to 23˚C.Soils vary from blow away sand, tolight and medium loam – there is noheavy clay at Bindal,” said Alan.

With a total of 1059 acres, theGordons own just over 919.03 andrent the balance. Almost every fieldhas a hill of some description, whichis normal for the area, although onepotato field this year will be very flat.

This year, potatoes will take upbetween 172 and 180 acres, depending on headlands etc., and therest is split as follows: grazing for 300breeding ewes – 212.90 acres, SpringBarley (Malting) – 331.16 acres,Winter Oil Seed Rape – 142.32 acres,Winter Wheat – 180.45 acres and19.89 acres set aside/fallow.

The potato crop is split approximately 75% seed to 25% ware,with varieties Maris Piper, King

Edward, Vivaldi, Markies, Sassy,Kerr's Pinks, Cabaret, British Queen,Golden Wonder, Ambo. New this season are Casablanca, Saggitia andFontane, while Ambo is beingdropped.

The Gordons sell seed direct tofarmers, or through merchants, withmodern varieties as usual sold backthrough the companies that hold theRoyalties. W .O. Gordon Bindal(Potatoes) is a separate company,which buys and sells Potatoes fromother growers.

Besides the three Gordons, one fulltime tractorman, and four casual staffare employed from mid-September tomid-April for grading potatoes.

Ploughing is usually done as earlyas possible, in mid-November. Thiscorner of Scotland didn't get as muchsnow as other parts of the country.December saw plenty of low temperatures, with quite a lot ofnights at -6 and -7 ˚C. Some days inDecember, temperatures didn't getabove freezing, so there was very limited movement of potatoes at thattime. January was reasonable andFebruary was wet.

The frosty weather will have definitely broken down the soil, but

Alan won't know for sure how muchuntil he starts preparing the ground.Very little ploughing was done inFebruary due to wet weather, andMarch has definitely come in like alamb, so he's hoping it's not too muchof a lion at the end of the month.

Alan reckons they're probably ontime for planting potatoes at the endof March, early April even though hedidn't manage to plough much inNovember or the start of Decemberand they're well through dressing lastyear's potato crop. A fortnight of dryweather means they're are up to datewith top dressing for winter wheatand oil seed rape, while some of hisneighbours have started sowing theirspring barley.

“One overall concern, that mostwill share, is that costs are going to beup significantly this year. Fertiliser isup, chemicals are up for this season,fuel has gone through the roof,machinery and repair costs are up andtimber for potato boxes is up.Interest rates could possibly increasethis year, and haulage rates are up dueto fuel costs.”

Alan says he has another slight concern, “We have taken on threenew varieties this year. Part of me is

quite excited, but part of me thinks,what if they don't perform? Will theystay healthy? Will they store ok?Sometimes you think better the devilyou know, but we have to be open tonew ideas.”

As seed producers, Alan says it'soften challenging to work out whattheir customers are going to want intwo or three years' time and this yearhas been no exception. “There hasbeen a lot of planning and thought toensure we have the right product forour customers in two and sometimesthree years' time, hence three newvarieties.”

Highland – Alan Gordon, Bindal, Tain

Fife – Jim Orr, Milton of Blebo, Pitscottie

Jim Orr farms 700 acres at Miltonof Blebo in Pitscottie, Fife, 180acres of which are ware potatoes.

Five miles from the coast, near Cupar,Jim's land is mixed in terms of gentleto steep slopes with sandy through toheavy loam soil. Annual rainfall is 26-28 inches and the average summer temperature is 19˚C.Somewhat surprisingly, this slightlywarmer temperature is a function ofproximity to the North Sea.

Besides potatoes, Jim grows 160 -170 acres of broccoli, 40 acres ofcarrots (and sometimes parsnips), 25acres of Swedes, 350 acres of wheat.He also has 35 beef cattle.

Jim's varieties this year areHarmony, Coultra, Estima and Sante(organic) for the prepack market,which mostly go on to supermarketsalthough Coultra and Sante go elsewhere. He also buys some newseed crop and grows it as seed forhimself.

During the last two years, in a bidto avoid being tied to one packer, Jimhas become one of three partners inBennett Potatoes of NorthLincolnshire – a facility which grades,washes, sizes and packs potatoes.There's a possibility that in the future,he may source ware locally for the

pack house, although that's not on thecards just yet.

There is usually less Winters than aweek of snow at Milton of Blebo,however the last two winters havebeen unusual, with snow lasting fourto five weeks, and this year there wasvery little frost. The rain, which followed, only let up during a window

in late January and continued throughFebruary. Despite this, Jim can seefew signs of benefit or harm in termsof soil breakdown following thisweather.

He usually starts soil preparation inFebruary/March, aiming to drill in lateMarch, early April. At the momentthings are obviously behind schedule

due to the wet, but a change inweather could easily put things backon track. As Jim says, “Growingpotatoes is a bit like running in theGrand National. You set off on thisgallop or season, with your land andyour chosen varieties and as far as I'mconcerned just getting to the endcounts as winning.”

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The rolling hills of the TweedValley, 25 miles inland fromBerwick, is home to Scott

Country Growers. Gareth Baird ofManor Hill Farm, and partners JohnJeffrey of Kersknowe, and GraemeAitchison of Lochton Farm produce250 acres of seed potatoes.

Besides potatoes, the group members have a diverse range ofinterests. Gareth is Chairman of thecooperative and also Vice-Chairmanof GrainCo. He focuses on arable butalso raises suckler cows, while Johnhas pedigree Charolais andSimmentals and finishes lambs on ahill farm at Dunbar. Graeme growsoats, barley (feed and malting),wheat, oil seed rape and vining peas.

The group employs three permanent and up to 10 seasonalstaff. They share their machinery andtheir harvesting squad, allowing allthree members to attend to theirother business.

All potatoes are stored centrally inthe 8,500 tonne capacity fully refrigerated and positively ventilatedstore. They have full sizing, grading,bagging and despatching equipment.Safe Haven accredited, the group produces the following varieties:Cabaret, Marfona, Markies, LadyRosetta, Lady Balfour, Amora andSaxon for seed potato merchants,variety control and private clients.Some Saxon and Estima are kept for

themselves.Despite little change in latitude,

from Girvan, annual rainfall drops awhopping 15 inches to 25 inches.Average summer temperatures aremuch the same as Girvan at 18˚C andthe soil is sandy to medium loams.

Last winter was very early, withsnow on the ground from the thirdweek in November for six weeks, andthere is speculation that cumulativefalls of snow reached 47 inches.

So, while some ploughing traditionally starts in November andDecember, with more in the earlyspring, ploughing started in lateFebruary this year. The group havehowever, also found benefit in SAC'ssuggestion to wait to start ploughingmid March. This way the roots onthe stubble of the preceding crop create natural drainage, the now drysurface soil is ploughed down.

Despite the winter, everything isstill on schedule. In seed growing,warm soil is critical to encouragedaughter tubers. Dressed accordingto customer specification, and in storeat 2˚C, the seed is ready to plant during the third week in April. Asusual weather is a concern, and withthe ware market being more buoyant,this year there will be a sensitive balance between production and price.

Virus control is another concern,although Gareth believes that highgrade seed is free of virus so far.

ARABLEfarmingscotland.comIssue seventy-five • March 2011

Borders – Scott Country Potatoes

Angus – Guy Stirling, Gilchorn Farm, Arbroath

Angus based, Guy Stirling farmsGilchorn Farm, Arbroath.Three miles from the North

Sea, Guy's land avoids the effects ofsalt, and is just out of range of the seahaar. With an annual rainfall of 25inches, summer temperatures reach a maximum of 24˚C. His land isundulating, with sandy to clay loam soils.

Guy is farming 1000 acres, 20% ofwhich is rented. Besides potatoes hegrows Spring Barley (malting), Wheat(feed) and Oil Seed Rape. Some ofhis land is rented out for growingSprouts which go to M&S.

Growing seed and ware forBartletts, Guy is particularlyimpressed with Vivaldi, which goesexclusively to Sainsbury’s, “It's a greatall rounder, with a very creamy texture, and good for salad or as a

baker.” He grows seed and wareVivaldi, Maris Piper and Maris Peerwith Charlotte as ware.

Alerted to an appropriate SRDPgrant by his bank manager, Guy puttogether an application to expand hisoperation in super quick time, withthe help of Colin Dargie at the SACoffice in Forfar. The application tooktwo months to compile and was in forthe August 2009 deadline. Buildingstarted in February 2010, and it wasin use by September 2010.

As a result he's been able to doublehis storage, giving him a total of fourcold stores with an overall capacity of5,200 tonnes. He also installed twonew grading sheds with graders, locker rooms for seasonal labour, aweigh-bridge and a farm office.Potatoes are warmed up before

grading in a thermostatically controlled heating area while theambient despatch area has a capacityof 600 tonnes.

For Guy, soil preparation usuallystarts with ploughing down potash inautumn, and continues with deepridging in mid April, giving plenty oftime for frost mould to break the soildown. With more snow than ever inDecember, followed by a hard frost inJanuary and four inches of rain inFebruary, soil was saturated, puttingthe schedule a little behind: ploughinghas just started in windows on heavythen lighter ground.

Concerns for the year ahead? Likemany others Guy anticipates thatoverproduction would lead to disastrous low prices, so he's hoping tosee export markets open up this year.

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WORLD MARKETS

Near-record world prices fordairy commodities, and theprospect of still higher prices

to come, has prompted NewZealand's co-operative Fonterra tofreeze the wholesale prices of liquidmilk in its home market.

In Australia and the UnitedKingdom supermarkets haveembarked on milk wars. Coles choseAustralia Day to launch $1/litre milkprice specials, to which Woolworthshad to respond.

Australian dairy farmers fear theywill be the losers in reduced supplyprices, although both supermarketchains are trying to assure farmers thehuge discounts won't be taken out oftheir hides.

Coles in Australia is run by threeBritish executives recruited by ownerWesfarmers, who cut their teeth inUK supermarket contests, the likes ofAsda's milk price play last October.

Australian farmers have watchedfearfully the subservience of UK dairyfarmers to the giant UK retailers,which means milk returns below thecost of production even when worldprices have never been better.

The Queensland Dairy FarmersOrganisation, whose members are trying to recover from devastatingfloods, has tried to refute Colesclaims and promises.

Milk prices to farmers havedropped by more than 10% in NSWand Victoria and 15% in Queenslandin the last 12 months, which includesfarmers who supply milk into the

Coles supermarket branded milk bottles.

“Many Queensland dairy farmers[have] costs of production higher thanthe farm gate price. This situation isnot sustainable, as Woolworths haspointed out.

“Our fear is that the British executive team of Coles is set to treatAustralian dairy farmers as farmers inthe UK have been treated, wherefarmers have been squeezed to a pointwhere farmers are now unprofitable.”The Australian supermarket industryis a dominant duopoly, although Aldihas in recent times entered the contest.

So too, in New Zealand, where theAustralian-owned ProgressiveEnterprises group (Countdown,Foodtown and Woolworths) goes headto head with the NZ co-operativestore chain Foodstuffs (New World,Pak n Save and Four Square). Steadyprice rises in dairy products duringthe past year has whipped up consumer anger, creating claims thatKiwis can no longer eat the dairyproducts, which are their birthright.The supermarkets came under fire forwhat was claimed to be 50% to 100%mark-ups on milk.

Foodstuffs managing director SteveAnderson claimed his mark-ups variedbetween 10% and 30%, which he saidwere necessary to meet retail costs,keep the stores open and make modest profits (around 4%).

Then the unexpected happened.Dairy giant Fonterra, the world's

biggest exporter of dairy commodities,announced it would freeze the wholesale prices of its domestic milksfor the remainder of 2011.

”We recognise milk is an importantpart of the diet in New Zealand andwe want to ensure that future generations of New Zealanders growup enjoying it every day,” said chiefexecutive Andrew Ferrier.

“It would be great to see retailersgetting in behind this commitment forthe benefit of consumers,” he quiteheavy-handedly said.

A Fonterra spokesperson added,“We have insulated consumers andretailers against any further rises ininternational dairy pricing for theremainder of the year.”

But it's not that simple. Fonterra isan almost monopoly supplier of rawmilk domestically, through its ownAnchor range under Fonterra Brandsand to its major competitor GoodmanFielder with its Meadow Fresh range.About 95% of the milk produced byNew Zealand's 13,000 dairy farmersgoes into exported products.

So Fonterra has made this big gesture to NZ consumers secure inthe knowledge that if world dairyprices continue to rise, the downsidesare confined to only 5% of itsthroughput. Indeed it has assuredfarmer-shareholders that what iscalled the basic milk price, which setsthe payout for the whole season,won't be dragged down by the

domestic freeze. The freeze could,however, impact the profitability ofFonterra Brands (its local arm) andflow into the so-called distributableprofit, or dividend, which is paid toshareholders over the basic milk price.And while the price freeze onlyapplies to Fonterra Brands supplies(about half of the total liquid market), it certainly crimps theoptions for Goodman Fielder.It has no dairy farmers of its own andrelies upon an historical deal, writteninto legislation, to purchase 250 million litres annually from Fonterraand the basic milk price plus a transport charge. So if the basic milksupply price goes up, GoodmanFielders margins get squeezed.That is because both supermarketchains responded to Fonterra's call topeg retail prices.

Unknown downstream effects mayhave been created by Fonterra's unilateral suspending of the exportprice flow-on model, which is supposed to be free of interventionsor subsidies.

Federated Farmers Dairy chairmanLachlan McKenzie said the dangers ofintervention include market and pricing stresses in the future.

If international prices continue torise, as many commentators predictwill be the result of more mouths tofeed and limits on production, thanFonterra will have a public relationsheadache at home in 11 months time.

World Markets –

Price Warsby Hugh Stringleman

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Not only have we been selectedas one of the two Dairy Comonitor farms, but I have also

been asked to put my dubious blogging skills to the test. I farmCarcary Farms in partnership with mymum and dad. I am married to mylovely wife Emma who by the timethis goes to press will have hopefullyhad our second child.

The business is spread over twoblocks of land, 6 miles apart, runningto 1250 acres. We used to have adairy on each farm but decided toamalgamate them in 2004 and arecurrently milking 370 Holsteins.Half the herd is red and white, stemming from our Ayrshire cattleroots, which genetics we haven’t usedsince the early 1990s. Cattle arehoused on 250 cubicles and a strawyard, which accommodates 90 cows.

We are a level production, 100%TMR fed herd, which are milkedthree times a day through a 32x32 DeLaval rapid exit parlour. The herdaverages 10,000 litres of milk a year,with milk sold to Wisemans Dairieson a standard non aligned contract.

For labour, we have 3 fulltime and1 part time, along side 3 part timestaff, which rotate around the eveningmilkings. We undertake all our ownfoot trimming and A.I work and arevery fortunate to have a good dedicated team.

The arable enterprise consists of420 acres of wheat, 150 acres ofWinter Barley, 200 acres of SpringBarley, 120 acres of grass for silagealong with land let for potatoes andpeas as well as some permanent


DAIRY

pasture. Of this, 180 acres of wheatis wholecropped, and 100 acres of winter barley is crimped. We also buyin draff from a local distillery, dairyblend from East Coast Viners andmolasses.

The 2 fulltime members of staff onthe arable side are also responsible forthe replacement heifer rearing andmucking out of the 90 cow loosehoused area of the dairy which isdone every 3 weeks.

Phew, I think that covers the gistof the operation! I have also recentlybecome involved with the NFUS Milkcommittee and chair our local EastCentral branch meetings. It’s great tobe involved beyond the farm gatewith a group trying to address some ofthe problems currently plaguing ourindustry.

We have just finished the first yearof our three year commitment to themonitor farm project. We decided toget involved to try and establish agroup of farmers that could discussand benchmark their businesses in anopen and constructive way to try andimprove our efficiency and profitability.

So far, it has been a good experience, and it is interesting getting down to the nitty gritty withlike minded farmers. We tend tofind we are not alone with our problems and challenges!

The main targets on our MonitorFarm are Johnnes disease control andmastitis/cell count control. Progresscan be frustrating at times but by theend of our three years, we hope tohave made some head way.

Monitor Farmer – Sandy Milne, Calcary, Brechin, Angus

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Issue 75

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Transcript of Issue 75