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- Herausgeber: Merlin Unwin Books
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022
• How many eggs does a hen lay in its lifetime? • What's a hogget? • What is the point of burning heather on moorland? • How does grazing help the environment? • Can Britain be self-sufficient • What is a genetically modified crop? • When is a pig a gilt? • Who owns the forests, the mountains, the wetlands and coastline in Britain? • What is the future for British farming? All these questions and more are tackled by Jill Mason in this new fact-packed, illustrated book. It is an invaluable account of the British countryside today, its livestock, its crops and its wildernesses.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am extremely appreciative that David, my husband, is a photographer and around 90% of the photographs used to illustrate this book are his. His splendid pictures have contributed greatly by adding visual meaning to my text. Grateful thanks too to my son Andrew, also a keen photographer, who has helped out with several pictures relating to bovine matters and a few others he’s taken when he’s not busy looking after cattle.
I am also indebted to Wild Knight Distillery, Goat Shed Farm Shop and the Wheelyboat Trust for their help. Several companies have also permitted me to use their own pictures of subjects I would not otherwise have been able to access. My thanks go to Simon Whitehead, Fishtek, DairyFlo, Thanet Earth, Soya UK and Poultry World magazine.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
When you’re old, time is like a ball rolling down a hill, gathering speed as it goes. And so it appears to be with developments in the countryside. Changes in the last 25 years have certainly gained momentum. I have worked and lived all my life in the countryside and through experience and a natural curiosity I’ve endeavoured to keep abreast of what has been happening over time. This book contains my observations.
Nearly three-quarters of land in the UK is farmed in one way or another and much of the remainder is managed for conservation. Government funding for the countryside has now swung towards improving the environment, which needs caring for with compassion and understanding. Rural Britain is a complex place in which one action can interact with another, triggering a chain of events, sometimes unintended, that can take generations to rectify.
Agriculture has been swift to embrace the benefits of modern technology which in the last fifty years has taken us beyond imagination. Satellite technology is fitted in many tractors, sprayers and combines; drones are used to survey plantings; and there are robots on farms to tackle weeds, monitor crops and even milk cows! Livestock are identified and information stored electronically in microchips either inserted beneath the skin or embedded in ear tags, collars, anklets or bracelets.
But even though it utilises advanced technology, farming is still subject to an annual cycle of work. On large arable farms this means preparing the ground, sowing crops, applying fertiliser, herbicides or pesticides and then harvesting. Autumn is the time for land cultivation and the sowing of different crops. Meanwhile, livestock and poultry farmers have to attend to their animals every day of the year. Some aspects of their care may be automated and seasonal, but a great deal of it is still very much hands-on. Fieldsports have for centuries played a big part in the countryside, both directly and indirectly, and still do.
Every aspect of farming is affected by the weather. In the last twenty years, thousands of acres have been committed to renewable energy installations to combat climate change, with wind turbines and solar farms now commonplace. Anaerobic digesters can turn animal waste or green crops into biogas.
Those in the countryside today have to be prepared to move with the times but they also cherish their heritage. Many have their roots in the countryside and they share an empathy with the land, as do I.
With fewer people employed in farming, the structure of small country villages has changed. Once home to farmworkers and rural craftsmen, many have become places where urban retirees seek a more peaceful way of life, or visitors come for a holiday.
Hopefully my attempt in this book to explain what goes on in the countryside today, as well as how it functions and some of the facts behind it all, will pave the way to a wider appreciation.
Jill Mason, August 2022
FARMING: THE BIG PICTURE
Mixed farming predominates in southern England
During the Second World War farmers set to work ploughing up every available acre in order to feed a hungry nation. They ploughed up vast areas of bracken, which is poisonous to cattle, and reseeded it with grass. Three million acres of marginal land were brought into production. The farmers did a remarkable job and took pride in their achievement. After the war, the Agricultural Act 1947 encouraged them to continue on that route with guaranteed minimum payments.
In the centuries leading up to this, farming methods had changed little but from the 1940s came a complete revolution in farming. Huge advances were made in agricultural science, technology, machinery and chemistry. It all happened with such speed that no-one was aware of the long-term effects. Factories which had been making weapons of war switched to manufacturing agricultural machinery. The little grey ‘Fergie’ (Ferguson) tractor revolutionised life for farmers on small farms and Fordson tractors did the same for those on large farms. Combine harvesters and mechanical sugar beet harvesters began to appear. Work horses disappeared. They hadn’t needed much room to turn round in a field but large machines did, so hedges were ripped out to make the fields bigger. Artificial fertilisers and synthetic sprays were introduced. DDT was one of these which was highly effective compared with what had been used before but also highly toxic. At the time there was widespread ignorance of the risks its use involved but eventually it was banned in 1984 when there was undeniable proof of the dangers and devastation it caused.
The next major demand made on farmers came in the 1960s when consumers wanted 8cheaper food. Farmers successfully responded by intensifying their production methods. Scientists discovered how to engineer naturally, by selection, the structure of plants so that dwarf varieties of cereals were developed, in which the plant’s energy was channelled into growing bigger seed heads and putting less into the stems. Previously, for instance there had been surplus straw which had to be burned, but shorter stems not only meant less unwanted straw but also the ripening crop was less likely to be flattened by wind and rain before it could be harvested.
GRANTS AND SUBSIDIES
In 1973 the UK became part of the Common Market, now known as the EU, with completely new subsidies offered to farmers by way of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Those European subsidies were geared to increasing production which, in the 1980s, inadvertently led to surplus ‘mountains’ of beef, butter and grain and ‘lakes’ of milk and wine through overproduction. In 1992 ‘set aside’ was introduced to take land out of production and which could be regulated to allow adjustments to be made. Permanent subsidies for organic farming were introduced in 1994.
EU grants were paid to landowners regardless of their financial status. This penalised the likes of hill farmers in some of the most remote areas of Britain who had no option as to what and how they farmed.
The Countryside Stewardship (CS) was set up in 2015 providing financial incentives for farmers, woodland owners, foresters and land managers to look after and improve the environment. The emphasis on farm payments shifted from a system encouraging farmers to maximise production, to one based more on basic care of the land. The policy meant that payments were made on acreage, so the larger the farm, the more money it received.
Small farms contribute to preserving the landscape and habitat of British upland areas
9The sheer amount of paperwork involved in farmers applying for government grants and subsidies is mind-boggling. A crucial part of farm management these days is employing someone to sift through all the jargon to advise what would be most advantageous to farm income. The original Country Stewardship scheme manual, published in January 2015 amounted to 94 pages!
The UK officially left the EU on 31 January 2020 with the year-long transition period, during which nothing changed, ending on 31 December 2020. Being outside the EU allowed new trade agreements to be drawn up but with the possibility of trade tariffs being imposed. Importers and exporters faced increased paperwork and red tape while the EU made life as difficult as possible for the UK. After a chaotic start to Brexit, and with the exception of Northern Ireland, within a few months things settled down as everyone began to get used to the new ways in which things needed to be done, although Covid was rife, creating its own problems. 2021 saw many new multi-million pound trade deals being struck around the world, opening up new markets to the benefit of British farmers.
POST-BREXIT VISION FOR FARMING
With the UK’s exit from the EU, radical changes in agriculture were introduced by way of agri-environmental schemes. Previously, farmers received taxpayer-funded grants based on the amount of land they owned which discriminated against small farmers. Under the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS), payments will instead be made to farmers to improve the environment, the vision being that there will be more trees, meadows and wetlands and fewer sheep and cows. Under this scheme, which will be phased in over seven years, subsidies will be paid for protecting ‘heritage’ farm buildings and stone walls, expanding hedges, natural flood management including creating ponds and restoring river bends, landscape recovery, restoring peatland and planting new woods, capturing carbon in soils, cutting pesticides, reducing the use of antibiotics, and improving animal health and welfare. In addition, funding will be made available for equipment and technology such as robots, and for new infrastructure such as water storage on farms. In October 2021 the first phase of the new multi-million pound Farming Innovation Programme was announced in support of ambitious projects which would transform productivity and enhance environmental sustainability.
Some farmers had already been following practices used by previous generations to enhance the health of the soil on their farms, improve the quality of the meat they produce and, in a small way, help combat climate change. With the emphasis now being on improving the environment, farmers will be able to apply for subsidies of up to £70 per hectare for ‘actions to improve the health of their soil’.
FARMING IN THE UK TODAY
In 2021, nearly 80% of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland was farmed, mostly as permanent pasture grassland.
There are currently 14.8 million acres (6 million hectares) of arable land in the UK which is the lowest level since 1945 when the population was below 50 million. This now stands at 68 million but fortunately output has nearly doubled since the Second World War and the general cost of food remains low. Fifty years ago food cost the average household 20% of their salary, now it is closer to 10%. If UK farmers are expected to keep on producing low-cost food, then continued financial support in the way of grants and subsidies is needed. The alternative is that they will be undercut by foreign imports, which are cheaper because they are not produced to such high welfare and environmental standards. 10
Farming in East Anglia is primarily arable
Farmers have become a victim of their own success. Public opinion today sometimes condemns farmers for doing what was required of them a few decades ago. Post-war technology has greatly improved crop and livestock production, resulting in surpluses in the western world.
In 2020 it was estimated that a fifth of all food purchased by households was binned, an appalling state of affairs when the carbon footprint created by growing it and possibly importing it is taken into account.
Post-WWII farmers were told what they had to do but in present times the way they farm is mostly manipulated by Government grants, subsidies and quotas which ‘persuade’ them which direction farming takes. The poultry and pig industries are the only ones not directly influenced by these grants.
There is now greater emphasis on conservation and combatting the effects of climate change. Farmers have had to take everything into account and adapt. There are several minor ways in which they can play a part without the need for large investment. While tree planting on a large scale and filling a whole field with trees is seen to be the way forward, they can instead plant trees in small, unproductive corners of fields. Or simply by ploughing a sloping field cross-ways rather than up and down, farmers can reduce the risk of flooding.
Post-Brexit a new range of agri-environmental schemes are being introduced, under the heading ‘Public Money for Public Goods’: the intention is to reward farmers for actions that benefit the environment, such as tree planting, flood management and habitat restoration, rather than for the amount of land under ownership. The new Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS) is due to be rolled out in full by 2027 with the intention being that public money should be spent on things which have public value that are not already in place. This includes enhancing our environment and protecting our countryside, better animal and plant health and animal welfare as well as improved productivity; all as part of a move to higher regulatory standards.
British farms already have some of the highest standards in the world.
Advanced technology and naturally improved plant and livestock breeding, brought about 11by selecting the required characteristics, has increased production by 50% in the last 50 years.
Around 60% of our food is home-produced and more could be grown.
But the land paid a price when mixed farms began to disappear and farmers needed to specialise in order to justify purchasing expensive machinery.
Wheat yields have doubled in three generations and Britain now has very nearly the capacity to be self-sufficient in growing wheat for bread-making. These advancements enable surplus land to be put into conservation schemes.
These schemes will provide funding to farmers and land managers to farm in a way that supports biodiversity, enhances the landscape, and improves the quality of water, air and soil. This balance can continue to be struck despite populations continuing to rise, resulting in an increased demand for food.
Not only is there a basic need for sufficient food to feed the world, but as people have become more affluent in the richer countries, they seek out a wider variety in their diet, many items of which have to be imported because the UK’s climate is not conducive to growing them.
RED TAPE
Many farmers still feel they are being slowly strangled by red tape, much of which would be far better replaced with plain, good, old-fashioned common sense. Incomes are falling and health scares affecting humans such as CJD, E. Coli and Salmonella and animal diseases such as Swine Fever and Foot and Mouth Disease have taken their toll on livestock production in the past. The Foot and Mouth Disease epidemic February-September 2001 infected over 2,000 farms. In the aftermath of FMD, many new recording, bio-security and restrictive measures were introduced adding to the heavy burden of red tape already suffered by farmers.
CORONAVIRUS
Then came the Coronavirus pandemic which struck, first in China, in January 2020 and quickly spread around the world. In Britain lockdown restrictions were imposed on 23 March bringing the country more or less to a standstill. Farmers were classed as key workers, being food producers and essential in caring for livestock. They were some of the least affected by Covid regulations as, by the very nature of their work, they were either working on their own or could easily comply with the required social distancing rules.
They faced difficulties as cafes, pubs and restaurants closed down, slashing demand for some of their produce. Livestock and farmers’ markets closed. There were cases of milk having to be poured down the drain, because milk production cannot be turned off like a tap. Cows carry on producing milk and still need milking and feeding.
As travel for leisure was banned around the country, tourism came to an abrupt halt. Across the country those farms that had diversified into holiday accommodation were left with no bookings and no additional income, and those who relied on the tourist market to sell their produce were left seriously out of pocket.
For many years, migrant workers, the vast majority from Eastern Europe, have been heavily relied on to harvest vegetables and fruit which can only be picked by hand. It requires skills that even robots cannot be programmed to learn.
Normally 60,000 to 80,000 seasonal workers are needed each year but immigration control only granted 30,000 entry during Covid-19 lockdowns in 2020.
12Thousands of British people, having been furloughed, were out of work, potentially making them available when the ‘Feed the Nation’ and ‘Pick for Britain’ recruitment campaigns were launched in April 2020 to connect those seeking work with prospective employers. With patriotic enthusiasm 50,000 British people applied but only 6,500 completed interviews of which only 4% lasted the season. Employers were looking for reliable people, like the migrant farmworkers, who were willing to work hard for long hours and who would sign a contract. Very few British were willing to commit themselves to these requirements. Foreign workers are diligent and skilled in the work and, besides being guaranteed the minimum wage, can earn bonuses for working quickly. Produce went to waste.
Growers need to know well in advance what labour is available to them for the coming season, and it needs to be guaranteed so they can plan accordingly. Difficulties continue due to legislation regarding the employment of foreign labour. A lack of skilled butchers and abbatoir workers meant some 35,000 pigs went to waste in 2021 and many sectors of horticulture suffered because of labourer shortages. It proves just how reliant British agriculture is on foreign labour and how disinclined the British are to do that type of work for the pay.
OTHER FARMING CHALLENGES
Unsurprisingly, farming is potentially a dangerous occupation in which to work. British agriculture has the worst rate of fatal injury per 100,000 workers, higher than any other industrial sector. In 2020/2021 41 people were killed in farm accidents. Gigantic moving machinery, overturning vehicles, insecure heavy loads, slurry pits, silos, working at height or with chemicals and large, unpredictable animals all contribute to making farm work particularly hazardous. Very often the casualties were working alone.
Mental health is also of increasing concern. On the face of it, a farming life might appear to be idyllic but there are many stresses associated with it. Financial worry and the sheer volume of paperwork can be aggravated by things beyond farmers’ control such as the weather and diseases in crops and animals, which reduce income. Many farmers live an isolated way of life, working long hours on their own much of the time and bottling up their worries. Help and advice is available but farmers, by nature, are independent people and find it difficult to talk about their problems. In 2019 there were 133 suicides among those involved in agriculture. 2020 proved to be an exceptionally challenging year for farmers, as they faced falling sales due to the pandemic and at the same time the UK suffered its worst harvest for at least 25 years following twelve months of extreme weather. A very wet October in 2020 meant that difficulties were encountered in harvesting the potato crop. During the spring 2020 drought, grass had not grown and the silage crop, a very important method of conserving grass for winter livestock feed, was halved. The withdrawal of neonicotinoids as a pest control on crops also presented its own problems.
Global markets affect prices and each year harvests across the world are very dependent on the weather. Shortage of any commodity invariably increases the price of crops which can particularly impact the cost of animal feed.
THE FUTURE
Today there is no place for the country ‘yokel’. Modern farming requires highly skilled people to operate hi-tech machinery and manage the large numbers of livestock. It is a necessity to be computer literate for every aspect of farming life.
The average age of farmers is 59, one third are above retirement age and only 3% are under 35. It is increasingly difficult for youngsters to have their own farms. Apart from the enormous amount of capital required to set up a business, the leases that are offered are often for only a short period, whereas it takes years in farming before a successful enterprise can become established. There are a number of mostly small farms in the ownership of local councils which provide a foothold for first-time farmers to start up but the number of these is diminishing as cash-strapped Councils sell them off. 13
Isolated farms in the North Yorkshire Moors
THE STATE OF FARMING TODAY
In the 1950s 5% of the population was employed in agriculture but that has all changed due to modern technology.
● about 1.5% of the nation’s workforce works on the land although it is they who care for more than 70% of it.
● on average farmers work 65 hours each week.
● only 20% of farms are in excess of 250 acres (100 hectares).
About 70% of farms are smaller family-run farms which may well have been in the same family for several generations. They play a very important role in the countryside, particularly when it comes to upland farms where knowledge of the ground is vitally important. Very often the flocks of sheep on these farms belong with the farm rather than to the farmer. Well over half of farms are owned and the remainder tenanted.
Of the areas classified as agricultural holdings about one third is arable land and the remainder grassland, a proportion of which is classified as rough grazing. Woodland accounts for 13% of land use.
Unlike the Continent, British farms are generally run as individual units whereas in Europe farmers form co-operatives to share costs and capital outlay. Many British estates that come on the market are now being purchased by foreign or city investors, and prices are rising as investors continue to buy up small local farms to add to large ones.
Farming activities were once limited by the climate and suitability of the land. Waterlogged land is now made use of by laying pipes under the soil to drain off excess water into ditches. Soil type also influences farming and interestingly varies greatly in colour across the country. Peaty soil in the Fens is black and fertile. Light coloured sandy soil is impoverished and chalk makes the land appear nearly white. Heavy clay sometimes looks yellow or red and land in parts of Devon appears red due to iron compounds in the soil. Cattle and sheep are kept in uplands and wetter areas where grass grows well. Arable crops are grown in the drier parts of the UK notably in the east.
Now, though, because of grants, subsidies and sophisticated machinery, the scope is much 14broader. Diversification has become the key word and there are many ways in which to diversify but some prove unprofitable.
Organic produce is much in demand but after the initial boost of government grants to get started, many farmers are now finding it difficult to maintain their organic business. Potentially, under the new ELM Scheme, farmers can continue to earn more money by simply managing the landscape rather than gambling with the uncertainty of growing food.
There is little doubt that the climate has become more extreme and can affect annual returns from both livestock and arable farming. Every aspect of farming is at the mercy of the weather. For example, the so-called ‘Beast from The East’ which hit Britain in March 2018 bringing heavy snow and bitterly cold 70mph east winds made a lot of extra work for livestock farmers. Sheep in particular were hard hit, becoming buried in snowdrifts, and new-born lambs perished in the cold. Other livestock suffered because their water supplies were frozen solid. 2020 by contrast experienced prolonged spells of drought, heat and excess rainfall which reduced crop yields by 30-40%.
Benign spring weather is of particular importance, a time when seeds are germinating and farmers need plenty of grass to grow to nourish their livestock as well as being preserved as winter feed.
Researchers are evaluating different varieties of grasses and cereals that can adapt or are better suited to the effects of global warming. In arable areas with below average rainfall, such as East Anglia, farmers have constructed reservoirs to store water for irrigation. These are topped up through the winter months with rainfall or water extraction from rivers once they have reached a certain level.
More than 20,000 people employed in agriculture have annually quit working on the land in recent years. Approximately 300,000 workers are employed in the agricultural industry and many live in ‘tied’ accommodation. Housing is supplied free or for a nominal rent when it is necessary for employees to live near to their place of work in rural and sometimes isolated areas. Accommodation is taken into account as part of their wage deal; in return agricultural workers are expected to be available to work very long hours when required, including weekends. Land work has to be done when conditions are right and livestock requires attention seven days a week. Many landowners now rely on contractors to do the work in preference to employing their own full-time staff.
70% of farms are family-run.
Farming has its own jargon, often very localised, which, like many dialects is dying out. Terms such as ‘backend’ meaning nearing the end of the farming year are seldom heard. There are more localised terms used in sheep keeping in the north of England than anywhere else, all part of our farming heritage.
The whole structure of countryside communities is changing as fewer people work on the land. The houses agricultural workers once lived in are now occupied by commuters, retirees, used as weekend retreats or rented out. Although work still has to go on in the countryside, there are far fewer people doing it and less general understanding of how and why it’s done. Many farm jobs are now done sitting in vehicles and machines, and people become more detached from the land.
Even 50 years ago a quarter of the population had a connection with farming, today that figure is only a fraction of that.
FUTURE LAND USE
The expansion of villages and towns is consuming agricultural land and taking it out of use for 15farming. Large-scale tree planting projects, seen as one way to combat global warming, will take up land used for livestock or cultivated crops. Science has improved crop yields and increased production from animals so that in theory less land is needed to feed the human population of the UK, but the number of citizens is ever increasing. For the sake of the environment our food needs to be home-grown and produced to the high standards set in this country. Advanced technology means that produce is packed in a way that retains the quality and freshness at the same time as prolonging shelf life. Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) removes or vacuums out most of the natural air. Oxygen levels are greatly reduced and replaced with nitrogen or carbon dioxide. Milk is pasteurised and homogenised to give it a longer shelf life.
CROFTING
Crofting is a traditional way of farming practised in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland which has been passed down through generations and continues to this day.
A croft is not only a house but also the unit of agricultural land attached to it.
There are over 17,000 crofts in Scotland.
Crofts range from an acre (½ha) to more than 125 acres (50ha) but an average croft is 12 acres (5ha). There are legislative duties attached to the house and land ensuring that it continues to be used for its original purpose. The majority are tenanted. Small groups of crofts, known as townships, are still worked by local people. Most have only a few acres of improved grassland for their cattle and sheep, or land that is good enough to grow a crop, but in addition they have access to common grazing land. Their livestock live a semi-wild existence. Crofters help each other when extra hands are needed to gather the sheep for sorting, dipping and shearing. Some still clip their sheep by hand as it leaves the wool slightly longer than electric clippers, thus providing more protection against the often inclement weather.
Crofters help each other when it’s time to gather their sheep
16Earning additional income to crofting is necessary, so often crofters have another job such as fishing or delivering the local mail.
A croft has been described as being a piece of land too big to use as a hobby and too small to be a farm, but crofting means being very much part of the community.
FEEDING THE NATION
The buying power of large supermarkets has a big influence on production and marketing issues. Farmers can’t cut their overheads and are of course obliged to pay a minimum wage to anyone they employ, even if they don’t properly pay themselves. Additionally they have to comply with strict animal welfare and health and safety standards while trying to compete with imports from countries that pay scant regard to such things.
The Red Tractor symbol signifies that food has been produced to an assured high standard in the UK; traceability and accountability are important.
While some farmers are only in it to make a living, for many others there is much more to their work than that. There is a traditional pride in raising good crops and healthy livestock. There’s much more to farming than the amount of money that is made from it.
Britain produces some of the highest quality, best value and safest food in the world but it has to remain competitive. The difficulty is to work out how.
GLOSSARY
ACRE Pre-metric measurement of area equal to .4047 of a hectare
HECTARE One hectare equals 2.47 acres or 10,000 square metres
ORGANIC Produce supplied by farmers registered with a recognised organic inspection body to ensure that the strict standards set for production are met. No chemical fertilizers or feed additives can be used.
DEFRA Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Formed in 2001 to bring together environmental, rural and food related issues in the UK.
BPS Basic Payment Scheme
ELMS Environmental Land Management Scheme
ES Environmental Stewardship
RPS Rural Payments Agency
CS Countryside Stewardship. Different tiers provide options regarding animal management and environmental benefits funding
FARM ASSURED Producers must conform to one of the farm assurance schemes which ensure that farmers comply with DEFRA recommendations for welfare and legal requirements
FREEDOM FOOD Meat from producers who conform to standards set by the RSPCA. Animal-based protein in feed, with the exception of milk products, and growth promoters are banned and transport times are limited
BRITISH FARM STANDARD Identified by its logo of a red tractor with blue wheels which denotes that the product has been produced in Britain and meets recognised standards
LEAF Linking Environment and Farming is an organisation which works with farmers to improve sustainability combined with education and public engagement projects
FARM PARK A visitor attraction where children can meet, touch and learn about farm animals and birds
THE CROFTING COMMISSION Replaced the Crofters Commission in 2012 as the statutory regulator for crofting in Scotland
CLA Country Landowners Association
NFU National Farmers Union
FARMING LIVESTOCK
Highland cattle are hardy enough to live out on the hills all year round
Just over half UK land is used for grazing or growing grass and the total UK livestock output for 2019 was worth £14.7 billion. The industry is still very important to the country even though in recent years there has been a decline in the amount of meat consumed. Over half a million people are now vegetarians or vegans.
Plant-based diets, while often adopted as an aid to saving our planet, have their drawbacks. A healthy diet needs to include protein, and meat-based protein has to be substituted with plant protein. This comes from soy and other pulses, many of which have to be imported as it’s not possible to grow them in the UK on a commercial scale.
One third of the UK population have either cut down or given up eating meat
However, although vegetarianism is on the increase, this has not changed the demand for milk, butter, cheese and eggs, and meat still plays a major role in the diet of the majority of people and is also exported.
For those with environmental causes at heart, meat that comes from animals grazed naturally on unfertilised, species-rich pasture, rather than intensively reared animals fed mainly on grain, is far preferable. Natural grazing applies to a large number of sheep and cattle particularly those raised in the upland areas of the UK.
Where animals are kept for meat production and are grazed traditionally on unimproved pastures, marshland and uplands, it is of great benefit to indigenous plants found within the sward, as well as insects, which in turn are an asset to many species of birds. In summer this is well illustrated by swallows flitting among groups of cattle, catching the surrounding flies and insects stirred up by their feet or attracted to them. Rooks and starlings turn over the cowpats in search of beetles and grubs.
Grazing animals can live where no crops could be grown18
The presence of livestock is advantageous to biodiversity.
BEEF BREEDS
Old breeds of cattle once took four years before they were grown enough to be slaughtered but now the average is about 18 months. From the 1960s onwards, breeders set about improving the quality of established beef breeds by using bulls imported from the Continent. The public no longer wanted so much fat on their meat and Continental breeds were bigger but leaner, with a disproportionate amount of muscling on their rumps where the most expensive cuts of meat come from. Originating in France, the Charolais became popular in the early 1960s; Limousins, also from France, and Simmentals from Switzerland followed in the early 1970s; and in the 1980s massive Belgian Blues appeared. Of these, the Limousin has proved most popular over the years as a beef sire, although our native Aberdeen Angus gives it a run for its money. Herefords too remain popular. Both were once small animals but have now been bred much larger to satisfy supermarket demands and compete with continental breeds.
While these continental breeds and their crosses now play a large part in meat production, there is still a place in farming for the heritage breeds.
350 years ago Longhorn cattle were the only breed seen throughout the length and breadth of England.
They provided milk, meat and acted as draught animals pulling ploughs and wagons. They are still kept today on a much smaller scale to supply a niche meat market and conservation grazing. Aberdeen Angus, Galloway and, in Scotland, white Shorthorns crossed with Highland cows have proved they can cope with environmental conditions where Continental breeds fail to thrive.
GLOBAL INFLUENCES
Livestock farming is often at the mercy of world events, which can quickly have a huge knock-on effect to demand and supply. Economic uncertainty and varying exchange rate affected prices in recent years. One country’s loss is another’s opportunity. The Chinese rear and eat a lot of pork and in 2019 a devastating outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in China saw British pig farmers receiving higher prices for their pigs.
GRAZING
Sheep, and especially cattle, play a minority part in global warming but selective breeding has improved the efficiency of cattle to convert vegetation into meat. The climate in the UK is favourable for growing an abundant amount of grass in most areas. Sheep and cattle grazing on it convert the grasses and other plants, which humans are unable to digest, into high nutrient protein. Grass is a complete healthy food for ruminants and little in the way of supplementary feed is required when it is available. It is also preserved in the form of hay, made from dried grass, and silage, made from fermented green grass, to provide feed in winter. Straw from the cereal harvest is also used, occasionally for feed but mostly for bedding.
Pigs cannot live on grass nor can chicken, so, as with intensively kept cattle, they need to be fed on rations manufactured from home-grown cereals mixed with plant protein which has mostly had to be imported. Cereals, even home produced, will have been grown on land that required cultivation and the crop will have been treated with fertiliser, pesticides and herbicides. The plant protein mostly comes from soya imported from the US although some may have been grown on land in the Amazon or Congo basins where ecologically important rainforest has been illegally felled. 19
Silage to feed sheep and cattle in winter is baled so it can easily be transported
Sheep and cattle eating grass are more environmentally friendly than pigs and poultry.
MEAT LABELLING
Labelling of prepacked meat can be misleading. It may well be labelled ‘packed in the UK’ but this does not mean that it was produced here. Livestock farmers are worried because numerous foreign countries don’t measure up to the UK’s high standards of health and animal welfare. The use of antibiotics is generally more extensive abroad. In the USA growth hormones, at present banned in Britain, are used to make cattle fatten quicker and there are also welfare issues because US cattle are penned together in their thousands in ‘beef lots’. There is also concern that American chicken is routinely washed in chlorine to kill any bacteria that might be present, another practice not permitted in the UK. The Red Tractor Assurance Scheme logo on food indicates traceability, that it is safe to eat, has been produced in a responsible way and has been farmed, processed and packed in the UK. RSPCA Assurance / Freedom Foods producers have to meet even higher standards. Some dairy milk cooperatives, such as Arla and First Milk also require their members to meet higher welfare standards.
ENVIRONMENTAL LAND MANAGEMENT
One of the proposals included in the new Environmental Land Management (ELM) Scheme, is to reduce the number of cattle and sheep in the UK. The effect of this is debatable as, unless the consumption of meat is greatly reduced, it will result in more imports.
There will always be a demand for meat but if the UK doesn’t produce enough of its own then it will be imported from countries with standards lower than ours. Consumers will need to bear in mind that in many cases imported produce is cheaper than home produced goods because more corners have been cut and a strain put on the environment.
The ELM Scheme also needs to take into account the positive effect which grazing sheep, and in particular cattle, are to wildlife by increasing biodiversity of the land.
20There are pages and pages of government legislation with regard to keeping livestock in the UK concerning their welfare, management and risks to human health.
LIVESTOCK MARKETS
Many meat producers sell their animals under contract, whereby they get a pre-agreed price. However, livestock markets are still places where farmers sell their stock of all different ages. Prices on the day are unpredictable. Market closures because of Covid 19 resulted in welfare and financial issues when animals weren’t able to be sold when planned. Further welfare complications were encountered with sheep when pandemic lockdowns prevented the gangs of shearers from New Zealand from coming to this country. They are extremely experienced and quick and for many years have been relied on to shear large UK flocks under contract. Only the best sheep farmers can match them for speed and efficiency; an expert can shear a sheep in a couple of minutes. It was a great relief when they were eventually allowed entry. However, 14 million kilograms of British wool remained unsold as world wool markets closed.
Not only do livestock markets hold regular sales of young, breeding and animals fit for slaughter, they often host farmers’ markets and antiques fairs. Seventy years ago many country town markets, both livestock and produce, were held on a certain day each week. Very few of these markets have survived in the arable areas of southern and eastern Britain. But livestock markets, where they are still held, continue to play an important part in the lives of those farming especially in the more remote places.
A farming life is often a solitary one and markets offer the opportunity to exchange ideas, information, views and news as well as catching up with local gossip. Special markets are held for pedigree animals and very often their sale is preceded by being judged. The bidding for these is always in guineas (£1.05) rather than pounds.
County shows also offer farmers the chance to socialise with others who share a common interest. There too, they can show their livestock and the competition can be quite fierce at times. A champion animal or bird not only achieves a better price if it is sold but also enhances its owner’s reputation. County shows promote a better understanding among town-dwellers of what happens in the countryside generally.
Livestock markets are not only auctions but social occasions as well21
Sheep come under the hammer at market
FARMERS AND ANIMAL CARE
Nearly all livestock keepers, whether on a large or small scale, form an attachment to their animals and feel a responsibility for their welfare, even when they are destined for slaughter. Any person caring for livestock must be prepared to work unsociable hours and weekends. Animals give birth, have an accident or suddenly get sick at any time of the day or night. Anyone responsible for looking after them must be prepared to administer to their needs whenever required. Bio-security plays an important part in keeping animals healthy. Contagious diseases can easily spread between farms. Rats are carriers, as are migratory birds. Poultry are particularly at risk and every year outbreaks of avian flu, not a threat to humans, are recorded. The most likely carriers are flocks of starlings which migrate to Britain from Europe every winter.
A good stockman is usually able to sense when one of the animals in his charge is ‘not right’, even before it shows any obvious symptoms of being sick. Veterinary care of farm animals is costly, and a call-out for a sheep can easily cost more than the animal is worth.
There are several preventative vaccines and treatments which can be used by the farmer. Experienced stockmen are fully capable of carrying out many of the necessary routine treatments such as worming, vaccinating or administering drugs prescribed by the vet. Inevitably though there are emergencies and the services of the local vet need to be called upon. In the grassland areas of Britain where farm animals still flourish, attending to them is an integral part of a rural vet’s work helping with difficult births, injuries and diagnosing illnesses. Farm vets still have to do much of their work in difficult conditions that are far from sterile and often out of doors, at all times and in all weathers.
Outbreaks of serious contagious diseases such as F&M, Swine Fever and Avian Flu necessitate the affected herds of animals and poultry flocks being humanely culled22
Supplementary feeding for cattle kept outdoors in winter
However, much of a vet’s work is now routine and includes the compulsory testing for diseases such as tuberculosis. A skin test is carried out to identify any possibility of tuberculosis infection. Blood samples for cattle, when needed, are taken from a vein beneath the tail, and many infections, deficiencies and illnesses can be diagnosed through the blood. To make working with such large animals that are not used to being handled, such as beef cattle, easier and safer, they are driven one at a time into a small pen called a ‘crush’ where they can be better restrained.
Animals kept outside require up to 20% more food to retain condition, so costs are higher. And if the British public want cheap meat and eggs then intensive systems, as are applied to the pig and poultry industries, are needed to produce it. There are many rules and regulations in place to ensure the highest standards of humane care as possible are maintained, and there may well be improved financial returns if the livestock are fit, well and content.
Traceability within the food chain has become an important aspect of livestock farming. Movements of all livestock have to be recorded and individual lifetime identification of all cattle and sheep is now a legal requirement. This is done by fixing a numbered electronic tag containing a microchip in their ear soon after birth which can then be easily read, visually or electronically, and recorded. Each calf is also issued with a passport. Post Brexit, changes have been made for the identification of cattle, sheep, goats and pigs exported to the EU and Northern Ireland, including ear tags bearing the ISO country code of identification, which has been changed from ‘UK’ to ‘GB’.
HOBBY FARMING
An increasing number of enthusiasts today enjoy hobby farming, maybe with as little as a few acres, keeping some chicken, a few sheep, a couple of pygmy goats and maybe a pig or two. Some go on to be farmers, others want to know that what they are eating is chemical free and produced in a compassionate, wildlife friendly manner. Some want to farm organically, or keep animals as a means of contributing towards their other hobbies, for example a few sheep are often kept to supply special wool for those whose craft is related to spinning, weaving and knitting.
Government livestock regulations still apply, however small the number of animals kept or for whatever reason.
ANIMAL WELFARE
Feed needs to be taken to sheep kept out on the hills in winter
The way in which livestock is kept in the UK meets some of the highest standards in the world. Any procedures carried out are purely intended to improve the welfare of livestock. The Farm Animal Welfare Forum (FAWF) brings together the leading organisations concerned with improving farm animal welfare in the UK.
‘Anthropomorphism’, crediting animals with the same feelings as humans, is the bane of livestock farmers’ lives. Every species of animal and bird have different temperaments and behavioural needs so it is pointless to compare them with those of humans. Animals react to their present situation, they possess no imagination, so the future is of no concern to them. They survive through their natural instincts, learn by association and past experiences and live only for today. Only a few species such as dogs, apes and elephants show any great degree of intelligence. In certain situations dogs show signs of being telepathic and are able to sense their owner’s mood. For example hounds and gun dogs seem to be able to tell the difference between days they will be worked and those they are merely exercised, even though their handler follows exactly the same routine each morning before taking them out. Sheep are not known for their intelligence although they know to shelter from the wind or hot sun but that is purely a natural instinct indicating how best to survive. Food, the urge to reproduce and daylight are the principal influences on the behaviour of animals and birds. 24
Whenever animals are owned by someone, that person has the responsibility of their care whether on farms or in the home. Even though the British are considered to be a pet-loving nation there are thousands of cases of cruelty and mistreatment reported each year. It is not always deliberate though as many owners are misguided in the way they care for their pets. Giving an animal copious amounts of tit-bits to overeat can be as unkind and bad for its health as not feeding it enough. Many pet owners are guilty of this and over-indulgence is certainly not a kindness.
The world treats animals in very different ways. In Britain dogs are pets but they are eaten in China. British cows are a commercial investment but they are sacred animals in India and donkeys in Egypt have to work extremely hard for their living.
In the UK, there is much more attention paid to how farm animals are kept than domestic pets.
There is a vast amount of legislation concerning farm animal welfare. The majority of the population think that farm animals are best kept in natural conditions but this isn’t always the case as nature can be cruel. Creatures in the wild are exposed to cold, wet and hunger as well as parasites, infections and the risk of being eaten or injured. If, as some people believe, animals have ‘rights’, who passes judgement on the owl that preys on the mouse? Whose right is it that needs protecting – the prey or the predator? The choice is a dilemma that also faces many conservationists.
Young lambs look happy gambolling in the sunshine but many born outdoors perish if there was a prolonged cold, wet spell at the time they are born. Weak ones are always at risk of being killed by foxes or having their eyes pecked out by crows. It happens.
ANIMAL WELFARE
Animal welfare is represented in Britain by the Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC), a government-appointed body to advise ministers. Its purpose is to oversee the physical and mental wellbeing of farm animals kept on agricultural land and in buildings, at market, in transit and at slaughter houses.
Animal welfare embraces the Five Freedoms:
Freedom from
1) hunger and thirst
2) discomfort
3) fear and stress
4) pain, injury and disease, and
5) the freedom to express normal behaviour regarding space, facilities and the company of its own kind.
The latter causes the most problems. Certainly this requirement is conveniently disregarded by all those pet owners who keep one animal for their personal pleasure. Many animals gregarious by nature. A horse is a herd animal, a dog a pack animal and a budgerigar is a sociable bird that lives in flocks. Is it compassionate to keep them without company of their own kind? Deprived of canine company, dogs are intelligent enough to recognise humans as being very acceptable members of their pack who provide food and comfort.
It is costly to provide farm livestock with more space; housing and land are expensive capital investments. The higher the throughput, the higher the returns and management has to be finely tuned. Government guidelines for stocking levels of animal and birds kept on a commercial scale have sought to keep a balance between the standard of welfare and the cheap 25food production expected by the consumer. If farm livestock is grossly overcrowded they do not grow or yield to their full potential and therefore become unprofitable. Freedom can lead to deaths of the new born and stress levied on older animals or birds by their companions. Every creature is either territorial if solitary by nature or has a ‘pecking order’ if gregarious. Both result in fighting to establish dominance. It is often management policy to keep groups together for most of their lives so that they live in harmony with each other; mix the groups and stress results. The way in which farmers manage their livestock is in the way that has proved to work the best for them.
TRANSPORTATION OF LIVE ANIMALS
The media often reports on the transport of livestock. Occasional delays are unavoidable on Britain’s overcrowded roads. The Foot and Mouth outbreak in 2001 exposed big failings in the marketing of sheep. Some were being moved on from one market to another within a matter of days and obviously this practice was not acceptable on both welfare and health risk grounds. Livestock crammed into trailers is frequently depicted which in the face of it may appear to be cruel but tightly packed animals are far less likely to be buffeted about or fall over and be trampled on. There are strict regulations regarding the transport of live animals. Hundreds of thousands of livestock are transported annually without coming to any harm.
There are strict regulations regarding the transportation of live animals
EU legislation set humane standards for animal welfare but it meant many small local slaughterhouses had to close because they were unable to meet the stringent regulations for health and hygiene. Ironically, this now means that livestock destined for slaughter often has to be transported much longer distances.
There are rules in force regarding the provision of food and water for animals in transit and for regular stops. In fact livestock appear to settle down quietly once on the move and most stress is caused to them at the stops when they have to be unloaded and loaded up again which also extends the journey time. Unlike humans, many animals have the ability to rest or sleep standing up.
VEAL
Veal crates were banned in Britain in 1990. This adversely affected the market for newborn calves as did subsequent very public demonstrations over the export of live calves to the Continent. Combined with the BSE health scare, the result was that there was no longer a market for the leaner, male (bull) calves of dairy breeds with the result that many were humanely destroyed at birth. This unpalatable situation was alleviated by the introduction of ‘rose veal’ in 2008 which created a market for male ‘dairy’ calves and made eating veal acceptable once again. – see veal page 35
To give milk it is necessary for a dairy cow to have a calf every 12 to 14 months.26
Checking a heifer’s identifying ear tag while a vet takes a blood sample
It is now possible, but more expensive, to select the sex of a calf from the semen used for AI. However, this does not reduce the number of calves born each year to milking cows, and sales of young calves of any kind meet a poor demand. If more are born than the UK has the capacity to rear and there is a demand on the Continent, it is inevitable that some will be exported live and fattened up abroad. Usually young calves are transported in lorries by sea but flying is being looked at as an option to improve welfare through minimising the journey time.
When the choice is between destroying newborn calves or shipping them abroad, making an ethical decision is difficult.
Reducing milk production by keeping fewer cows is not the answer because that would mean importing more dairy products which in all probability would come from countries with lower animal welfare standards than our own.
SURGICAL INTERVENTIONS
Unless animals were to be given unlimited freedom (which would be impossible) certain practices are a valuable aid to welfare management.
All so-called mutilations are strictly regulated by FAWC who recognise the benefit from existing practices.
Castration is probably the most common because it not only means that animals will fatten quicker but it also minimises aggression and unwanted sexual activities. There are three methods which can be used. Most commonly for sheep and quite often for very young calves is the application of an elastic band, applied using an elastrator, round the neck of the scrotum. This has to be done within a few days of birth.
Another method for castrating bull calves under two months old is to use a burdizzo implement to crush the spermatic cord, with recommended local anaesthetic. Surgical castration on older animals has to be carried out by a vet who by law injects a local anaesthetic into the area before cutting the scrotum and removing the testicles.
Today many pigs and sheep destined for early slaughter, being smaller and more manageable than cattle, are often not castrated. However, problems are encountered if they are left to reach maturity and then have to be segregated from the females to avoid unplanned pregnancies.
Sheep are born with long tails but those intended to be kept on lush grass in the lowlands (which makes their excrement more liquid) will be docked soon after they are born. If they weren’t, their wool would become soiled and attract flies which lay eggs on the dirty fleece and in turn hatch into maggots which then bury themselves into the flesh beneath. Fly strike, as it 27is known, is not obvious to begin with and if not detected soon enough, the unfortunate victim literally would be eaten alive and suffer a slow and horrific death. To dock a lowland lamb is more humane than to leave it with a long tail. This procedure is frequently carried out using the same elastic rings and elastrator tool as is used for castration purposes and is done at the same time.
Sheep kept in the uplands have poorer vegetation to graze so their tails are not docked so short. Those kept on high ground aren’t docked at all because their excrement is dry and a long tail offers them some protection from the harsher weather conditions.
A ring in a bull’s nose enables it to be handled more safely
Nearly all dairy breeds of cattle and some beef are born with horns that begin to develop soon after birth. Cattle have horns for fighting and self-protection. If these weren’t removed, they would be a danger not only to humans but also to each other. Calves are ‘dehorned’ or ‘disbudded’ when they are a few days old. A local anaesthetic is given and the emerging ‘buds’ are either burned off with a hot iron or a caustic substance is used which at this young age causes them little distress and the small wounds very quickly heal. Horned breeds of sheep and goats aren’t normally dehorned.
A crofter dosing his sheep for worms
PIG WELFARE
An increasing number of pigs are being kept out of doors. The breeding stock are kept in large paddocks giving them space and plenty to occupy themselves but the young ones born outside do not usually enjoy the same freedom as their parents for very long.
Outdoor pigs still need protection from the sun and prolonged rain which can turn their paddocks into a quagmire. Pigs love digging up the ground with their noses and nose-ringing breeding stock kept outdoors prevents this happening, thus improving the conditions they live in. When a sow is about to give birth she not only makes a nest but also digs a hole in the ground, which is a certain death trap for her newborn piglets. Because she is about 200 times larger than them, they will inevitably be crushed and suffocated when she lies down if they have rolled into the hole she dug. Three or four rings in the top of each nostril are sufficient to stop a pig from digging with its snout. 28
Objections have been made to putting rings in pigs’ noses although oddly it is acceptable for human parents to have an earring put in their baby’s ears or a nose ring in themselves which is a very similar procedure.
Farrowing crates in buildings, which limit the sow’s movement, are designed to minimise the risk of piglets being squashed. There have been many calls to have these banned but without farrowing crates, production would be lower because more piglets would die or become injured from being crushed, creating welfare issues and raising costs. Then cheap pig meat imported from abroad, where welfare standards are often lower than UK standards, would fill the gap.
