AHDB to roll out Strategic Farms for arable growers
AHDB has revealed plans to roll out a series of Strategic Farms for arable farmers as part of its Farm Excellence Platform .
F ormer Stowmarket monitor farmer Brian Barker has been selected as the first strategic arable farmer , with two further commercial farms being added in 2018 and 2019 , respectively .
Each Strategic Farm will run for six years to allow independent research to be conducted across a full rotation . Approaches showcased at the farms will be subject to full cost-benefit analyses to help farmers assess the potential for adoption on their own farms .
Strategic Farms , therefore , harness the proven benefits of ‘ farmer-to-farmer ’ learning to accelerate the uptake of knowledge and innovation to make the industry more competitive in the global marketplace .
Tim Isaac , AHDB Head of Knowledge Exchange ( Cereals & Oilseeds ), said : “ We ’ re setting up these farms to make the connection between research and farming stronger .
“ Monitor Farms play an important part but tend to look at issues on that specific farm . Strategic Farms , however , focus on the broader strategic needs of the industry and use trialsbased approaches and sound economic data to fulfil those needs .”
Selected research findings and technical developments from AHDB and non-AHDB activity will be identified , tested and demonstrated at the Strategic Farms . Shortand long-term field and farm-scale trials will be exploited to generate evidence-based results .
Tim said : “ To make strategic farms a success , we need to recruit the best . This means identifying highly respected individuals with excellent communication and presentation skills , who have experience of , and are willing to host , independent trials and demonstrations .
“ Recruiting ex-monitor farmers helps us tap into well-established profiles and realise the full legacy value of the Monitor Farms .
“ Eight out of 15 monitor farmers expressed an interest in becoming our first strategic farmer , showing how much they value being part of a network that creates and shares practical business data .” Stowmarket Monitor Farm
Brian Barker was selected to be first strategic farmer for AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds because of his impressive record as a monitor farmer . The final meeting of his Stowmarket Monitor Farm takes place today ( 30 June 2017 ).
Brian said : “ I want to build on the Monitor Farm project and look at the short- and longterm impact of decisions on my business .
“ Understanding risk management is key , as is financial scrutiny of farm trials . As a host of a strategic farm , I want to make decisions that bring the best returns on investment . Most of all , I want to share my journey with others .
“ Farming is a dynamic and ever-changing
| Arable
industry . If you sleep , you get left behind . I hope this Strategic Farm will help the industry stay alert and remain profitable .”
One of the key reasons for establishing the new Strategic Farms is to reduce cost of production across UK arable businesses .
AHDB international benchmarking activity shows that many competitor countries in the grain market have lower costs of production compared with UK production .
UK benchmarking data also reveals a large variation in cost of production , with top performers experiencing lower costs ( usually in machinery ) and higher yields .
“ We ’ re setting up these farms to make the connection between research and farming stronger ”
Each Strategic Farm will host three open events at key stages during the cropping year and will connect with local farmer groups , including Monitor Farms and Arable Business Groups . Information will also be promoted via AHDB ’ s digital channels .
The latest series of Strategic Farms is in addition to those already operated by AHDB – Strategic Potato Farms and Strategic Dairy Farms – which all look to provide robust evidence in a practical local setting to give growers the confidence to implement new ideas on their own farms .
Strategic Farms are part of AHDB ’ s wider Farm Excellence Platform , which inspires industry to improve performance and succeed through farmer-to-farmer knowledge exchange . Further information on the initiative will be published at cereals . ahdb . org . uk / strategicfarms
Improve knowledge of biopesticides to improve efficacy
A lack of knowledge about biopesticides is leading to inefficient application by growers and reducing the success rates of integrated pest and disease management programmes ( IPDM ).
T o make application of biopesticides more efficient and effective , growers need to be provided with independent advice on which biopesticides to use under which circumstances and given more details on how they should be applied in practical situations .
Observation trials conducted throughout 2016 highlighted several opportunities to improve biopesticide performance through changes to application practices , based on improved understanding of the optimum conditions required for good performance of each biopesticide . This includes quantity of product used , quantity of water , location within the crop that should be targeted and other environmental parameters that could influence performance .
The trials were conducted as part of AMBER , a five-year project funded by AHDB with the aim of identifying management practices that growers could use to improve the performance of biopesticide products within IPDM .
David Chandler , principal research fellow at University of Warwick said : ‘ It was clear from our observation trials that there was a lack of understanding about how biopesticide efficacy is affected by factors such as population sizes of pests & diseases , environmental factors such as exposure to UVA and B and water volumes .
More information needs to be given to growers on how to apply biopesticides in practical situations . This could be done through modifications to improve labeling ”
Joe Martin , crop protection senior scientist at AHDB said “ In a survey we conducted as part of AMBER , we found that growers perceived biopesticides to be unreliable , however we believe this could be in part as a result of incorrect applications . We need to make sure growers are provided with as much knowledge as possible about the optimum conditions required for good performance of each biopesticide in order to identify potential improvements in application .”
Biopesticides are plant protection products based on living microorganisms , plant or microbial extracts , or behaviour-modifying substances and are a key part of a successful IPDM . Within the next 20 years , the number of biopesticide products available is likely to exceed the number of conventional chemical pesticides . Biopesticides are low risk products for human and environmental safety and many are residue-exempt , meaning they are not required to be routinely monitored by regulatory authorities or retailers .
Gracie Emeny , knowledge exchange manager at AHDB said , “ There is a huge opportunity to improve biopesticide performance by helping to increase growers ’ knowledge in this area . Clear guidance needs to be given to growers to help them get the best from biopesticides and improve their IPDM programmes , particularly as the conventional chemical options available to them continue to reduce . A key part of AMBER will be sharing knowledge and experience from the trials with growers and the industry to improve best practice guidelines .”
AMBER trials will now focus on developing practices that optimise biopesticide performance and will be tested on commercial nurseries .
A new website has just been launched to keep growers updated with all the AMBER project news . It also contains useful information for anyone looking to find out more about biopesticides . Visit bit . ly / AMBERproject
www . farmingmonthly . co . uk July 2017 | Farming Monthly | 13