The Farmers Mart Feb/Mar 2014 - Issue 32 | Page 42

NETHER SCALES FARM

Crushed barley man
enjoys NFU experience
Chris Berry meets Alan Dickinson at Hutton End.
Forget about a week being
a long time in politics: Alan
Dickinson found out during
his recently completed
tenure as NFU Cumbria
county chairman, that one
day was quite sufficient.
“I’ve had a really interesting
two years and although I’d
never held any office before
and don’t have any specific
ambition I’ve certainly enjoyed
my time as chairman,” said

Alan. “I remember being
at NFU national council
when Dairy Crest made its
announcement of dropping
2p per litre off the milk
price and the next day the
rest of the dairy companies
followed suit. Within hours
the NFU had formed the SOS
Dairy coalition with other
organisations such as the TFA
and Farmers For Action,” he
told me.

As Alan’s customers rely on him to do
the best job, so he relies on
Kelvin Cave to provide him with the
best machines and preservatives.

“It was amazing how
everything came together so
quickly and it had to - because
confidence in the sector was
almost lost overnight. Dairy
farmers had been struggling
for a few years but had nearly
returned to where they were
getting a price that allowed
them to breathe a little. To
suffer a blanket reduction
across the board as well as
increased feed costs was a
real kick in the teeth,” Alan
said. “Meetings were held
in Westminster and closer
to home at Haydock Park
racecourse where 300
attended. That really showed
the depth of feeling and just
how much good work the NFU
can do in a short time.”

Alan believes that produce
grown and provided by
UK farmers is now high on
the agenda in the nation’s
conscience.
“Housewives had assumed
that producers were getting
enough to cover their costs.
‘Horsegate’ and the public’s

Kelvin Cave Ltd

Offering preservatives and ensiling
products to maximise home-grown
feed stability and quality

t: 01458 252281

42

Feb/Mar 2014 FarmersMart

kelvincave.com

To read more, visit www.farmers-mart.co.uk