Farming
By Alec Ross
In light of the extensive flooding experienced in parts of the country, NFU Scotland President Martin Kennedy has today met with local MSP John Swinney at a Tayside farm to discuss the impact of severe flooding in the area.
NFU Scotland President Martin Kennedy said: “The level of flooding seen in some parts of Scotland was exceptional, and our thoughts are with the friends and family of the man still missing in the River Tay.
“The union is using its network of regional managers, group secretaries and local offices to monitor and report on the situation. Reports and social media coverage of the extensive flooding, landslips and road closures, significant areas of grassland, arable ground and high value crops such as potatoes, broccoli and turnips under water and the loss of fodder and bedding to flooding are clear indicators of the scale of damage in some parts.
“What this event clearly demonstrates is that, when it comes to risk, it is the farming industry that is left carrying the can. While some losses may be insurable, many will not, and it is likely that farmers will be left with a bill for millions. So I ask the Scottish Government to consider what short-term support it can offer to help the recovery process and to build a realistic margin from the supply chain that creates enough of a buffer to absorb this type of event”.
Round-up
Bullocks at St Boswells yesterday averaged 279p/kg and sold to 318p/kg, while heifers averaged 296p/kg and sold to 336p/kg.
Cast cows averaged 181p/kg and sold to 251p/kg or a top price of £1,827. Lambs held up well on the week to average £112.50/head and sold to to £151/head for Beltexes, while cast sheep averaged £77/head and sold to £165 for a Texel ewe. Heavy ewes averaged £116/head, with light ewes selling to £75 for North Country Cheviots.
Lambs at Ayr yesterday met with a favourable trade, selling to £153 for a Texel from Linfairn or to 300p/kg for Beltex crosses from Muir, against a sale average of 255p/kg. Cast ewes peaked at £170 for a Texel from Laigh Alticane, with Smithston leading the tup prices at £162 for a Beltex, and hill ewes selling to £73 for Cheviots from Avisyard.
Prime beef-bred heifers at Lanark yesterday dropped very slightly on the week to average 294p/kg and sold to 352p/kg for a Limousin. Meanwhile, cast beef cows dropped by 8p on the week to average 171p/kg, and lambs met last week’s rates of 251p/kg, peaking at £165/head.
And a new world record price for a Shetland sheep was set at Lerwick on Saturday as Morley Thompson’s shearling tup sold for £20,000. The price also represents a record for any animal sold in a northern isles mart.
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