21/06/25 Farming Today This Week: Royal Highland Show, trade deal with the Gulf States, rural crime, farming in a heatwave
Despite Climate Change Committee warnings, the Scottish Government says it will not reduce livestock numbers.Some good news on rural crime, but livestock theft remains high.Could a trade deal with the Gulf States open the door to low-welfare meat imports?Mud sunscreen for pigs: farmers tell us what they do for livestock and crops to combat a heatwave.Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.
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20/06/25 Royal Highland Show: livestock numbers and climate change; digital cattle tags; agritourism.
Farming Today comes from the Royal Highland Show on the outskirts of Edinburgh. The Scottish rural affairs secretary Mairi Gougeon has said the Scottish government will not reduce livestock numbers, as recommended by the Climate Change Committee. She told farmers Scotland would reach its net-zero targets in other ways. Robert Neill, vice president of NFU Scotland, explains how new high-frequency digital ear tags will make it easier to track cattle in Scotland.Scotland has big ambitions for its agritourism sector. Next year, it will be hosting the first global agritourism conference. We speak to the farmer who is bringing the event to Aberdeen, Caroline Millar.Thousands of animals compete in the show across four days, we catch up with the competition organiser in charge of all the logistics.
Presenter: Charlotte Smith
Producer: Rebecca Rooney
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19/06/25 Farming in a heatwave, seaweed farms
Mud sunscreen for pigs: farmers tell us what they do for livestock and crops to combat a heatwave.And seaweed farms, which aren't always popular with local residents.Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Beatrice Fenton.
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18/06/25 Gulf States trade deal, subsidy phase out and seaweed fertiliser
The NFU has confirmed it sent a private letter to the Prime Minister, raising concerns over a prospective trade deal with the Gulf States. It said the deal could open the UK up to imports of low-welfare meat from the Gulf, and more importantly, many other countries around the world. Although meat from the Gulf States might come up to UK hygiene standards, some welfare groups are concerned about the conditions animals are kept in, and the intensive nature of production, especially poultry.Annual payments farmers in England receive based on the amount of land they have will be capped at just £600 next year. New details have emerged after last week's Spending Review.And there’s evidence that humans have been using seaweed as a fertiliser for thousands of years. When chemical fertilisers were developed a century ago, that use of seaweed largely died out, but for some, it's making a comeback.Presented by Anna Hill
Produced by Heather Simons
Anna Hill finds out how new farming technology could mean more jobs, not fewer. A new report from The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture says the expansion of artificial intelligence apps collecting data and providing real-time advice will mean recruiting and training more people, to give farmers technical support. In Northern Ireland, stealing farm animals is being linked to organised crime, and it seems the current high stock values are making them even more attractive to criminals.As arable farmers wait for their crops to ripen in the fields, many are watching grain prices carefully. Grain isn't just a domestic commodity, but is traded worldwide...and aspects like exchange rates, and President Trump's new tariffs make a big difference to the price.And we visit the Scottish Association for Marine Science in Oban, where scientists are embarking on a new five-year international research project looking at the economics of extracting various products from seaweed, as well as assessing the climate resilience of different species...and even training up new seaweed farmers.Presented by Anna Hill
Produced by Heather Simons
South Africa