Royal asparagus grower could fail

A Norfolk asparagus grower whose produce was served at the Royal Wedding on Saturday has warned that without access to workers, his business could fail.

Protocol prevented Andy Allen from confirming that he had supplied asparagus to the Windsor kitchens, but a photograph on their website appeared to show bunches of his produce and he did not deny it.

However, he told The Guardian newspaper, “This is the best PR I could ever have had to be able to supply the royal kitchens and yet will I be able to continue to supply them? It is a huge privilege to be chosen, but it doesn’t help because who is going to pick the bloody stuff? We are completely reliant on seasonal migrant workers. If we can’t get that labour I’ll have to pack up. There is not the technology to pick asparagus with robots.”

He added that his concerns about finding workers had limited his area of the crop. Chief Executive of Concordia, which supplies labour to Mr Allen, Stephanie Maurel added: “The public voted to not have enough workers to pick fruit and veg in this country. They haven’t made the connection that 95% to 100% of British asparagus is picked by an eastern European. We have people who are keen to come; farmers who are desperate to have people pick their crops, and we just can’t bridge that gap and it is going to costs thousands in livelihoods.”

Photo Caption: Preparing asparagus in the Royal kitchens ahead of the wedding between Prince Harry and Megan Markle.

Photo Credit: www.royal.uk

The post Royal asparagus grower could fail appeared first on Hort News on 23 May 2018.

Scottish soft fruit needs labour commitment

Scottish fruit grower James Porter has told Scotland’s Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing that the country’s successful soft fruit industry needs a seasonal workers scheme in place by this summer if crop is not to be wasted.

Mr Porter made the comments during a visit by Mr Ewing to co-operative Angus Growers based at Auchrennie near Carnoustie, where the MSP visited polytunnels used to grow strawberries and spoke to workers.

With the soft fruit industry estimated to be worth £134 million to Scotland’s economy, Mr Porter, who is also NFU Scotland’s soft fruit chairman, said, “We urgently need a seasonal workers scheme which will apply to people from out with the EU, because the weakness of the pound no longer makes working in the UK such an attractive option. He added that while his business currently has enough workers, he expects to be 15 per cent short by August, and that EU labour will not be enough to meet demand.

Mr Ewing said that the issue is down to Westminster and that he had pressed Environment Secretary Michael Gove on the issue: “After the second meeting [Gove] said the seasonal workers scheme would come forward soon, then advised ‘complete clarity’ by the end of March. The end of March has come and gone and now the end of April has gone. The UK Government could end this ongoing uncertainty by committing to remaining in the EU single market and customs union. Such a position would demonstrate to seasonal workers that Scotland, and the whole of the UK, remains an open and welcoming place to live and work.”

Photo Caption: Fergus Ewing visited cooperative Angus Growers

Photo Credit: Fergus Ewing

The post Scottish soft fruit needs labour commitment appeared first on Hort News. on 17 May 2018.

Top fruit sector calls for post-Brexit support

English Apples & Pears (EAP), the association for UK top fruit producers, has said that the government must continue to support fruit growers after the UK leaves the EU.

In its submission to Defra’s Health and Harmony consultation, the group called for, ‘A more enabling and holistic regulatory framework for the approval of plant-protection products and to provide parity for UK growers with EU growers before we leave the EU.’ It also called for support for new varietal development, saying that this would help to ‘bolster plant health and pest and disease resistance.’

Overall EAP set out 12 points for action, including continued support for Producer Organisations, labour availability and health & sustainability. EAP chairman Ali Capper commented, “We are asking government to urgently support policy and campaigns that will increase the consumption of British-grown apples and pears. British orchards are capable of delivering public good – it’s good for the environment and the fruit produced is good for the nation’s health too. We’re ambitious to grow the size of the British crop. We know this is possible but we will need action in key areas in order to make this happen.”

Photo Credit: Wye Fruit

The post Top fruit sector calls for post-Brexit support appeared first on Hort News on 17 May 2018.

Defra consultation receives thousands of responses

Defra has received more than 44,000 responses to its consultation on farming, food and environmental policy after Brexit. 20,000 of these were received in the last week of the process.

The consultation, which closed on Tuesday 8 May attracted responses from farmers, NGOs and others in direct and indirect support for farmers, environmental protection and even the strategic importance of food to the UK. During the consultation process Defra also held 17 events across the country with stakeholders including the NFU, National trust and others.

The Agricultural Industries Confederation said the Government’s drive for environmental enhancements as part of its new farming policy must be coupled with an equal drive on agricultural production, underpinned by the enabling of new technologies and innovation.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said, “It’s great news that so many people have responded so enthusiastically to our consultation. Leaving the European Union gives us the opportunity to improve the support we give to Britain’s farmers. We can make farming more productive, improve the quality of the food we eat and enhance our natural environment. We’ll reflect on the many thoughtful ideas put forward in response to our consultation and bring forward our plans for legislation later this year.”

The post Defra consultation receives thousands of responses appeared first on Hort News. on 17 May 2018.

Scout robot could revolutionise greenhouse crop protection

A new robot crop scout developed by Metazet has been nominated for a Greentech Concept Award which takes place as part of Greentech 2018 in Amsterdam in June.

According to the manufacturers, the IRIS! scout robot detects diseases, pests, deficiencies and other plant abnormalities at an early stage and also provides accurate fruit count and yield forecasting as well as detailed climate and environmental information. They claim that the system’s artificial intelligence brain and its ability to perform active learning make it unique.

The IRIS! robot can better predict crop stress development and provide unique intelligence that can make crop protection efforts more efficient. It consists of the patented SABER™ sensor mounted on a self-propelled trolley that operates autonomously in greenhouses with a tube-rail system. Collected data is securely stored in the cloud, and the robot brain is said to be protected against hacking due to a novel, patented cloud-based information protection protocol and state of the art security standards.

The Scout robot was jointly developed by Metazet-Formflex, Ecoation and Micothon.

Photo Caption: Established greenhouse technology company Ecoation is one of the companies behind the IRIS! robot

Photo Credit: Ecoation

The post Scout robot could revolutionise greenhouse crop protection appeared first on Hort News on 10 May 2018.

International teams enter autonomous greenhouse challenge

Wageningen University & Research says that fifteen teams have registered to participate in its Autonomous Greenhouses challenge which will take place in the WUR research greenhouses at Bleiswijk. In total, the teams comprise 90 individuals representing 15 nationalities from across the globe.

Teams represent both technology and horticultural companies, such as Microsoft Research, Intel, Tencent, Delphy, Philips Lighting and Syngenta. A number of start-ups are represented and WUR says that the teams also include several plant breeders with lots of practical experience.

The challenge, which is sponsored by Tencent (a leading provider of internet services in China) aims to boost vegetable production using artificial intelligence and autonomous greenhouses to improve vegetable production, and to explore breakthroughs that can help feed more people, deliver greater food security and create more food with fewer resources.

On 31 May and 1 June, the 15 teams will take part in a 24-hour ‘hackathon’ and based on the results, an international jury will then shortlist five teams to go through to the next round. This will involve breeding cucumbers remotely in a dedicated greenhouse section at Bleiswijk using intelligent algorithms, models and sensors, with as little human interference as possible.

The full list of participating teams includes: A Team, AiCU, Huxley, B-Mex, Deep Greens/UNAM, greenHU, iGrow, Modo, SNUPHPF, Sonoma, South China Future AG, The Croperators, The new (cu)cumbers, We Grow and Young Data Driven Growers.

Photo Caption: Companies already working in the greenhouse sector are represented in the entries

Photo Credit: Delphy

The post International teams enter autonomous greenhouse challenge appeared first on Hort News on 10 May 2018.

NEPG predicts increased plantings for 2018

The NEPG (North-Western European Potato Growers) organisation estimates an increase of 0.4 per cent in the planted area of its member countries compared to 2017.

In a release NEPG said that potato stocks remain high, but late planting due to adverse weather and the subsequent later arrival of early 2018 crops were expected to extend the season for last year’s crop. The group also expects to see a convergence of the market in terms of price and quality, with best samples increasing in value.

By the first week of May, continental planting had almost been completed, while around half of the UK area still had to be put into the ground. France, Belgium and Germany have planted more area, while in the Netherlands the area reduced by 2.5 per cent. Great Britain has no estimation available at the moment so the 5 years average has been used to calculate the area planted. In total 0.4 per cent more than last year, and 6.7 per cent more compared to the five-year average, has been planted. NEPG warned that this increase was not in line with the growing demand from the processing industry, and that a 4 per cent reduction in yields from the five-year average is also expected.

AHDB Potatoes pointed out that the NEPG estimates do not include data related to seed potatoes or potatoes for starch production.

Photo Caption: NEPG are forecasting a 0.4 per cent increase in potato planting this year

Photo Credit: Grimme

The post NEPG predicts increased plantings for 2018 appeared first on Hort News on 10 July 2018.

Mechanical weed control shows promise in Canada

Faced with increasing numbers of herbicide-resistant weeds, Canadian farmers on the Prairies are tuning back to mechanical weed control, but rather than hoeing or cultivation, they are looking at clipping weeds to prevent seed formation.

A new project at the University of Saskatchewan is evaluating in-crop weed clipping as a method for weed control, with the objective of developing a strategy to reduce weed seed production: reducing the seed bank in the soil to reduce future infestations.

“The main applications for weed clipping are to lower populations of herbicide-resistant weeds that have escaped herbicide application, and to reduce weed populations in organic systems,” says Lena Syrovy, a research assistant at the Agronomy and Weed Ecology Lab at the University of Saskatchewan. She points out that the weed must be taller than the crop and produce most of its seeds above the crop canopy.

The research team is currently using a CombCut machine from European manufacturer Just Common Sense, but Syrovy added: “I’ve talked to growers who are modifying their swathers to clip weeds above the crop canopy.” Canadian manufacturer Bourgault has also recently launched its BTT weed clipper.

Photo Caption: Combcut machine in operation

Photo Credit: YouTube / Just Common Sense AB

The post Mechanical weed control shows promise in Canada appeared first on Hort News on 26 April 2018.

Report says £10m a year needed to protect UK soils

A new report from WWF, The Rivers Trust and The Angling Trusts claims that spending approximately £10 million a year on soil protection measures in the UK would ensure a future for agriculture and reverse the decline of the 86 per cent of rivers that are currently classed as unhealthy.

WWF claims that up to a third of farmers are currently not complying with England’s water protection laws; which has led to widespread soil degradation, pollution of rivers, increased flood risk, and higher costs for local authorities and water bill payers.

The report’s authors say that creating a properly funded, locally coordinated farm advice service is needed to help farmers care for the environment while maintaining crop productivity. It estimated the cost for effective enforcement and advice in England as being about £10 million per year. It points out that this is a fraction of the current £2 billion provided under the Common Agricultural Policy.

Tony Juniper, Executive Director of Advocacy and Campaigns at WWF, said, “We have a once in a life time opportunity to create and support the nature we want to live in. We could have a farming system that contributes to a healthier planet. But to do that, we have to think locally, by restoring our wildlife and stopping agricultural run-off polluting our rivers. We need to not only put in place the right legislation and protections, but we must have robust enforcement or else we will waste this unique occasion.”

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

The post Report says £10m a year needed to protect UK soils appeared first on Hort News on 26 April 2018.

AHDB Sutton Bridge launches VarietyCheck service

AHDB’s Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research has announced the launch of a new potato storage service called VarietyCheck for the forthcoming season.

AHDB point out that, “With new regulations on acrylamide and fewer sprout suppressants it is more important than ever to get the right storage conditions for your variety of choice.” The new service will be tailored to crop variety and dormancy, as well as end use.

For example, for processing crops using a variety with long dormancy and the ability to store at lower temperature without sweetening is beneficial. For fresh market packing varieties, maintaining appearance and avoiding blackheart are high priorities.

AHDB says that VarietyCheck will use established methods to objectively assess grower’s new varieties or potato stocks under defined and accurately controlled storage conditions with processing or fresh pack storage options. The service will cost £1,250 (excluding VAT) per variety/stock for the first stock, with discounts available for multiple submissions.

Photo Credit: AHDB Potatoes

The post AHDB Sutton Bridge launches VarietyCheck service appeared first on Hort News on 26 April 2018.