The latest news about food, farming and the countryside
--------
24:47
--------
24:47
01/08/25 Impact of war on Ukraine farmland, river management, slurry storage
Half a million pounds is going from the UK Government to a project aiming to improve soils in Ukraine. The ongoing research, being run by the Royal Agricultural University, has identified significant damage to soils from the war there - things like heavy metal contamination from bombardments. The new money will help set up soil labs. We speak to the professor leading it and a farmer in Ukraine.Small changes in the way a river catchment is managed can have a big impact - reconnecting floodplains, re-wiggling rivers and slowing the flow upstream can reduce the flood and pollution risk and encourage more biodiversity. A ‘whole Cumbria strategy’, which involves three River Trusts, the Environment Agency and Natural England – has just been named as one of only four finalists for a prestigious global award, the Thiess International River prize. It’s up against river projects in the USA and Albania. We see the kind of work the Cumbrian River Restoration Partnership Programme is doing in the Lake District.The Environment Agency's urging farmers to think ahead and get ready for storage of slurry this winter.Presenter = Charlotte Smith
Producer = Rebecca Rooney
--------
14:06
--------
14:06
31/07/25 Bioethanol, managing water in the Norfolk Broads, pesticides petition
The bioethanol company Vivergo says it will take in its last consignment of grain tomorrow, before it stops production at its plant near Hull - unless the UK government steps into help. It says this is because of the US UK trade deal which came into force last month, allowing up to 1.4 billion litres of tax-free bioethanol from the States.How's water managed in the Norfolk Broads? We look at the system of pumping stations and drainage ditches which helps balance the competing demands of water of homes, farms and leisure.Nearly two million people have signed a petition in France demanding an end to the use of a chemical called acetamiprid which was previously banned. They say the French government should not have overturned the ban, and that it is bowing to pressure from farmers. Farmers say France is already allowing imports from countries which use the neonicotinoid and that it's not a level playing field.
Presenter = Anna Hill
Producer = Rebecca Rooney
--------
14:01
--------
14:01
30/07/25: Climate Threat to Fruit and Veg Imports, Water Summit, Incentivising Beavers.
The UK is heavily reliant on fruit and vegetables grown overseas. But a new report predicts that, by 2050, around half of fruit and veg imports to the UK will be affected by climate change risks including rising temperatures and diminishing water supplies. Water management is such a burning topic at the moment that the NFU has just held its first Water Summit on a Yorkshire farm. And, how do you incentivise reintroduced Beavers to shape rivers the way you intend?Presenter: Anna Hill
Producer: Sarah Swadling
--------
14:05
--------
14:05
29/07/25 Water management, agricultural chaplain, slug control
As the NFU hosts an on-farm water summit, we find out more about an innovative project in Shropshire to manage water. It aims to prevent excess run-off from urban areas which floods farmland and destroys crops.Out and about with the Agricultural Chaplain for Suffolk who's helping farmers cope with the pressures of running a farm business. He says they're especially concerned about changes to inheritance tax reform.Scientists are working with farmers to find a high-tech way of tackling one of the most voracious pests farmers face - slugs. Traditionally, producers have used ferric phosphate pellets to kill them, or taken a more expensive but eco-friendly route, using nematodes to eat the pests. Now the British On-Farm Innovation Network or BOFIN for short, is using artificial intelligence as part of a "Slimers" project to work out where slugs are hiding.
Presenter = Anna Hill
Producer = Rebecca Rooney
Ireland