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Farming Today: 23/09/2011

23/09/2011

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, 23/09/2011

Farmers say a ban on feeding pigs to chickens and vice versa should be lifted.

The Food Standards Agency says a European ban on feeding pigs to poultry and vice versa should not be lifted but farmers say it is safe enough and should be allowed.

The Food Standards Agency is advising the Government to keep the ban on using pigs and poultry in animal feed. The European Commission wants it lifted, saying that with tight controls it would be safe to allow pig meat to be fed to poultry or vice versa. The FSA has said the risk of disease is small but worth keeping the ban in place. But farmers say science is on their side and using animal protein in feed would reduce imports of soya - so be better for conservation - and would add value to their animals. 

Anna Hill gets a rare step inside one of the UK's sugar factories where beet is processed into sugar. The country once had 12 plants but now only 4. As sugar quotas could be coming to an end Anna asks whether UK farmers could produce more beet and if more factories will be built. 

Charlotte returns to The People's Supermarket which aimed to connect the public with farmers and collect and reuse crops from farmers rejected from other retailers. One year on she finds out how well it's worked and sees who's missing. 

Presented by Charlotte Smith. Produced by Anne-Marie Bullock.

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23/09/2011

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