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Farming Today: Living Wage, Farm attractions - lambing, Spring Barley struggling with the mud

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29/03/2016

Living Wage, Farm attractions - lambing, Spring Barley struggling with the mud

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, Living Wage, Farm attractions - lambing, Spring Barley struggling with the mud

A debate on the introduction of the Living Wage with NFU and Unite.

A debate on the introduction of the Living Wage with NFU and Unite. Fruit farmer Ali Capper describes wage inflation, while Steve Leniec says farmworkers deserve the rise.

We debate this week's introduction of the Living Wage on Friday 1st April with NFU and Unite. Worcestershire fruit farmer Ali Capper, new head of the NFU's Horticulture Board, is concerned at the impact of wage inflation on producers and employers, while Steve Leniec, Chair of Unite's Agriculture Sector, says farmworkers deserve the rise.

The Easter holidays are a popular time for a visit to the farm and this week, we're taking a look at some of the place where you can experience what faming life is like. And there's nothing more appealing than a new born lamb! Beatrice Fenton visits Penpont Farm, near Wadebridge, in Cornwall, where lambing is a big tourist attraction.

Any farmer will tell you, there's always a battle with the weather and this winter was the second wettest across the UK since Met Office records began in 1910. By the middle of March parts of central and eastern England had already had a month's worth of rain.
In North Norfolk, farmers are struggling to plant spring barley in waterlogged ground - a crop that's vital for the craft beer market. Even though the soil's light and sandy, beneath the surface the ground's still unstable. Anna Hill's been to see how Teddy Maufe of Branthill Farms is coping with that sinking feeling.

Presented by Sybil Ruscoe and produced by Mark Smalley.

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