Farming Today

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Farming Today: 15/11/23 - NI badger cull, environmental payment stacking and brassica breeding

15/11/23 - NI badger cull, environmental payment stacking and brassica breeding

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, 15/11/23 - NI badger cull, environmental payment stacking and brassica breeding

Farmers in Northern Ireland ask what's next after a planned badger cull is cancelled.

Farmers in Northern Ireland are left wondering what comes next after a planned badger cull is cancelled following a legal battle.

Farmers in Northern Ireland have been left wondering what's next after a proposal to cull badgers to prevent the spread of bovine TB was quashed by a court last month, which found the consultation behind the cull was flawed. At the time, the Ulster Farmers’ Union described the decision as "a major blow for livestock farmers"...saying it could now "take years before the issue of the TB reservoir in wildlife is addressed." The Northern Ireland Badger Group - which brought the legal challenge alongside Wild Justice - said "a farmer-led cull would inflict immense suffering on great numbers of healthy badgers."

Farmers in England are being warned that even if they take up multiple options to 'stack' Government payments for environmental work under the new post-Brexit support scheme, they will not receive the same amount of funding they used to get, under the EU's Basic Payments Scheme. That's according to new research by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, which found taking up multiple payments can bring stability to farm incomes, but that farmers have to judge how much it might cost them to take up the work, before committing to it.

And brassica crops like cabbages or cauliflowers face many challenges in the field. Pests, diseases and the weather can all reduce yields and affect their quality, which can cause farmers to lose income. We hear from scientists at the University of Warwick, who have been working to develop new varieties which can be more resistant to difficult weather conditions, disease and pests.

Presented by Anna Hill
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons

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