Green scheme closure a 'shattering blow' to farms, says union
The Government’s sudden closure of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) has left farmers struggling, with no replacement scheme announced. The SFI, which paid farmers to protect soil, restore hedgerows, and boost nature recovery,…
France: farmers’ protest continues
Dozens of farmers were arrested on 31 January after breaking into the huge Rungis wholesale food market south of Paris, during their ongoing protests. Emmanuel Macron’s government had warned farmers not to approach…
Weather impact on harvesting crops
Meteorologists predict wet weather until September see, and this has a very real impact on farmers. The Farming Forum reported, ‘In this post, we shed light on the critical issues faced by farmers…
Brexit: unfinished business
The Northern Ireland protocol was agreed to ensure free movement of trade across the Irish land border after Brexit. The legal text is now being looked at to nail down details. However, some…
Hope for the Countryside
Turmoil in the world has resulted in volatility and unpredictability in the commodity markets. For example, the rapeseed price paid to farmers, which rose sharply at the beginning of the season, fell again…
Kenya: farmers battle birds
Sometimes called ‘feathered locusts’, queleas are pests across eastern and southern Africa. A quelea eats 10g of grain daily. Not a huge amount, but flocks can number two million and collectively consume 20…
Call for investment in world’s poorest people
The president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development has called for global leaders to invest more in rural communities and small-scale farmers, who produce one-third of the world’s food. The representatives of…
Praying for ‘our daily bread’ amidst food crisis
The UN secretary-general has warned that war in Ukraine, climate change, the pandemic and inequality have produced an ‘unprecedented global hunger crisis’ already affecting hundreds of millions of people. UK’s April inflation was…
Seeds of prayer
This issue departs from core concerns to pray for Ukraine. Agriculture is the largest sector of Ukraine's economy (10% of GDP and 41% of total exports in 2021). Ukraine supplies 10% of the…
Rural life, church, and mission
Farmers are no strangers to challenge, but today’s pressures are many and varied. Added to concerns over Brexit are increased rural crime (animals worth over £2.5 million were stolen last year), prospects of…
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