Winter Wheat

How concerned are UK farmers about bluetongue?

Recent BTV-3 outbreaks in the UK, transmitted by biting midges spread from mainland Europe, has prompted Defra to permit use of three BTV-3 vaccines.

 
But how concerned are UK farmers about bluetongue?

This is the perfect question for our National Farm Research Unit Farmer Panel
We asked our panel of dairy, beef and sheep farmers across the UK how concerned they were, and if they'd use a vaccine for bluetongue.

bluetongue alt crop

The Results

14% of UK dairy farmers were concerned about bluetongue and 22% would use a vaccine.
Just 10% of beef farmers across the UK are concerned about bluetongue, however 22% would still use a vaccine.
11% of UK sheep farmers expressed concern about bluetongue and 23% would use a vaccine.

The National Farm Research Unit Poll for July was on Winter Wheat buying factors

We asked 281 UK Winter Wheat growers

What affects your decision when selecting Winter Wheat varieties?
Would you grow Hybrid Winter Wheat?

Winter Hybrid Wheat

Would our farmers use Hybrid Wheat?

Hybrid Arable crop seed has been a key part of the UK Farming landscape for sometime, enabling farmers and growers to make informed decisions on whether the benefits of Home Saving seed outweigh the Agronomic benefits of Hybrid seed.

Winter Hybrid Barley has been the principle hybrid cereal crop in the UK for the past decade or so. Syngenta’s breakthrough in producing a reliable, reproduceable method of seed production has enabled them to launch a succession of popular varieties into the 6-row feed barley market, initially starting with “Colossus”, although arguably the big breakthrough variety was “Volume”, debuting on the Recommended list back in 2009/10.

Recently other players have entered the Hybrid Winter Barley market and Hybrid Rye has had good success, albeit in a modest market.

Since these developments, Hybrid Wheat has been a discussion point amongst the UK Agricultural community. When? What? How? Who? Are often asked, but few people in the industry have asked farmers if they would use Hybrid Wheat, or indeed, what is most important for farmers when choosing a Winter Wheat variety.

What we found

Yield and disease resistance are strong decision criteria

Unsurprisingly, “Yield” at (29%)  and “Disease resistance” (26%) with strong influence on; output, input costs and ease of management, were the most mentioned metrics. However, “recommended by advisor” (12%) featured strongly. As did “experience” (6%), which suggests that farmers are more likely to make the decision over variety selection than crop protection inputs.

Analysing farmer feedback according to farm size shows additional insights, with growers of less than 100Ha of Wheat having increasing concerns over seed availability. This would suggest that units of over 100Ha of Wheat have more choice and are less concerned with “missing out” on popular varieties.

Growers with more than 100Ha Wheat

What affects your decision when selecting Winter Wheat varieties?
More than one answer allowed

Number of farmers - All = 104

nfru wheat graphs more than

Yield is king within this group, although Disease resistance still important
Advisor and personal experience also strong factors

Growers with less than 100Ha Wheat

What affects your decision when selecting Winter Wheat varieties?
More than one answer allowed

Number of farmers - All = 177

nfru wheat graphs less than

Yield slightly less important to this group of growers
“Availability” appears more of a concern for growers with less than 100Ha

Total Sample

What affects your decision when selecting Winter Wheat varieties?
More than one answer allowed

Number of farmers - All = 281

nfru wheat graphs total pie

Yield and disease resistance were key metrics
Advisor recommendation also scored highly

Total Sample

Would you grow Hybrid Wheat?

Number of farmers - All = 281

nfru wheat graphs total bar

Regional Breakdown

Would you grow Hybrid Wheat?

Number of farmers - All = 281

Region Would grow Hybrid Wheat Number of farmers
North West 80% 5
Wales 63% 8
East Midlands 52% 33
North East 50% 10
Northern Ireland 50% 4
Yorkshire & Humber 50% 46
South East 46% 24
Scotland 45% 29
South West 43% 37
West Midlands 40% 45
Eastern 33% 40

Eastern Area least keen on Hybrid Wheat in contrast to their East Midlands neighbours where over half are interested

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National Farm Research Unit Interviewer Spotlight

andrea nfru
Each quarter we would like to take the opportunity to introduce you to one of our fantastic team of interviewers. This quarter our interviewer spotlight is on Andrea

Andrea has worked for the NFRU for 14 years. Andrea says:

“I enjoy working at the NFRU because talking to farmers is very unique and is different everyday…. The most valuable information I have learnt from respondents is that it’s [farming] not just a job it’s a way of life.”

Andrea enjoys working on a variety of studies.

“What I Iike most about the agricultural industry is the huge amount of knowledge out there i.e. it could be scientific, crop related, machinery, livestock and medicine - the list is endless.”

Andrea’s hobbies are reading, crafts, cooking and learning the keyboard.

National Farm Research Charitable Donations

Cumulative Donations since Oct 2018
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Rural Support NI £631.10
Embrace Farm 4,603.50€

RABI - Freephone helpline on 0800 188 4444.
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Our Support for Farmers


Farmers participating in our on-going research studies can gain valuable BASIS and NRoSO points. Simply give your BASIS number to our interviewer when they call to update your record. To claim your NRoSO points please log onto the website and enter code NO471443f

This code is valid for 12 months from the 1st September 2024

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We are always pleased to receive your feedback, or if you would like to have your views and opinions heard by taking part in our research projects please email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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