Daily Post

Small Creatures with a Big Influence On the Land

THE secret lives of mice, voles and shrews are featured in a new booklet published this week by the Countryside Council for Wales. Dr Liz Halliwell, CCW's mammal ecologist, said the Welsh countryside owes a large debt to these small mammals which usually end up as dinner for Wales' larger creatures.

We've Got No Choice: We'll Bury Fallen Stock ; Collection 'Shambles' Makes Breaking Law Only Option

SCORES of farmers in North Wales have been left with little option but to break the law and bury their dead animals. Many privately admit they have been forced into drastic action because of health and safety risks posed by the collapse of the National Fallen Stock Collection (NFSC) scheme. Industry analysts say there is now an undeclared consensus that farmers must bury rotting carcasses rather than leave them lying around.

Rural Schools Face House Price Threat

SMALL rural primary schools are facing closure because high house prices are forcing families to move away, teachers have warned. Many school staff can no longer afford to live in country villages, leading to unfilled vacancies in schools, the National Union of Teachers said. Delegates at the union's annual conference in Gateshead voted unanimously in favour of a motion calling for more money to help small schools.

Vets 'Could Get Powers to Close Down Abattoirs

VETS could be given 'draconian' powers to shut down abattoirs for even the most trivial of reasons, industry representatives claim. The new Food Hygiene Regulations, due to come into force in 2006, include proposals for a Remedial Action Notice. This would give vets enforcement powers to stop abattoir operations immediately if they suspect any regulation, however trivial, has been breached, claimed the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (Aims).

Country Diary

March 31: Second application period to the SFP National Reserve in Wales opens.

Application Form Help

Hunt Successes

Rural Health

Pavilion Takers

Subsidy Error

Biodiesel Bids

Winter Move

Campaign Seeks to Tell Teenage Girls of Dairy Delights

TEENAGE girls are being asked to add dairy products to their daily beauty regime. The Milk Development Council (MDC) yesterday launched a two- year, pounds 3m marketing campaign to promote dairy consumption among 11 to 16-year-old girls.

Profitable Woods

WOODLANDS can make important contributions to the viability of modern farm businesses, landowners heard during a forestry open day. Forestry group Tir Coed organised the event at Brynmelin, Llanwrin, near Machynlleth, to show farmers and landowners how they can capitalise on the wooded areas of their holdings.

It's Not Just Jamie ; Tv Chef's Spotlight On School Meals Is Better Late Than Never, Say Parents Who Have Fought That Battle for Years

LWEN Roberts knew something had to be done when her daughter returned home from school one day: Ema, just five years old, was wrinkling her nose at the turkey drummers she was given at school mealtime. 'They taste funny,' she told her mother. Over the next few weeks Mrs Roberts discussed the issue with fellow mums and dads at the school gate. We really must do something about it, they said. And instead of letting their initial enthusiasm ebb away, they did just that, forming a parents' group ...

Out and About: Cheese Champion

FORMER Wrexham schoolboy Adrian Pryce is celebrating a notable double - a Welsh rugby Grand Slam and winning six major awards at the World Cheese Awards. Adrian, 45, operates from Northamptonshire, but still has strong connections with Wrexham, where his parents, Glynn and Nancy, and sister, Nina, still live. They have all been celebrating after Adrian's company, Select Spain, won four gold medals, a silver and a bronze. The company imports fine Spanish foods such as cheese, wine, charcuterie...

Out and About: Golds Go to 159

Out and About: Hop to It, Please

AN award winning Welsh brewery is calling on Welsh farmers to produce homegrown hops. Breconshire Brewery, one of Wales's newest breweries, which recently won the CAMRA Champion Beer of Wales award, uses malted barley from West Wales but says it would love to make a truly Welsh beer.

Text Service Offers Quick Market Prices

WALES'S biggest livestock marts has launched a text message service to provide farmers with up-to-the-minute market prices. Early every Monday afternoon, subscribers to the Welshpool Livestock Sales (WLS) text service will receive average prices for that day's sale.

Racing Entries

FLINT & Denbigh Hunt has attracted 122 entries for its meeting at Eaton Hall, Chester this Sunday. Racing starts at 1.30pm and is set to finish at 5.15pm. Admission is pounds 20 per car.