Farming Today

Fuel prices continue to dominate the headlines, the war in the Middle East has led to them shooting up in recent weeks, causing real concern to those in rural areas who aren’t connected to the gas mains and rely on oil for heating. The £50 million pounds-worth of emergency funds announced last month by the government to help vulnerable rural households are now being distributed by rural local authorities in England and through other mechanisms in the devolved nations. It’s all put a sharp focus on fuel poverty in rural areas. The Westminster Government has just published a new Statistical Digest of Rural England, which shows that the depth of fuel poverty in rural areas is almost twice that of in towns and cities.

We know livestock produce greenhouse gas emissions - but we also know that the volume, or amount, of gas is affected by what those cattle or sheep eat. A new DEFRA-funded study has investigated upland sheep grazing systems to see if some forages produce lower emissions. The project compared 120 ewes, some pure Swaledales and some crossbred with Texels, on three different grazing systems in Wensleydale.

1.3 million tonnes of fish were caught in the UK’s ‘Marine Protected Areas’, or MPAs, between 2020 and 2024. Greenpeace, who’ve calculated that figure from official sources, say it makes what should be havens of safety for marine life, little more than meaningless lines on a map. They argue that marine eco-systems are protected on “paper only” while industrial-scale fishing and boats with bottom trawling gear, that drags across the seabed, are still allowed in MPAs.

Presenter = Caz Graham Producer = Rebecca Rooney

Livestock markets in England and Wales have reported record breaking figures for 2025. The latest numbers from the Livestock Auctioneers Association show that turnover was up almost half a billion pounds, to just under 3 billion in total, a twenty percent rise, year on year. That’s despite a reduction in the number of both sheep and cattle in the UK. We ask the Livestock Auctioneers Association why turnover has risen so much.

All week we're looking at the sheep sector. Across the UK lambing is well underway, though some will have finished by now. With nearly 15 million breeding ewes, most having twins and some giving birth to triplets, it's an enormous task to get the lambs delivered safely. Many sheep farmers will recruit help in the form of family, vet students, and often those who just have an interest and want to learn. They'll often be matched up through the Lambing List - an online site set up by the National Sheep Association.

As the Easter holidays begin, many of us will be taking the chance to get out into the countryside. The charity The Ramblers, which campaigns for walkers and countryside access, says that may be easier said than done. They’ve just launched a new campaign called "access denied". They want an end, they say, to what they describe as years of neglect to Britain’s footpath network, resulting in thousands of miles of paths missing, blocked or un-usable.

Presenter = Caz Graham Producer = Rebecca Rooney

The National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations is asking the Government for help with rising costs because of the conflict in the Middle East. The NFFO says it's difficult to pass on the hike in diesel prices to customers, because fish are sold at auction. It has written to the Minister for Food Security, Angela Eagle, pointing out that some European countries have already announced support packages to help with rising prices. By the end of last week, the average UK price of diesel for fishing boats had gone up by 75% since the beginning of March.

Every spring around the villages of Kempley and Dymock carpets of wild daffodils can still be seen in the fields and woodlands, thanks to carefully managed agricultural and forestry practices. Our reporter Bob Hockenhull has been to take a look.

Charlotte Smith finds out why this is a pretty good time to be a sheep farmer, according to the Chief Executive of the National Sheep Association.

Presenter: Charlotte Smith Producer: Sarah Swadling