Farm Diary May 5 2009

I hope that by the time you read this it will be all over for 2009, with all the maize seed in the ground. It has been a remarkable run to be honest, and we will be very lucky to do as well in the future. We planned for the worst, and the perfect spring made it very easy it has to be said.

We are now within a week or so of cutting grass silage, weather permitting, with plenty to do in order to get the silage clamp clean and ready for the new crop. I am going to try a 'cling-film' on the silage this year, below the main silage sheet.

This should seal the grass much more effectively, and minimize any waste, particularly on the shoulders of the clamp, where it's difficult to get a proper seal with a conventional sheet. I am after an extra two litres, per cow, per day, above the performance of this last winter from my grass and maize silage next winter; time will tell, but if we get the sunshine, we are certainly leaving nothing else to chance.

The cows are milking well, but access to grazing is still limited due to the building works. I will now cut most of the fields and get cows out on aftermaths, which should grow back very well with our dirty water irrigation.

As we now calve all year round and maintain a level supply of milk, we have qualified for the first time, not to have 'seasonality' applied to our milk pricing. Most companies penalize milk production in the spring, and reward production in the autumn, by price adjustment of around 10%. This makes a huge difference to cash flow, but of course milk can be produced cheaper in the spring on grass, and farmers tend to not change their pattern of supply for that reason.

It is essential that fresh milk for drinking is produced every day, and needs a higher price to cater for that extra expense, but many cheese producers also have seasonality payments.

This needs to be questioned, given that cheese has a shelf life, and that it is in direct competition with imports, especially from Ireland. Competitive milk supply will be essential in the future for cheese production if we are to maintain that production in this country. Liquid milk does not carry a 'premium' as most refer to it; it is in fact a 'service charge' for the extra cost of maintaining supply every day of the year. Retailers will always protect the liquid supply as it is unique, and a necessary supply of British milk to be sold in the shops every day.

Cheese is viewed differently. British cheese has to compete with other cheeses on the market, and even the added value and branded cheese price is linked, and driven by commodity cheese prices. It is important that cheese producers in this country, therefore, look at the total cost of cheese production, and bench-mark themselves against other competitive countries. Only the competitive businesses will survive.

I've never understood the sense in buying bottled water. It appears that it is now being questioned by consumers, as sales of bottle water are falling as it becomes a victim of the 'credit crunch'. Nestle, the biggest producer of bottled water, with absurd claims of 'champagne of waters' being applied to some of their brands such as 'Perrier and 'S.Pellegrino', reported that sales are down by over 4 per cent in the first quarter of this year, and last year the British market fell 9 per cent. Not only are consumers 'trading down' (!) but many are going back to drinking water from the tap.

In 1980, only 30 million litres of bottled water was sold in this country, but by the peak of 2007, the figure was up to 1.3 billion litres, with branded waters costing more than milk.

Now reality is setting in, and on top of the questionable wisdom, never mind value of such purchases; a much bigger threat is looming. Advertising and promotion can convince many that they will be fitter, healthier, smarter, and more 'chic' if they are seen carrying, and drinking certain brands of water. However, now that bottled water is under attack on environmental grounds, it's more serious.

David de Rothschild (of the banking dynasty), is building a raft made of plastic bottles, with the aim of traveling from San Francisco, to Sydney, calling in at an area of the Pacific, known as the 'East Garbage Patch', which is strewn with plastic bottles. He is going to illustrate the environmental impact of the bottled water industry, linking it with the worst excesses of the 'throw away society'.

Restaurant critic, Giles Coren has been a long time critic of the bottled water culture, and is claiming that the customer is now much more likely to order tap water, and feels less of a 'cheapskate' for doing so. He believes that it is going to have a huge impact on this 'completely unnecessary product'.