Author: TFF News

Farmers on The Farming Forum spent six weeks measuring the 2026 drought against 1976 and 1995, and by the time the rain arrived the questions had turned commercial: how much grass is dead, what the dry summer has done to stretched livestock budgets, and why the water was not there when farms needed it. With 107 contributions and 6,315 views, the conversation tracks the drought declarations, the £65 million support package with no hardship payment, and the reseeding and water storage decisions now facing the trade.

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Accounts of fumigated cargo holds and infested shipments opened one of the summer’s more pointed conversations on The Farming Forum, and it quickly became a referendum on farm assurance. Across 138 contributions and 7,080 views, growers asked why UK grain must be Red Tractor assured to enter feed mills while imported grain arrives with no farm-level assurance at all. Arable and livestock voices pulled in different directions on the remedy, but on the double standard the conversation spoke with one voice.

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A farmer’s question about whether to fit a front end loader to a Case IH Puma or buy a used 120hp loader tractor drew 106 contributions and 4,415 views on The Farming Forum. The conversation split into two equal camps, tractor and loader against dedicated handlers, with retrofit loaders quoted at £12,000 to £16,000 fitted and new loader tractor promotions from around £65,000 with 0% finance. Second-hand condition risk and field damage from heavy telehandlers gave each side its sharpest arguments.

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A 173-contribution Farming Forum census of combines in daily use found working machines of 20, 30 and nearly 40 years old cutting commercially significant acreages. Contributors linked the stalled replacement cycle to machine prices, shrinking combinable acreage and a maintenance culture that makes rebuilding cheaper than trading. AEA figures show combine orders down 30% in 2024/25, the weakest in the association’s records.

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A 119-contribution Farming Forum conversation asks whether pedigree Texel selection has drifted from what commercial ram buyers want. Contributors debated breed type, embryo transfer and donor choice, show-ring influence and whether the breed’s own index rewards traits that suit commercial lamb producers. Critical contributions drew the most agreement, though some reported improving fleshing at recent sales.

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A 116-contribution Farming Forum conversation asks whether modern tractors are well matched to the short, dirty and stop-start work common on livestock farms. Farmers compared brakes and towing, driving technique, electronics, emissions systems, dealer response and the appeal of older, simpler machinery. The discussion suggests reliability depends on the complete operating system, while official guidance stresses compatible trailer brakes, roadworthiness and preventative maintenance.

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