Fallen stock charge woe (From Western Telegraph)

Fallen stock charge woe

Sheep producers who run flocks in Pembrokeshire fear they will be hit the hardest by casualty stock collection charges.

Farmers have been quoted up to £14 a head for the collection and disposal of a dead ewe by operators contracted by the National Fallen Stock Company.

Wyn Jones, who farms sheep and beef at Trefach, Blaenffos, said farmers were not in a position to pass these costs on to their buyers.

"We are price takers, not price makers. The supermarkets are so strong that they will source cheaper meat from elsewhere if we don't absorb these extra costs,'' said Mr Jones. "It is a worry and an extra cost that we can't bear. Unlike any other industry it is a cost that we can't recoup at the other end of the food chain.''

He is fortunate because the Tivyside Hunt is still accepting fallen stock at its Cilgerran kennels. But the Hunt is reluctant to incinerate casualty sheep because their wool fleeces are difficult to dispose of.

Mr Jones has paid £28 to join the National Fallen Stock Scheme but is still waiting for a list of licensed collectors.

He knew of farmers who had been quoted between £8 and £14 a head for the collection of a single sheep.

With producers averaging 5% losses at lambing time, the new collection charges will have a major impact on profit margins.

There is no compulsion on farmers to join the scheme. They can make their own arrangements with an incineration company but they will have to have documentary evidence that the animal has been correctly disposed of.

If this information is missing from their farm records it will breach cross compliance rules and jeopardise a farmer's Single Farm Payment.

Although the Tivyside Hunt continues its casualty stock service, the South Pembrokeshire Hunt has had to suspend this facility at its Cresselly kennels.

Joint Hunt master James Andrews said the Hunt was awaiting the result of the legal challenge to the February 18th hunt ban, before deciding whether to invest resources on upgrading the incineration site.