Anglia Machinery - February 2022

February 2022

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NEWS

£25m funding available for hi-tech farm machinery • Defra grants available to farmers • Six weeks to make an application • Goal to improve farm productivity

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armers and agricultural contractors have until 16 March to apply for up to £500,000 to invest in cutting edge robotics and technology to boost food production.

Grants ranging from £35,000 up to £500,000 are available to invest in productivity-boosting equipment. They include driverless tractors, robots that harvest, spray crops and weed, and automated milking systems.

The Defra scheme, worth £25 million in total, is the latest instalment of the Farming Investment Fund – an umbrella fund which opened in November and is designed to increase produc-

tivity on farms.

It is part of the government’s agricultural transition plan – which seeks to reward farmers who undertaken environmental work while producing food sustainably in a way that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and helps to mitigate the impact of climate change.

Farm minister Victoria Prentis said all farmers should look at the scheme’s eligibility and funding details. “We know how important it is for farmers to identify opportunities that maximise productivity and yields.”

The application window for the Improving Farm Productiv-

ity theme of the Farming Investment Fund opened last month.

Defra says further themed grants will open for applications later this year.

Farmers and contractors are being urged to take advantage of this opportunity to apply for grants to buy new equipment and infrastructure to improve agricultural efficiency.

Defra says doing so will “help us build back greener”.

Farmers will also be able to apply for grants towards new slurry management systems. They Victoria Prentis: Opportunities for farmers

can purchase equipment that lowers the acid in slurry which in turn increases the nutrients for plants and reduces ammonia emissions and pollution.

Ms Prentis said: “These grants are aimed at contributing towards the purchase of new and green equipment that can bring a positive change to the day to day operation of a farm, as well as the wider environment.”

Project costs Funding is being delivered to farmers by the Rural Payment Agency.

Grants are paid in arrears, and at least 60% of the project costs Continued overleaf

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NEWS

The Sutton saleground sold more than £36.5m of machinery in 2021

Cheffins reports bumper year for machinery sales • Record-breaking prices achieved • On-site sales up by more than 35% • Buyers came from 35+ countries

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uctioneer Cheffins says it sold more than £52m of agricultural machinery last year – achieving recordbreaking prices at online auctions and its monthly sale near Ely, Cambridgeshire.

The firm – which conducts the largest monthly sale of tractors and agricultural machinery in the world – sold £52,600,369 of second-hand machinery during

2021 – equivalent to more than £1m each week.

Sales were up by £4.6m compared to 2020 – making 2021 a record year for Cheffins. More than 33,000 lots were offered at 53 auctions with buyers coming from more than 35 countries worldwide.

The Cambridge Machinery Sales at Sutton, near Ely, sold more than £36.5m of items dur-

£25m funding available for hi-tech farm machinery Continued from previous page need to be paid for through private sources like savings or a bank loan.

Rural Payments Agency chief executive Paul Caldwell said: “If you are a farm owner planning to invest in your business to increase productivity in an environmentally sustainable way, this fund may be suited to your needs.

“There is a wide variety of equipment and systems farmers can apply for though the Farming 4 Anglia Machinery February 2022

Investment Fund, and our new online eligibility checker is designed to make your application process even faster and easier.”

Farmers are also able to access business support through the Farming Resilience Fund.

The fund awards grants to organisations so that they can support farmers and land managers who are in receipt of Basic Payment Scheme payments.

For details, see www.bit.ly/farmgrant2022

ing the year. Highlights included a Fendt 936 Vario tractor which sold for £60,000 and a JCB 457 loading shovel which sold for £64,500.

Cheffins head of machinery sales Oliver Godfrey said: “Last year saw a surge in demand for second-hand kit as farmers continue to be affected by rising costs and delayed delivery times for new machinery.

“The combination of both Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic has led to a boom in sales of machinery, with a marked increase in not only the on site sales which we offer but also the number of buyers taking part in our auctions from both the UK and overseas.”

Cheffins hosted 38 on-site sales during the year – 10 more than the 28 hosted in 2020. These took place across the UK and saw more than 6,700 lots offered on behalf of farmers and contractors nationwide.

Highlights of the on-site sale calendar included a sale on behalf of RC Baker, which grossed more than £3.1m, with £525,000 paid for a Claas Xerion 5000 slurry tanker – the most paid for any second-hand piece of agricultural machinery at auction.

Meanwhile, vintage sales hosted at the Cheffins saleground

and on sites elsewhere grossed over £5m in 2021, representing an uplift of 42% over the 2020 gross total of £3.5m as interest in old machinery soared.

Mr Godfrey said: “Dealers have definitely come back to auctions in their droves this year as the lack of new tractor registrations and a drop in trade-ins has continued to affect supply levels.

“

Brexit and Covid have meant a boom in machinery sales.

“The coronavirus lockdown also had a very real impact on the sales of vintage and classic items which saw an uptick in values achieved as people were able to spend more time at home and indulge in pastimes.”

A number of records were set for vintage and classic tractors throughout 2021, with key sales including the Shrubbs Farm Sale which saw £210,112 paid for a 1983 County 1474 ‘short nose’ tractor. in total, the sale grossed more than £1m.

Other records set were £156,250 for a 1946 Scammell Showtrac and £74,500 for a 1966 5004/6 Northrop tractor.

NEWS

Kuhn offers incentives on precision sprayer options

The trailed Lexis comes with discounted section control and boom assist

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prayer specialist Kuhn is offering significant incentives to farmers looking to embrace more precision led application methods.

Both the Deltis and Altis mounted models – and the Lexis and Metris trailed sprayers – will now be offered with GPS section control, boom assist, and five other options at a discount, says the company.

“We want to incentivise precision farming methods that can reduce costs and increase yield,” explains sprayer and non-inversion specialist Rupert Greest. “Therefore, Kuhn now offers up to £5,000 of additional discounts on options for sprayers.”

Further options include a new

droplet control feature, which enables the operator to adjust droplet size without leaving the cab.

Other features include automat-

Rupert Greest: Cost-effective options

ed filling and rinsing, automatic boom height control and automated steering axles.

The different options represent a move to compete with the functionality of self-propelled machines while offering the flexibility of having a tractor for the months when a sprayer is not needed, says Mr Greest.

The compact Metris has a hitch-to-axle length of 4.4m.

Tank capacity ranges from 3,200 to 4,100 litres. At just 3.35m high when specified with 36m booms it is easy to store and light to tow, explains Mr Greest.

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“It may represent a more costeffective option to farms looking to move away from a self-propelled sprayer,” he adds.

The Kuhn scheme works on a sliding scale, with three precision features triggering a discount of £1,000. Thereafter, each additional precision feature adds a further £1,000 up to a maximum discount of £5,000 when all seven features are included.

“The technology is available, and we want customers to take advantage of it to realise the full potential of the Kuhn sprayer range.”

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NEWS

First female recipient of Claas engineering scholarship

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Owners and operators can check machine status at all times.

Telematics system makes UK debut at demonstration

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new telematics system from sugar beet and slurry application specialists Vervaet made its UK debut last month at a working demonstration held importers J Riley Beet Harvesters.

The Vervaet Connect system uses sensors to collect machine performance and operating data which is then transmitted to a webserver and presented in real-time through an new online portal called MyVervaet.

The demonstration day took place on 27 January by kind permission of H Jones (Farms) Ltd at Little Witchingham, Norfolk.

The Vervaet Connect system enables current and historical machine data to be accessed via the platform from any location.

Vervaet machines produced from 2022 onwards will be equipped as standard with the Vervaet Connect system. The company says it has benefits for farmers and contractors.

Data can be accessed from any location, says Vervaet 8 Anglia Machinery February 2022

“It all aids efficiency,” says Matt Carse, sales manager at J Riley Beet Harvesters.

“There is a real advantage from a service point of view, with the ability to diagnose potential issues or help customers with machine setup remotely, which can only make our aftersales support even better.

Wireless updates “The ability to carry out things like software updates wirelessly also means that our service team will potentially spend less time travelling which will, in effect, save money for the customer down the line.”

The system allows the owner or operator to instantly ascertain the location and status of their machine at all times – speeding up day-to-day management tasks, especially when running multiple Vervaet products.

A log of previous work allows parameters such as fuel consumption and performance to be analysed, compared and tweaked – increasing efficiency and reducing costs.

Contractors also gain from the detailed information, including fuel consumption in any given field. Maintenance management is streamlined, with machine hours displayed in the dashboard – making service scheduling possible from the office.

Alerts of any errors or problems are flagged up on the MyVervaet portal. This is also visible to the dealer and manufacturer, with remote diagnostics possible and the ability for

software updates to be installed wirelessly, all reducing machine downtime.

The precision agriculture elements of Vervaet Connect bring advantages to growers, says Mr Carse. It helps maximise the potential of their land and make sound well-informed management decisions.

The system’s compatibility with other platforms means data can be especially useful where other advanced farming techniques such as variable rate seeding are employed.

Slurry rates For the Vervaet Hydro Trike and Quad, the system creates application maps in the MyVervaet portal displaying the rate of slurry applied across each field. This allows applications to be optimised and recorded accuratey.

This can already be taken a step further by using a separate John Deere system with an integrated NIR sensor to control the application rate according to the nutrient value of the slurry, allowing nitrogen to be applied evenly despite varying slurry quality.

Although yield mapping for combinable crops has become standard practice on many forward-thinking farms, this generally wasn’t possible for root-crops, resulting in missing data whenever a field grew sugar beet.

But Vervaet says it has plugged this gap with yield mapping offered as an optional integrated system with data presented in the MyVervaet portal.

ngineering student Molly Robson has become the first woman to be awarded a Claas UK Scholarship at Harper Adams University.

Now in its 16th year, the scholarship was instigated in 2005 at the personal request of company director Helmut Claas. It is awarded annually to a second year engineering student at Harper.

As this year’s Claas scholar, Ms Robson will receive £3,000 towards her education costs each academic year.

In addition, she will do a three-month placement with a Claas UK dealership, before a 12-month paid placement at Claas headquarters in Harsewinkel, Germany.

Before attending Harper, Ms Robson studied at Askham Bryan College for a Level 3 Advanced Technical Extended Diploma in Land Based Engineering. When she’s not studying, she enjoys racing a V8 stock car.

Ms Robson said: “To be a Claas scholar and have my placement with the company, is something I have wanted to achieve since I started my journey in the world of agricultural engineering. I am beyond excited for this opportunity.”

Claas has enjoyed close ties with Harper Adams for many years – including through sponsored research work at the university. It provides work placement opportunities for a number of students each year.

Molly Robson is looking forward to her scholarship and time in Germany.

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NEWS

New applicator improves broadcast accuracy • Precision placement sees cost-savings • Different metering cartridges available • Performance and accuracy important

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eplacing a troublesome liquid fertiliser spreader has helped arable grower Andrew Pitts improve the accuracy of previous broadcasting systems.

Mr Pitts replaced the spreader on his John Deere 750A drill with a Microcast 200 – an applicator for the precision placement of seeds and granular products. He then widened its use with different metering cartridges from manufacturer Techneat Engineering.

Mr Pitts farms 800ha of combinable crops with his brother William on primarily heavy chalky boulder clay soils near Mears Ashby, Northamptonshire. He originally changed his method of establishment from minimum tillage to direct drilling in 2016.

After trialing six direct drills between 2016 and 2018, he settled on the JD 750A because it moved the least amount of surface soil – critical to successful blackgrass control built around minimal soil disturbance.

Economic benefits Eighteen months after taking delivery of the Microcast 200, the change to a new applicator has created some additional agronomic and economic benefits as the farm moves towards a new six-year rotation.

“As a business we have always been very market driven. Everything we grow is based on a forward contract, and this enables us to track our fixed costs against predicted returns with a reasonably good degree of accuracy.

“With machines, our policy is performance, accuracy and reliability. When the liquid distribution heads on the fertiliser spreader started to continually block up, we made a quick decision to switch to a granular application system using the Microcast.”

Mr Pitts says he has known Techneat for 30 years, since purchasing their Autocast V2 for oilseed rape establishment back in the early 1990s.

“They build simple, well-engineered, reliable machines and, when required, can also innovate with a hands-on engineering approach if we’re looking to achieve something that may fall outside the standard specifications.

“The Microcast has a quick set up, is easy to calibrate and delivers granular fertiliser, or Continued on p12 10 Anglia Machinery February 2022

Northamptonshire grower Andrew Pitts with his Microcast 200

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NEWS Continued from p10

seed, into the furrows accurately via a flexible number of individual outlets spaced evenly across the full width of the drill.

Seeder unit Although the primary reason for investing in the Microcast was to replace the liquid fertiliser system with a granular fertiliser applicator, Mr Pitts says he knew that the machine can double as a seeder unit with minimal modifications.

“We have now successfully widened the use of the Microcast 200 to include applying cover crops, companion crop planting and slug pellets through use of different metering cartridges that can be changed quickly and easily.”

The economic savings from reduced fuel use and agronomic benefits of protecting our soil through reduced passes are important, enabling us to reduce the farms carbon footprint, says Mr Pitts.

The overall benefits of the Microcast investment look even more impressive when savings on fertiliser inputs are examined in

12 Anglia Machinery February 2022

greater detail. This became apparent when using the applicator to apply a mix of starter fertiliser and stubble turnips in early August 2020.

“Soil mineral nitrogen tests conducted in March 2021 indicated that the mix had captured 85-90kg of nitrogen/ha before being grazed by sheep – equivalent to 100% of available nitrogen.

“This meant we were able to reduce the applied nitrogen by 150kg/ha on the spring barley crop that followed because we already had that amount of nitrogen being used in the soil operating at 60-70% efficiency.

“Given the current high cost of fertiliser, that equates to a cost saving made by planting a companion crop – and the creation of an extra use for the field itself in that we’re effectively growing three crops over two years at minimal cost.

“The adaptability of the Microcast 200 applicator helped facilitate the addition of the companion crop so it must take a fair amount of the overall credit for the cost savings.”

New regional manager to head AMC team

T

he Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (AMC) has appointed a new regional agricultural manager for East Anglia and Lincolnshire.

Declan Wilson joins the AMC team having previously worked for Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking as an agricultural relationship manager. He brings more than a decade of banking experience to the role, along with links to agriculture through his extended family.

Mr Wilson said: “I’m looking forward to working with local farm businesses – whether they’re looking at renewable energy to reduce their carbon footprint, have ambitions to diversify existing operations or need investment to purchase new land or machinery.”

Having initially joined Lloyds Bank in 2017 as a relationship manager within the bank’s specialist agriculture team, Mr

Wilson has since worked with a wide range of farming businesses across Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and East Anglia.

In his new role, he will lead a team of agricultural experts who provide financial expertise, funding, and guidance to around 1300 farming businesses across East Anglia – including Hertfordshire and Essex and reaching across to Bedfordshire.

Mr Wilson, who lives in Boston, will also work alongside AMC’s team of 27 independent land agents who carry out business loan application and valuation work, as well as 14 valuers in the region.

AMC managing director Lee Reeves said: “Declan’s appointment comes at a time when British farming is undergoing a period of considerable change, with the phasing out of the basic payment, severe weather and the challenges of the Covid pandemic.”

NEWS

Machines star in TV show

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ohn Deere has used its own Deere TV Studio for the first time to showcase its latest machines.

Experts, farmers and influencers presented the new 6R tractor series, the latest combines and forage harvesters using live interviews and videos. The three late-night shows – available to watch on YouTube – have had more than 220,000 viewings.

Stars of the tractor show were the 14 new models within the 6R Series. Gareth Gault, known to his fans as Donkey from the Grassmen Instagram account, took viewers behind the scenes at John Deere’s Mannheim factory, where the new tractors are made.

The influencer has more than 153,000 followers on Instagram.

Cameras followed him through the assembly line inside Eu-

John Deere sees its online TV show as a key way of reaching farmers

rope’s largest tractor plant. He then demonstrated the features found on the 6R Series with a driving experience.

The focus of the forage TV show was on two new models – the 9500 and the 9600 machines.

Experts from the Zweibrücker harvesting machinery factory demonstrated the new 18-litre John Deere engine and Harvest

Motion Plus technology.

The combine show focused on the performance of the John Deere harvester portfolio. Experts and farmers were invited to talk about their experiences with the X9 combine. It featuredTom and Will from the Instagram account Rowles Farm.

The pair were allowed to try the combine on the field and

learn more about it. Practical videos have shown that John Deere’s flagship model harvests more than 100 tonnes of wheat per hour.

The three events were hosted by TV presenter Patrice Bouédibéla – best known for his work on music channel MTV. All three shows remain available on John Deere’s YouTube channel.

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