Farming briefs

A video sent around the world aims to better educate seasonal farm workers. Employment rights, recruitment, the absence of job-finding fees, accommodation and pay are all tackled. With subtitles in Nepali, Tajik, Bulgarian, Kazakh, Polish, Indonesian, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian and Uzbek it is backed by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority.

A record 15 students from Africa and India are doing a 10-week sustainable farming scholarship at Harper Adams University thanks to development charity the Marshal Papworth Fund, managed by the East of England Agricultural Society.

Crushed volcanic basalt is being spread on UK farms to help combat climate change by using so-called ‘enhanced rock weathering’ to speed carbon sequestration. Scotland-based UNDO aims to spread 185,000t in 2023, including a 25,000t Microsoft-backed trial.

More can be done to cut farm theft worth £40m/yr. Research by farm insurance comparison site, quotezone.co.uk, suggests just 41% of farms keep items in a locked location. Analysis of 6,000+ farm policies showed nearly 20% don’t lock buildings and 15% leave vehicles in unsecured locations.