Strength in the face of adversity by Chris Jackson, Export Manager UK TAG We can now look back in the UK on another farming year coming towards its close with harvests completed. Across the country we’ve seen average yields, so the cycle starts again with the planting of winter crops and the necessary maintenance work needed to ensure that the whole process continues. For livestock farmers the work never stops, it is a 365-day commitment no matter what the weather, which seems to be becoming more unpredictable worldwide and devastating at its worst. We have witnessed terrible storms and destruction across many parts of the world from northern Australia now more recently the Caribbean and southern USA with loss of life and livelihoods. All of which should make us realise the fragile existence that we live by. In the western world we just expect food and drink to be available at not much cost presenting a constant challenge to the worlds food producers. I count myself very fortunate in having seen the challenges that producers face in many countries worldwide and price for crops and livestock is a contentious issue. Recently in India I have been looking at their pig farming industry where even there, there are real social issues and perceived stigmas to production to be overcome. Pig meat is in rising demand in India and there is a massive demand as the meat of choice in the Northeast, but the farming of pigs is very disjointed and is very much a means of subsistence. The reason being pigs are being scavengers and are fed on food waste, both unproductive and posing health issues. The state governments in the Northeast are challenging these issues and making real attempts to improve the quality of production The state of Punjab on the opposite side of the country are taking the challenge very seriously, they have set up training facilities for their farmers and are encouraging them to set aside small parts of their land holdings for pig production. This shows very positive increases in profitability against crop growing, which due to the small fragmented ownership of land means incomes are very small. Part of the down side is that for crop production only a small amount of time is needed, whereas for pig production it is a work commitment for every day of the year, which many are not yet prepared to face. Higher returns from better livestock production has to be the driver, government subsidies are not the long-term answer, which the Punjab government realise. Therefore to encourage profitability they rightly see better production as the answer and to help this they have set up their own production units to supply breeding pigs with higher genetic merit. This is a very encouraging part of the answer. However, even with better stock-feed is an issue in two senses, cost and availability. The farmers that I met complain that the costs are far too high; therefore the only way to make money is to use food waste. This cannot be the answer! Maize is being used industrially so commands higher prices therefore market forces will dominate. However, there are some options that states could adopt; they could take all food waste into bio digesters to produce energy thus reducing the demand for maize, which should have an impact on prices. But however the issue is tackled we face the problem worldwide of the issues of framing profitability, livestock incomes against crop production. Having said this, India is one of a very few counties that can supply all its nutrient needs from home production, which is very encouraging. The next problem is getting properly formulated rations to the farmers so that correct diets for the stages of production can be met. Having produced the animals, safe slaughter and packaging plants need to be developed. All of which are beginning to happen. Education and training are key components to any success and in India we are seeing a positive start to the process, which will continue. @AgrictecExports 40 | October 2017 - Milling and Grain
Major project completed at Limagrain seed processing facility
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incolnshire based Game Engineering has just completed a major project at the Limagrain seed processing facility at HoltonLe-Clay near Grimsby. The project included the removal of two of the existing product intakes and an old and failing product pre-cleaner used to remove husks, dust and any soil. These have been replaced with a completely new system, which is considerably more efficient. Replacing the old intakes with the
two new intakes, each rated at 100 tonnes per hour, had an immediate effect on productivity. The old precleaner simply wasn’t up to the task so with the installation of the two new Bühler pre-cleaners, product quality has improved greatly. Game Engineering designed, built and installed the structural steelwork used for mounting the Buhler precleaners. They also installed the screw conveyors used for removing waste material and the belt conveyors and bucket elevators for handling the cleaned product. The cleaned product conveying system and waste system are ATEX Certified to Zone 21. This project was the fourth large project that Game Engineering has completed for Limagrain and took just nine weeks from design to final installation. Richard Israel is the Director of Production & Logistics of Limagrain, he commented, “This latest project has transformed our intake facility. There has been a step change in product quality, safety and ease of use. The project met the financial budget and was completed in time for our busiest season. For me, the real proof of success has been the operator enthusiasm using the new system. Game Engineering is helping to transform our processing facility into a modern, efficient plant.”