A Hertfordshire farmer crushed beneath 1,500kg of hay bales is backing calls for safer working practices after being told he had a 75% chance of never walking again. Will Dickinson suffered 12 broken ribs, eight spinal fractures and a fractured pelvis when three bales fell from a trailer on... Read more

England faces prolonged lack of rainfall Water restrictions could continue into next year despite forecasts for a wetter autumn as the impact of the summer drought continues. Environment Agency modelling suggests 120% of typical rainfall is needed over the next seven months for all areas to recover. Even under... Read more

Three veteran Norfolk paddlers with a combined age of 245 are calling on kayakers and rowers across East Anglia to help raise £10,000 for mental health charity YANA. Norfolk farmer Henry Kilvert (73), Rod Hunt (87) and John Rampling (86) are taking to the water for the YANA Challenge... Read more

Farm leaders are pressing the government to underwrite interest-free crisis loans as drought, disease and rising costs leave businesses short of the cash needed to plant crops and replace livestock. The proposed Keep Britain Growing Loan would target viable businesses hit by exceptional losses. Farm organisations say urgent support... Read more

Farmers attending farm safety event in Suffolk received a stark reminder of the urgent need to improve the industry’s poor accident record. Host farmer George Gittus (right) displayed 41 high visibility jackets on a clothes line, representing those who have died in farm accidents since April last year. The... Read more

Norfolk farmers will still be invited to grow sugar beet following the closure of British Sugar’s Cantley factory, says the processing giant. Plans to cease beet processing at Cantley from the end of February 2027 were announced last month. But British Sugar says Cantley growers will still be invited... Read more

Regenerative farmers are being encouraged to rethink their approach to crops and livestock amid increasing concerns over profitability. Poor margins, rising costs and lower support payments are continuing to squeeze margins, growers and livestock producers were told during a business seminar at last month’s Groundswell festival. New estimates Financial... Read more

A fenland farmer who has welcomed more than 119,000 visitors has received royal recognition for connecting consumers with British agriculture. Michael Sly, of Park Farm, Thorney, near Peterborough, received a special award from the Duchess of Edinburgh in recognition of his support for Open Farm Sunday. The presentation took... Read more

Farms providing supplementary feeding are supporting higher numbers of many important farmland bird species. Run by the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and sponsored by the NFU, the annual Big Farmland Bird Count encourages farmers and land managers to record the bird species and numbers on their farms... Read more

Vital checks should be undertaken in good time before before applying to join the relaunched Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), say advisers. Launched last month, SFI 2026 is now open to farmers without an existing Environmental Land Management agreement and those with less than 50ha. Other eligible farmers will be... Read more