大象传媒

Sir Robert Goodwill is the new chairman of the EFRA select committee which keeps an eye on DEFRA. He's a Yorkshire farmer and former farming minister.

The UK market for cut flowers and ornamental plants was 拢1.4 billion in 2020, according to government statistics and around 90% of these flowers are imported. Producer Jane Scotter grows fruit and veg in Herefordshire but she's found that cut flowers make more money. She grows them bio-dynamically - without using pesticides or herbicides. Her 12 acre plot supplies a London restaurant with veg, fruit and flowers and she sells blooms to florists.

Sugar beet growers are being offered a cash advance. To help farmers cope with rising costs, British Sugar is offering them 25% of their money by the end of June, rather than waiting until they deliver the beet in the autumn. The amount will be based on a five year average of their payments. The National Farmers Union鈥檚 sugar board says it hopes it will persuade growers to stick with the crop:

Conservationists are counting puffins on the Farne Islands off the Northumberland coast. They鈥檙e one of the most important sites for puffins in the UK and one of the most popular places for people to see them. It鈥檚 the first proper count since Covid and rangers say it鈥檒l be critical in assessing just how the birds are faring.