Showing posts with label couple. Show all posts
Showing posts with label couple. Show all posts

Monday, August 1, 2011

Couple back 1,800 cow mega-dairy

29 July 2011 Last updated at 07:08 GMT The county council is to consider a retrospective planning bid for the dairy which houses 1,800 cows

A couple running a mega-dairy without planning permission in Carmarthenshire have defended the operation.

Some people living close to the two giant sheds at Cwrt Malle Farm near Carmarthen want them pulled down.

The county council is to consider a retrospective planning bid for the dairy which houses 1,800 cows.

Farmers Howell and Susan Richards defended their development on BBC One Wales' programme Welsh Mega-Dairies, which was broadcast on Thursday.

Mr and Mrs Richards rapidly expanded their business over a year ago without planning consent.

Their cows are milked 24-hours-a-day, seven days a week, and do not graze the grass surrounding the farm.

United States

Mr Richards argued it should be seen as a way to improving farming fortunes rather than turning the cows into little more than an industrial operation.

He said he was inspired by a mega-dairy he saw in the US where dairy herds numbering 30,000 were kept in sheds.

Continue reading the main story
We are now considering their impact on the community, the local road network and the local environment”

End Quote Eifion Bowen Carmarthenshire council "I learned more in a week out there than I probably learned in 10 years of farming here," he tells the programme.

But they may be forced to pull down their sheds if the planning decision does not go their way.

Carmarthenshire council's head of planning Eifion Bowen said the couple were warned they needed permission before the development was finished.

"We are now considering their impact on the community, the local road network and the local environment," he said.

Another farmer, in Welshpool, is contemplating following the Richards by increasing his own herd five-fold to 1,000, all housed in a high-tech dairy.

Fraser Jones's proposals for a three-storey milking parlour and sheds has attracted 833 comments - most in opposition.

Concerns

Critics cite concerns over an increase in lorries delivering feed and taking away milk, as well as the problems of disposing of slurry from so many cows in such a small space.

Campaign group Compassion in World Farming said there are animal welfare concerns surround mega-dairies.

Allan Rogers Organic dairy farmer Allan Rogers says farmers can make a profit without mega-dairies

Chief executive Philip Lymbury claimed cows are pushed to their physical limits to produce more milk and keeping them permanently indoors makes them more likely to suffer serious health issues.

The programme also heard from Allan and Heather Rogers, who have an organic dairy farm at Chirk near Wrexham.

They argued their commitment to producing high-quality milk, which they sell direct to the customer, is making a profit while still giving their herd the chance to graze on pasture, and also a longer life.

Their 160 cows graze on grass from March to November and in winter feed predominately on forage crops such as oats and peas which the Rogers grow on their own land.

Mr Rogers said it does away with the need to buy in expensive processed feed supplements.

"Going for low input means the cost of production is also lower so we can gain a few more pence on each litre we produce," he said.


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Monday, July 11, 2011

CCTV released of missing couple

7 July 2011 Last updated at 18:45 GMT CCTV images of missing teenagers Charlotte Ford and Luke Jarvis captured by cameras at Dudley bus station on 26 June at about 1700 BST The pair were seen together at Dudley bus station on 26 June Police have released CCTV images of a missing teenage couple from the West Midlands following an emotional appeal by their parents for their return.

Officers say they are "very concerned" for the safety of Charlotte Ford and Luke Jarvis who have been missing for more than a week.

A police spokesman said they believe Charlotte, 15, from Wordsley, is with her boyfriend Luke, 16, of Bilston.

The pair were seen together at Dudley bus station on 26 June at 1700 BST.

Officers also have an unconfirmed sighting of the pair in Prestatyn, north Wales, on Wednesday, 6 July at 1530 BST.

Images of them caught on the CCTV system at the station in Dudley have been released.

Charlotte's mother Deborah Ford broke down in tears as she appealed for her daughter to get in touch.

She said: "We just want you to come home.

"It doesn't matter what happened, it doesn't matter what was said.

"We love you, no matter what."

'Highly unusual'

Meanwhile, Luke's father, Andrew Jarvis, said: "Please just think about what you're doing.

"We're all worried about you, the whole family, we all love you very much."

Supt Stuart Johnson, from Dudley Police, said it was "highly unusual" for teenagers to go missing for almost two weeks.

He appealed for people to check sheds and outbuildings because it was believed the pair may be sleeping rough.

Charlotte has long blonde hair and is about 5ft 4ins tall. She has not been seen since 26 June.

Luke, who is 5ft 5ins and thin with short light brown hair cut in a spiky style, was last seen on 27 June.

Charlotte has not been seen since leaving home to meet a friend on 26 June.

She was reported missing by her parents after failing to meet up with the friend or return home.

Luke has not been seen since he left a relative's address in Barnett Close, Bilston, on 27 June, and was reported missing on 1 July.

Luke is known to have various contacts around the Tipton and Bilston areas.

Charlotte, who has a Welsh accent, has brown eyes and could be wearing white jeans and a white vest top, grey Nike trainers, and a pale blue and grey top.

She is originally form Caerphilly, although her family has lived in the West Midlands for eight years.


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