In this issue

- Harvest Results
- CropMonitor
- Your ideas for Topic Breakfasts
- Dates for your diary
   - HGCA R&D Conference
   - ICC Conference
   - WGIN Stakeholder Meeting
- Biofuel and Industrial News e-newsletter
- SAFFIE Enhancing Arable Biodiversity booklet and Final Project Report No. 416
- Research Review 66 - Opportunities and implications of using the co-products from 
  biofuel production as feeds for livestock

Harvesting of HGCA Recommended List trials has been very slow but several trial operators were able to harvest between the showers on the better days this week.

The first winter barley results have been posted on the HGCA website and can be viewed by following this link:

http://www.hgca.com/content.output/2351/2351/Varieties/Harvest%20Results%202007/Winter%20barley%20RL%20sites%202007.mspx

Oilseed results are slowly coming in and we expect to be able to post the first few early next week.

To see the whole harvest results follow this link: www.hgca.com/varieties

Following last year's successful series of Topic Breakfast meetings, HGCA is organising a further programme of meetings commencing this autumn. These informal meetings provide an opportunity for groups of about 25 - 40 farmers and advisors to discuss the latest information on local, topical issues with a leading expert.

Topic Breakfasts are becoming an increasingly popular and effective way of delivering the latest findings from HGCA-funded R&D on a regional basis. The challenge we face is to identify small groups of growers with a shared interest in finding out more about a topic that concerns them. This is where we hope you may be able to help us.

Is there a particular agronomy-related topic that you would like tackled in a Topic Breakfast in your area to help address the concerns of local farmers? Do you know of an established farmer group that would be interested in one of these meetings? If so, please let us know.
 
We cannot guarantee to be able to organise a Topic Breakfast meeting for everyone who responds but we will try our best. If you have any suggestions, please contact neha.kanabar@hgca.com. We look forward to receiving your ideas.

Dates for your diary

HGCA Research and Development Conference: Arable cropping in a changing climate

The next R&D conference will be held Wednesday 23 January and Thursday 24 January 2008 at Belton Woods hotel, near Grantham.  More information will be available closer to the event.
ICC Workshop - The Safety of Animal Feed and its Contribution to the Human Food Chain (Glasgow) 2 - 5 September 2007
HGCA-funded research on fusarium and DON mycotoxins, safe grain storage and contaminant monitoring will be presented at this ICC event in September. This workshop is targeted at manufacturers of animal feed and those involved in the monitoring of the safety of these products. Further information about the workshop can be found at the link below.
http://www.hgca.com/event.aspx?eventId=1030

ICC Workshop - The safety of animal feed and its contribution to the human food chain
2-5 September, Glasgow
 
Manufacturers of animal feed and those involved in the monitoring of the safety of these products may be interested in this ICC workshop. HGCA-funded research on fusarium and DON mycotoxins, safe grain storage and contaminant monitoring will be covered in this extensive programme. For more information, please visit:
www.icc.or.at/events/glasgow2007/
 
WGIN (Wheat Genetic Improvement Network) Stakeholder Meeting 29 November 2007
HGCA members have been invited to the next WGIN stakeholder meeting which
will take place on the 29 November at Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts.

The following topics will be included: Mutants, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, Wheat
Functionality, the WGIN Diversity Trial and the Hereward Dilemma.

More detailed information will be provided closer to the meeting.
To see the WGIN website click here: http://www.wgin.org.uk

Biofuel and Industrial News will provide you with timely updates on:
-  Information on UK, EU and world biofuel markets
-  The latest research relating to biofuel and industrial uses of crops e.g. biopolymers (i.e packaging, resins, lubricants).
-  Useful links to further information/organizations
Subscribe Now:
Simply send an email with 'Subscribe' in the subject box toSubscriptions.HGCA@hgca.com. Alternatively you can go to www.hgca.com and visit the 'e-Newsletter' section.

Farmland bird numbers could increase four-fold if a set of new measures is included in green farming schemes, researchers say.

SAFFIE Enhancing Arable Biodiversity
This 12 page booklet, (http://www.hgca.com/publink.aspx?id=3927) published after a five-year study, identifies six techniques, to encourage arable wildlife, that would help reverse the declines of species such as skylarks, yellow wagtails and yellowhammers.

PR416 The SAFFIE Project Report, which provides the background data for the booklet was also published last week. See abstract below or the full report on  http://www.hgca.com/publink.aspx?id=3919

Research Review 66 - Opportunities and implications of using the co-products from biofuel production as feeds for livestock
The objective of this study was to consider a number of issues associated with crops grown for the production of biofuels in Great Britain, and the use of co-products resulting from their production as livestock feeds. See abstract below or the full report on  http://www.hgca.com/publink.aspx?id=3928

PR416 The SAFFIE Project Report by Dr JJJ Wiltshire, ADAS Boxworth (Corresponding author). HGCA Project No: 2617 Price: £30

The Sustainable Arable Farming For an Improved Environment (SAFFIE) project started in 2002 and experimental work continued until the end of 2006.  When the project was conceived, arable farmers needed to optimise inputs and improve efficiency, and the UK was committed to increase biodiversity, especially for farmland birds.  The SAFFIE project aimed to reconcile these pressures by developing new crop and margin management techniques for winter cereals and quantifying the associated costs and environmental benefits.

The SAFFIE project developed Skylark Plots, confirmed the benefits of adding wildflowers to grass margins, evaluated a range of in crop weed control programmes and tested two margin management techniques (graminicides and scarification) that had potential to create new habitats. The studies quantified: (a) the impact of these techniques on key species of grasses and flowering plants, beetles, bugs, flies, grasshoppers, soil invertebrates, spiders, bees, butterflies and birds; and (b) the costs of the techniques. Key findings included the following.

Plants

• Weed cover was increased by the use of selective herbicides and this benefited wider biodiversity. Selective herbicide applications in spring left more plant cover than application sequences, benefiting arthropod abundance.  However, weed management must be site-specific and this approach is not appropriate where pernicious weeds are common or where there are herbicide resistant weeds.
• Plant species diversity in margins decreased over the five years, regardless of seed mix and treatment.
• Plots sown with a seed mix of fine grasses and wild flowers generally had the greatest abundance of reproductive resources (buds, flowers, seed/fruit) and plots sown with a grass seed mix generally had the lowest values.
• Compared with other margin management treatments, margins scarified in March/April had:
  - the greatest percentages of bare ground (21%, compared to 3% with cutting and 4% with graminicide),
  - enhanced plant species diversity at some sites,
   -plant diversities converging between margins sown with different seed mixes,
  - lower values of architectural complexity (especially of the dead litter, fine grass and legume components), and
  - reduced values of reproductive resources.
• In margins that had an application of a graminicide, plant communities included more sown wildflower species than margins that were scarified or cut.

Invertebrates

• The grass seed mix provided a good resource for those invertebrate species that are dependent on sward architectural complexity; however, it is a poor resource for phytophagous species, particularly where their host plants are wildflowers.
• A seed mix of tussocky grasses and wild flowers provided an architecturally complex sward and host plants vital for many invertebrate species.
• For a variety of invertebrate taxa there was evidence that abundance and species richness will reach a maximum 2-3 years after margin establishment.
• Sowing a diverse seed mixture of perennial wildflowers was the most effective means of creating foraging habitat for bees and butterflies on arable field margins. Inclusion of forbs in the seed mixture resulted in increases in abundance and diversity of pollen and nectar resources, bumblebees and butterflies.
• Invertebrate species that required either an architecturally complex sward or dense grass responded poorly to scarification, e.g. planthoppers, spiders and Symphyta/ Lepidoptera larvae.  In contrast, improved establishment of some wildflower species in response to scarification benefited some phytophagous invertebrates, e.g. weevils and leaf beetles.
• In scarified margins there were fewer species and lower abundances of isopods than in other margins. Species assemblages in the scarified plots consisted of species commonly associated with cropped or exposed habitats.
• Graminicide application is a practical option for enhancing the value of the large area of species-poor grass margins for pollinators.

Birds

• Creating bare ground and foraging access in wheat crops and field margins were the most important management treatments, and gave a significant (up to 4 fold) increase in bird densities and breeding territories for both field and boundary nesting species.  Open ground can be achieved at relatively low cost by scarification in margins, and by creating undrilled patches in winter cereal crops.
• In wheat fields with undrilled patches, skylark territory densities were higher (particularly in the crucial late-season breeding period) and the number of skylark chicks reared was nearly 50% greater than in fields without undrilled patches.
• Wheat sown with wide-spaced rows provided some wildlife benefits (particularly for skylarks) but effects were smaller and less consistent than for crops with undrilled patches.
• For all species and species groups, bird densities and territories were consistently higher (1.3 - 2.8 times) in fields with margins and undrilled patches, than in fields with a conventional crop.  This response was consistent also for Farmland Bird Index species and Biodiversity Action Plan species.
• In fields with undrilled patches and un-cropped field margins there were indications that skylarks experienced reduced breeding success and productivity compared with conventionally managed wheat.  This was attributed to increased mammalian predator activity. It is recommended that skylark plots should be placed at least 50m (preferably 75m) from field edges.
• For birds, margin sward content in terms of the grass/flower mix, was best managed to encourage beetles (especially Carabidae) and spiders (Arachnidae).

Costs

• Undrilled patches receiving Defra Entry Level Scheme (ELS) payments had a net benefit to farmers of £7.00 to £8.50 /ha, if made by lifting the drill and there was no additional weed control. If undrilled patches were made using an herbicide after crop emergence, and there was the unlikely need for additional weed control, the net cost to farmers would be £3.50 to £5.00 /ha.
• Field margins established with wild flowers in the seed mixes were ten times more expensive than grass-only seed mixes, and these costs are unlikely to be met by current agri-environment schemes. Higher wheat prices increase costs to the farmer because of greater production loss. Additional agri-environment scheme payments for floristic enhancement of margins are likely to be required if take-up is to be substantially improved.

Targets for biofuel use have been established in many countries, including the UK.  Currently the main feedstocks in the UK are wheat for bioethanol and oilseed rape (OSR) for biodiesel.  The main co-products of biofuel production from these feedstocks are dried distillers grains and solubles (DDGS), rapeseed meal (RSM) and glycerol, all of which can be used as livestock feeds.  If all the UK target for biofuels are produced from home-grown crops, this could result in the production of up to 1.3 million tonnes of rapeseed meal (RSM), 1.0 million tonnes of wheat distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and 210 kt of glycerol per annum by 2010.  This represents about one quarter of current compound feed production.  However, these quantities are unlikely to become available for use in livestock rations within the short-medium term.  Limiting factors include OSR crush capacity, the use of imported feedstocks for oil production, the development of methods of producing ethanol from biomass (rather than wheat) and demand for use of these co-products in power generation.

DDGS and RSM are already widely used as feed materials in livestock rations.  Published research suggests that there is scope for using more, although variability between production plants in the composition of co-products - particularly for bioethanol - may be a constraint.  Considerable research has been undertaken in N America on the use of DDGS in livestock rations, but because maize - rather than wheat - is the main feedstock for bioethanol production caution is needed in interpreting N American results.  If significant supplies of RSM and DDGS become available in the UK, protein sources used in compound feed formulations may change, and this will be reflected in changes in the total protein and amino acid profiles of rations.  As a result, there could be increases in the amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus excreted by livestock.

The increasing global demand for biofuels will result in increased demand for the raw feedstocks (wheat, maize, soyabean and OSR).  This in turn will result in an increase in livestock feed prices.  This effect has already been observed in the UK, and the trend is likely to continue.  In the longer term, the development of systems of bioethanol production from biomass, rather than food crops, is likely to have a major impact on both crop and livestock producers in the UK.