Huge variations in fallen stock charges revealed
UK - A review of the national fallen stock scheme and the company that administers it has found huge disparities in the prices charged to farmers, a lack of competition in some areas and reluctance by collectors to invest in their business.The report, written for DEFRA by Bob Bansback, a former strategy director at the Meat and Livestock Commission, found that enforcing the burial ban is most difficult in the sheep sector.
On top of the remote location of many sheep farms and the seasonality of the industry, enforcement is made more difficult because many producers simply do not accept the burial ban.
For a typical English lowland sheep breeding flock, the cost of compliance is equivalent to about 64% of the enterprise net margin.
The report also details the huge variation in costs depending on the region of the UK.
Reasons include a lack of collectors in some areas, excessive enforcement of planning and environmental legislation, and general uncertainty about the future, which discourages investment.
Source: FWi
13 June 2006
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