​The rain has stopped and the sun is shining. The fields are drying out and one would assume all is well with our world!
 
My round trip to north Yorkshire on Sunday was improved by seeing tractors busy alongside the motorways - spraying, top dressing and drilling. A welcome sight as farmers at last commence belated spring field work.
 
The lawns no longer look quite so ragged, although it will take a few more cuts before they are back in shape. Several weddings have been postponed until next year, and the church fete until September, so we are likely to have a quiet summer.
 
The sunshine, dry conditions and little lambs gambling across the countryside, make us feel far more positive. That is until you turn on the news, open the newspapers, catch up on social media and hear the Prime Minister and his key minister’s latest dire warnings.
 
The British are generally fairly good in a crises, which usually brings out the best in people. Sadly it seems it also brings out the worst. Reports of selfish and aggressive behaviour in the supermarkets, with shoppers fighting over loo rolls and anything else they can get their hands on, is disappointing.
 
People are also ignoring Boris’s pleas to behave responsibly by social distancing, practising bio-security, considering others and self-isolating if and when necessary.
 
There have been appalling scenes of teenagers in school uniforms, drinking alcohol and behaving aggressively and being abusive towards adults and younger children. Not in some deprived inner city, but in Hurstpierpoint outside the Co-op last week.
 
Reports of youths coughing and spitting at emergency workers as they try to do their jobs in West Yorkshire, are shocking. This behaviour is potentially life threatening and should be treated seriously, by rounding them up, tagging and putting them under curfew.
 
These youths are letting down their peers such as the Young Farmers who have been helping their communities by delivering supplies and working in the gardens of the isolated and elderly.
 
It is a minority who let everyone else down while the majority are responsible and caring, and demonstrate true British resilience, inventiveness and kindness. This is what we expect, the opposite is alien to our culture and nature.
 
In our part of the country farms rely significantly on income from diversification. This includes dealing directly with the public with farm shops, restaurants, and wedding and events businesses. And redundant farm buildings have been converted into business units and workshops.
 
As we fall deeper into the current crises, the public are rightly keeping away from these small businesses as many are associated with the leisure industry such as tea rooms, gyms, dance studios and holiday companies. They now face zero income for the foreseeable future.
 
It is encouraging to see farm shops being well supported. Most supply staple products including meat, bread, milk and fresh fruit and vegetables. It is vital that these businesses are backed so that they can survive and indeed take the pressure off the supermarkets, where I am told the chance of getting an elbow in your ribs or at the very least be verbally abused by fellow shoppers as they drive their trolley into the back of your legs, is highly likely!
 
Visiting your local farm shop is a more pleasant experience. You will meet kindred spirits, the owners will ensure you are able to shop safely as they ensure you ‘social distance’, by allowing only a limited number of shoppers in at any time.
 
I urge those walking around our farms to bear in mind that the last person to open the lynch gate before you, could well carry Corvid 19 germs on their hands. I recommend you all wear gloves!

Some good news for British beef farmers as American officials have lifted their ban on British beef. UK quality beef will be returning to American supermarket shelves for the first time since 1996.
 
This follows three weeks of inspections by the US Food Safety Inspection Service, visiting British farms, testing laboratories and abattoirs.
 
There is a growing demand in America for quality grass fed, hormone free beef. It is expected the first shipment will be heading across the Atlantic in June.
 
Last week Liz Truss the International Trade Secretary said: “It is great news that the US has reopened the market to British beef. This is a win for our farmers and I look forward to seeing high quality British beef being enjoyed on tables across the US very soon.”
 
A marketing team will be visiting America to promote British meat at trade fairs, and meeting leading wholesalers, restaurant chains and supermarket buyers. It is also hoped that Dame Karen Pierce the British Ambassador, will fly the flag for British beef in Washington.
 
This is progress and very welcome, but we still have a log-jam regarding getting British beef into Singapore. This is due to the lack of suitable certification of our abattoirs by the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA).
 
I hope that Liz Truss and her colleague at DEFRA George Eustice, will recognise the urgency to ensure there are sufficient funds available for local abattoirs to upgrade premises to the standards required.
 
We have customers in Singapore but no AVA certified abattoirs in the South East.  If ministers wish to support British beef farmers to market our quality beef, a relatively small investment to upgrade local abattoirs is vital to support animal welfare and prevent the necessity for livestock to travel long distances.   
 
It is increasingly evident that the movement of goods and food around the world is essential. Believing that any country can be fully self-sufficient is impractical. Ideally we should be able to feed our populations in times of trouble, but when supply systems close down for whatever reason, we will always depend upon others to fill the vacuum.
 
The same goes for vital parts for the manufacturing sector as we witness factories closing down in China. Food production and manufacturing should be approached proportionately and globally.
 
Some countries produce things better than others, usually meaning at lower cost. I suspect when this disruption to our lives is over the approach to productivity and supply will be reviewed, and a realistic attitude will be adopted. 
  
Farmers are well rehearsed at self-isolating, having had to do so during the Foot & Mouth outbreak in 2001. At that time it was the countryside which closed down as we tried to protect our livestock from disease.
 
With Corvid- 19 it is the towns and cities which are closing as members of the public do their best to avoid crowds and public places. It is interesting to see the numbers of walkers around the farm increasing significantly as people recognise the countryside to be a safe haven.
 
Those of us who are fortunate enough to experience the dawn rise throughout the year as we check our livestock and exercise the dogs, appreciate the solitude of the night sky during winter months, and quiet hours before dawn.
 
Now, as spring approaches, we see once more the sun rising in the mornings, and watch the slow pace of rural England’s changing and blossoming landscape. It is uplifting and prepares us for the tasks awaiting as we return to our daily chores.
 
The situation regarding Coronavirus is changing daily. We should trust British experts and the Prime Minister, and stop listening to the armchair experts who have nothing better to do than stoke the fires of panic.

Each week we hope this is the one when spring will arrive and the rain stop. We have remained deeply disappointed as the forecast of ‘occasional showers’ result in heavy downpours.
 
The ground is still water logged, and despite the very welcome longer daylight hours, it still feels like winter.
 
On our heavy weald clay, notwithstanding the occasional respite of a sunny day warming our backs, it is still impossible to think about venturing onto our fields with a tractor. If you don’t get stuck up to the axels and need towing out, the damage to the soil structure, and deep ruts have long-term repercussions.
 
Our frustration is growing as we move towards mid- March, and are keen to top dress the bits of winter barley which have survived the winter. And the grass fields badly need harrowing and rolling before the grass starts growing.
 
Farmers wishing to attempt to get some spring crops into the ground, unless on light easy-drain soil, will be lucky to do so for at least another month, depending on when it does eventually stop raining.
 
As for the garden, if anyone has a small flock of obedient sheep which would graze the lawns without straying onto the flower beds, feel free to contact me. I have never seen the grass so long and abundant.
 
It is disappointing to note that the South Downs National Park Authority has been caught working against the best interest of land owners and the local community near Winchester. This is related to a summer music festival to be held on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) where in previous years, according to the report in The Sunday Telegraph, the events hosted by a company called Boomtown saw four drug-related deaths.
 
Local campaigners are deeply concerned that the SDNPA have ‘offered behind-the-scenes support’, to the site owners, which resulted in permission to expand the number of people attending the event, on what is considered an unsuitable venue. This year the event will be attended by up to 76,999 people.
 
The SDNPA appear to support such events which attract increasingly large numbers from outside the region, at all costs. This particular event which will be staged over five days on a ‘green field site’, and the organisers call a ‘city’, covers approximately 503 hectares.
 
A spokesman for SDNPA said: “National planning policy requires that planning officers should work positively with any and every planning applicant. This applies across the entire country.” I wish!!
 
I have to admit it has been hard but over the past week I have trained myself and indeed others, to stop shaking hands and hugging. Old habits die hard as one’s automatic reaction is to stretch out a hand to warmly welcome, or embrace friends and family.
 
We should now all be on Corvid – 9 alert, and must take sensible and easy precautions. It is clear to me that some are embarrassed and feel awkward changing habits of a lifetime – Do not be. By taking this small step towards protecting yourself and others, as well as thinking carefully before venturing out ‘into the community’, we will do our small part in containing the spread of this virus which clearly is highly contagious.
 
The message as I write, from Government, and its medical and scientific advisers, is ‘Don’t Panic and Carry On’, which could well change this week as things develop. As individuals and communities we must play our part by following advice and making sensible decisions.
 
A footnote on my trip to Dubai: For those many kind fans of my son Matthew, who have enquired if he qualified in Dubai for the World Championship IRONMAN 70.3, New Zealand, the answer is Yes! He and his trusty racing bike will be heading for Lake Taupo, North Island NZ, on 28/29 November 2020