Latest Moan From You and Me 2024

Just watching footage of farmers in London, if your going to protest at lease do it legal, lots of tractors with their working lights on even some with timber in front of their head lights and for the one's with their white rear lights well that illegal for a start

 

I struggle to see what they are protesting about.
It just seems striking and protesting are becoming national pastimes.

 

Cheap food imports + the change in the Agri policy

Funny thing is that lots of things they use are imported, machiey,animal food,fertilizer,sprays etc even labour, so if we want a New Zealand leg of lamb we should be able to buy it, i can't get a British orange or banana

 

@pete - Changes to farming regs and government interference after years of lack of government foresight and interest in investment in rural affairs and land management mean many are on the breadline or worse. It must be heart breaking for the farmers who have been on the land for generations and see it all slipping away from them while the government allows imports of products grown without the strict rules about animal and land welfare in force here. They just can't compete.

No sympathy at all tho with huge agri-industrial firms.

 

I don't pretend to understand all the ins and outs of farming, but I do think they should get a reasonable return for their effort. We need them to produce food. They should not be squeezed so hard by the big supermarkets, IMV, with profits siphoned off to shareholders.

 

I do agree that its the supermarkets that set the price and the ones who are making the money.
I'm not seeing many cheap imports to be honest.
I buy British if I can but often that option isn't there.

 

I buy eggs and I buy fish, I buy very little meat and its usually as tough as old boots and always British, NZ lamb can be tender I find.
Milk is always British
Other than apples I'm struggling to think of anything that British farmers produce that I can buy.
Veg I suppose, but again usually British.

What are these cheap imports?

 

The old claim of 'you never see a poor farmer' is very much a thing of the past. A good friend was a 3rd generation farmer and he sold of their dairy herd about 25 years ago as they were losing money, and they had a big herd and were therefore more efficient in production than many. In the end he sold up completely.

 

Anything cereal or dairy based @pete plus many vegetables and salads plus poulltry, pork products, beef and lamb. If it grows and is edible it's cheaper from abroad but not necessaily better in taste or qulity and certainly not better for the impact on the environment of permitted chemicals, animal husbandry standards, road, sea and air miles nor for the people growing them.

 

Farmers are protesting the fact that they are complying with strict regulations, while supermarkets and the like are bringing goods in that don't comply to the same standards, therefore they are cheaper. I've got every sympathy with farmers, most work extremely hard and if we don't look after them, then we'll discover that old Confucius was correct "Man with empty belly only has one problem"! All farmers are asking for is a level 'playing field'.

I'm furious with B&Q, on the 20th I ordered and paid for compost, agri sand, and bark chippings and agreed that they will be delivered today. Got a message last night that the goods will be delivered between 5.30pm and 7.30pm today. Just got a message from them "Sorry your order has failed today. We have rescheduled for the earliest date of 2nd April. Ahhhhhhhh

 

I'm pleased you clarified "older music" I was thinking Mario Lanza that my mother & father loved. Anything for me, and yes that includes "modern" music. We still watch the likes of Jools to see what's new and have heard some cracking singers over the last 5-10 years. The likes of Percy Sledge would be my likely choice, but Fleetwood, Band and even AmyW are played according to the mood....

 

So does anyone know why the farmers in the EU are protesting?
Single market, no competition.

 

Same same I believe

 

I think it is to do with the green agenda being imposed by the French gov.