Project probes fallen stock costs
An investigation is underway into how to reduce the cost of disposing of fallen stock thanks to funding secured under EEDA's livestock emergency fund.
More than 200 NFU members agreed that money available from the fund for individual consultancy should be pooled to pay for a major piece of work looking at the problem in the region.
A consultant has been commissioned to undertake an eight week project which will identify gaps in the region's infrastructure and offer recommendations on how these gaps can be filled.
NFU regional livestock adviser Alex Butler-Zagni said: "Under EU regulations farmers can no longer dispose of dead animals by burying them or burning them on farm.
"The costs involved in getting a carcass collected for disposal are increasing all the time so this is a welcome opportunity to look at ways of reducing this financial burden.
"We were delighted to receive such strong backing from livestock farmers and hope that the conclusions will lead to another, much larger project with capital grants through the rural development programme for England."
Business Link East is administering the project, working with the NFU regional livestock board. It is part of a £100,000 package announced by EEDA for the livestock sector last year in response to the triple impact of avian influenza, foot and mouth and bluetongue.
Part of the project brief is to look at more economic options for carcass disposal, including both static and portable incineration units.
All the farmers who put their name to the project will be invited to see a presentation on its conclusions later in the year.
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