Cold snap not impacting on agriculture as yet
It’s business as usual for agriculture as Northern Ireland faces up to the first cold snap of the year.
Up to this point, tanker lorries taking milk off farms have not been affected in any way by the wintry conditions. And the same holds where animal feed deliveries are concerned.
Last weekend Dale Farm contacted all of its farmer suppliers asking them to keep all lanes and relevant concrete free of snow and ice in order to allow milk tankers to operate in a normal fashion.
“We have heard of no delays or issues of concern relating to the weather,” commented Dale Farm director Neville Graham. “We have an excellent working relationship with all our farmer suppliers. Putting sand down on concrete and tarmac-covered area is normally sufficient to keep ensure these surfaces remain ice free.”
He added: “Milk production levels are exceptionally strong at the present time, running between nine and 10% higher than this time last year.”
Meanwhile, United Feeds’ sales manager Alan Boyd confirmed that it’s business as usual where animal feed deliveries are concerned.
He explained: “We operate a very flexible delivery system. In those small number of cases where farm lanes are impassable because of recent snow, we will always work around the issue.”
But the cold snap is far from over with exceptionally heavy night frosts expected up to the weekend.
Periods of Arctic weather bring with them an enhanced insurance risk for farmers.
Abbey Autoline’s Richard Henderson explained: “Slips and falls are an all too common feature of frosty weather. But accidents can be so easily avoided.
“All yard surfaces should be gritted to prevent ice forming. The gritting of all relevant yard surfaces can prevent accidents from happening.”
He concluded: “Frozen water pipes are also a common feature that can impact on farm businesses during cold snaps. And again, prevention is the obvious way forward in this regard. Frozen pipes will invariably leak once the thaw kicks in. Insurance policies will not cover water damage caused to farm vehicles and sheds.”