First Milk Home

Whether it’s cross compliance, or NVZ’s, or wildlife or climate change, environmental issues pop-up everywhere. Understanding the basics can be difficult, let alone getting to grips with each subject area to an extent where they cease being a dictat and actually bring additional value to a business.

But gaining value from environmental action has to be the aim, says Chris Brough from the Royal Agricultural College (RAC), Cirencester and achieving it is going to be one of the main objectives of the First Milk Academy’s Good Environmental and Agricultural Practice module (GEAP), which is currently being created by Kingshay and RAC. The module will cover all of the various aspects of the environment through a series of planned individual workshops on areas like cross compliance, the entry level schemes, fertiliser and manure management, forage planning and integrated crop management, and even aspects of climate change.

“The aims are to bring First Milk members up to a level of functionality on these issues, to help them understand the rapidly changing legislation and to make sure they can carry out good agricultural practice across a range of subject areas,” he said. “Ultimately we want to help farmers make money out of environmental opportunities,” he explained.

Farmers and herdspersons can choose to do a specific workshop(s), or complete the whole selection on offer. Each workshop will vary from half a day to two days in length. Those completing four out of a planned total of six will be deemed to have completed the module, and will get 20 credits. The course should be ready for piloting at the end of May, with a view to starting in August or September, said Mr Brough. “They’ll be very practical and not at all prescriptive.”

With the launch of this latest module, First Milk members will have a choice of 4 Professional Development Workshops (PDW):–

1) Herd fertility
2) Lameness prevention & cow welfare
3) Dairy Farm Business Management
4) Good Environmental and Agricultural Practice

It is our aim to develop two more PDWs next year making a total of six. By successfully completing six modules and amassing 120 credits, members or their herdspersons will get an individual Certificate of Higher Education in Dairy Farm Management accredited by the Royal Agricultural College.

Please contact your Area Manager to arrange attendance at whichever workshop interests you.