ࡱ> -/, +bjbj .jj+ l $ <RRRRRRRoqqqqqq$  RRRRRRRRRRoRoP`oR0 U2?Vh ;o0C, rX oARGUMENTS STACK UP IN FAVOUR OF HERBAGE SEED AS ALTERNATIVE BREAK CROP OPTION Herbage seed is an increasingly attractive cropping option for British farmers this autumn due to rising demand, higher prices and lower input costs relative to cereals, according to British Seed Houses newly appointed seed production manager John Fairey. With the herbage seed area across Europe falling by approximately 20% in recent years, and UK-bred forage and amenity varieties creating global interest, farmers in this country have an unprecedented opportunity, he says. Rising input prices should force all growers to review their cropping options and the arguments in favour of herbage seeds are as strong as I can remember. Due to rising demand and relatively short supply, prices for herbage seed are keeping pace with cereals and other alternative break crops. Herbage seed crops will typically yield seed for two or more years, so the impact of increasing fuel, fertiliser and other inputs is significantly less than for annual crops. Growing on contract for British Seed Houses, farmers can lock into minimum guaranteed prices and benefit from a full independent technical advisory service that is provided free of charge. Improved harvesting techniques and growth regulation technology have made herbage seed a more risk-free crop in recent years, and the value of hay aftermaths and grazing provides added income. Mr Fairey, who has joined British Seed Houses following a five year spell as an independent consultant with Herbage Seed Services, will be placing contracts for the highly successful IGER-bred Aber varieties, including the range of high sugar forage ryegrasses and superior quality amenity grasses. He can be contacted through British Seed Houses Lincoln office on 01522 868714 or by e-mail on  HYPERLINK "mailto:john.fairey@britishseedhouses.com" john.fairey@britishseedhouses.com - Ends - Note to editors: John Fairey joined British Seed Houses in May 2008 as seed production manager. He will be responsible for the companys grass and clover seed grower contracts throughout Great Britain, providing the full technical service required. He studied at Harper Adams University College and managed a large farming estate in Hampshire before joining Herbage Seed Services. He is BASIS and FACTS qualified and is a member of the Association of Independent Crop Consultants. He is also a fully registered certified seed crop inspector. May 12, 2008 Further information from John Fairey, British Seed Houses Tel: 01522 868714 Issue by Matt Mellor, ABC Ltd Tel: 01694 731777 N    N O P q r ~ +0J^JjU^J jU^J^J5^J NOPQ/0   s t } ~ +$a$$T`Ta$$a$+,1h/ =!"#7$% #DyK "john.fairey@britishseedhouses.comyK jmailto:john.fairey@britishseedhouses.comyX;H,]ą'c i@@@ Normal CJOJQJ_HaJmH sH tH <A@< Default Paragraph FontDOD msolistparagraph ^^JaJ.U@.  Hyperlink >*B*phFC`F Body Text Indent$T`Ta$^J>V@!> FollowedHyperlink >*B* ph+ NOPQ/0  st}~  - 000000000000000000000000000++ + Oq+ X - - rt|}`   * -  Helen Smith3T:\Germinal IGER\Releases 2008\Herbage seed, JF.doc6jIpL^`OJPJQJ^Jo(hH- ^`hH. pp^p`hH. @ @ ^@ `hH. ^`hH. ^`hH. ^`hH. ^`hH. PP^P`hH.6jIp  0@0BK        @+ Q+ 0@UnknownGz Times New Roman5Symbol3& z Arial7&{ @Calibri"qh#Dņc&qxb|{!7r0K + 2QHX#Draft press release for approval (8mmellor Helen SmithOh+'0  , H T `lt|$Draft press release for approval (8rafmmellormelmel Normal.dot  Helen Smith4leMicrosoft Word 9.0 @1@j!@X,?xb՜.+,D՜.+,\ hp   Agribusiness.K  $Draft press release for approval (8 Title 8@ _PID_HLINKSA;N)mailto:john.fairey@britishseedhouses.com  !"#%&'()*+.Root Entry Fpq2?0Data  1TableWordDocument.SummaryInformation(DocumentSummaryInformation8$CompObjjObjectPoolpq2?pq2?  FMicrosoft Word Document MSWordDocWord.Document.89q