The days are getting longer and, with cloudless skies in the morning, it is getting light at 5.15am, writes Hugh Besent, NFU Cymru Montgomeryshire Chair.

Sundown is at 6.30pm at the moment, which gives us a chance to do other jobs before the cows go out to grass.

Spring is here and all our neighbours have lambs running about the fields.

Last week, with all the wind and rain, it was a real challenge for them. Let us hope that this dry, bright weather continues after all the inclement weather of the winter, without too many night frosts.

Looking forward, we have given our autumn born heifer calves their first dose of ‘Huskvac’ with the second dose to be given in about a month. This vaccine is to protect them against lung worm, especially during their first grazing season.

At turn out we also give them an anthelmintic bolus which will cover them all summer and into autumn against stomach worms.

Anticipating Welsh Government’s NVZ rules and pollution issues we are putting up a new silage pit, and since January parts of it have arrived on farm.

The frame for the building was fabricated in Newtown, and it is pleasing to see that the girders are made from British Steel. The walls are precast concrete from North Wales, the roof purlins came from Wem and the roof itself from Leominster.

The aim is to have a new structure completely made as local as possible, with no imports.

I do believe that it is important, wherever possible, to support local businesses and not patronise foreign manufacturers.

We, as farmers expect consumers to support us and purchase home-produced food, so I feel it only right that we do the same.

As we are experiencing with the manufacture of the Covid-19 vaccine, some components have to be imported to the UK, and I ask if this is right? Surely, UK brains and research developed the vaccine, and yet, it seems that we’re not able to supply all the necessary ingredients which would also create more employment for our population.