LIKE many old gentlemen, the market water works are in need of attention and they have been under severe pressure, if you will excuse the pun, over the past couple of years.

The foot and mouth disease crisis brought out the very worst in our bureaucratic scribes who were just waiting in the wings for such an opportunity to produce reams of hardly comprehensible regulations under which we now struggle.

There is no doubt that there was a case for improving bio-security but most level-headed people believe that everything has gone a step too far.

For the past 24 months almost precisely, Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC) staff have been employed by DEFRA to oversee the "cleansing and disinfection" of vehicles at the market; and with the odd inevitable exception they have done a good job, probably because the temporary staff have been drawn from the ranks of the rural community.

Last Friday, we received notice from the MLC that they had been sacked and from the end of the month they would no longer be in the market.

One might not unreasonably have presumed that DEFRA would already have put in place an alternative management procedure but, as I write, seven days from MLC's exit, we have no idea who is going to look after the wash, if anyone!

We are aware that DEFRA proposes more stringent regulations in that every vehicle will have to be washed out before it leaves the market; and it would be out of character if there was not to be yet another piece of paper to prove it.

In anticipation of the problem, and to try and remedy the ageing water works system, we have placed an order for four new pressure wash points which will be installed in the next week or two.

And now for the bad news - in order to try and cover some of the increased running costs, both in manpower and disinfectant, there will be a modest charge to collect!

1836 and all that

Whilst working on a house at Westow, Mike James found a bit of newspaper that had been stuffed in a hole to save plaster. Having dried it out, page 5 of the York Courant for September 15, 1836, was revealed.

To my failing eyes, the type face was miniscule but the language was just wonderful, written at the height of the British Empire just nine months before Queen Victoria came to the throne.

The range of articles was fascinating including columns on homeopathy, the reformed principles of bear-baiting, the new Clifton suspension bridge, and the extraordinary case of a female husband!

Most appropriate to my rural banter was the following article with the intriguing title

"Wonderful sagacity and escape of a cow"

"On Tuesday, a favourite cow, belonging to a family who are at present at Mumbles, either being harassed by the flies or wishing to enjoy the freshening breeze, climbed up the winding staircase of Oyster Mouth Castle and was discovered on the summit standing on a ledge scarcely one foot wide. She was unable to turn and there was a descent of 50 feet below her.

"The villagers here held a council of war and it was proposed to tie ropes to her and hoist her down; but two sailors who were present stated the danger that would arise from such an endeavour; and proposed to procure planks and widen the ledge with them sufficiently for her to turn.

"Their advice was taken and a narrow stage made outside the wall secured with ropes. Now was the moment of interest! One false step would precipitate the animal into the castle yard which was filled with spectators awaiting in breathless anxiety the hazardous experiment.

"The turn was made and after some little hesitation the vaccine retrograde geometrical perambulation commenced.

"There was not one slip or one error on the part of the descending tourist, though a ladder might have been as manageable to a cow as was the staircase.

"Conscious that one false step was irretrievable she, with caution, yet boldly, descended and emerged from the portal into the castle yard with sovereign composure amidst the shouts of the multitude."

They don't write like that in the Daily Mail - not no more!

Farm Assurance changes

As a principle, I have always been supportive of the Farm Assurance Movement in order to ensure that acceptable standards of husbandry and welfare are applied across the industry to give comfort to our customers.

I am afraid it is symptomatic of the British disease of bureaucracy that we are incapable of regulating with moderation; and the latest 56-page booklet on the New Farm Assurance Standards, as from April 1, are a clear indication that the virus is still rampant.

The key changes to fill in those spare hours of the working day are as follows:

Bio-security guidelines now include a requirement to have proper cleaning and washing facilities, including appropriate disinfectant.

There should be a written waste management plan identifying areas of high pollution risk including farmyard manure.

All home mixers of feeding stuffs must be registered with the local suthority, and keep details of feed formulation including the retention of samples.

Every farm must have a written health plan.

All transport is now subject to regulation and inspection.

I only hope that the Farm Assurance movement doesn't go too far. It is a sound concept, but currently it is driven by the supermarket movement with little support from the medium-sized wholesaler or retail butcher who tends to rely upon a much more personal guarantee of origin.

Frank Turner, Brian Glaves and their fellow retailers will name for you the farm from whence the fillet steak came and who can ask for more?

Market report

On Tuesday, forward were 107 cattle including 35 bulls and 25 cows; 436 sheep including 296 ewes and rams.

Lightweight steers to 94p from B Gray, Fryup (ave 93p); heavy steers to 116p from Pam Gibson, Bempton (97.5p).

Medium heifers to 125p from B Raby, Nawton (99.6p); heavy heifers to 136p from F Fairburn, Rievaulx (104.2p).

Lightweight bulls to 104p from J M Craggs, Ebberston (103p); medium bulls to 108p from T D Nichols, Stape (97.3p); heavy bulls to 122p from T D Nichols, Stape (96.5p); black and white bulls to 90p from Grange Farm Bulmer Ltd (84.5p).

Standard lambs to 131.5 from A M & S Avison, Black Bull (124.1p).

Medium hoggs to 131p from K B Harrison, Riseborough (122.5p); heavy hoggs to 124.4p from P Hicks & Son, Low Dalby (118.4p); overweight hoggs to 124.1p from P McPherson, Lilling (112.28p).

Ewes to £72.50 from R Green, Pickering (£54).

Updated: 10:34 Wednesday, February 19, 2003