Rachel Martin

Rachel Martin Profile Picture

Rachel Martin specialises in writing about agri-business, food production and dairying. Previously she worked as a business reporter at one of Northern Ireland’s biggest daily newspapers. In 2017, she was named one of IFAJ's 10 Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism. She is currently secretary of the Guild of Agricultural Journalists in Northern Ireland. When she’s not writing, Rachel can usually be found in the milking parlour at home in Co. Down with her family's 130 cows.

Defra: Africian Swine Fever has a 20% chance of reaching the UK
Defra: Africian Swine Fever has a 20% chance of reaching the UK

African Swine Fever has a 20% chance of reaching the UK’s pig population, according to Government officials. The shocking admission...

Dutch firm to test ‘cow toilets’ to cut farm ammonia emissions
Dutch firm to test ‘cow toilets’ to cut farm ammonia emissions

It seems potty enough to be an early April Fool’s Day escapade, but a Dutch inventor has created an innovative ‘cow...

Report recommending adults eat must 7g of beef a day branded ‘overly simplistic’
Report recommending adults eat must 7g of beef a day branded ‘overly simplistic’

The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) has hit out at a report recommending adults cut their daily meat consumption to the...

African Swine Fever: 85 pigs confirmed to have disease in Mongolia
African Swine Fever: 85 pigs confirmed to have disease in Mongolia

Highly infectious and deadly porcine virus African Swine Fever has been detected in Mongolia. A laboratory confirmed 85 pigs had...

93.4% of Basic Payment Scheme claims paid in December
93.4% of Basic Payment Scheme claims paid in December

Over £1.57 billion in Basic Payment Scheme money has been paid out so far to farmers in England, the Rural...

Tractor recovered by officers before owner knew it had been stolen
Tractor recovered by officers before owner knew it had been stolen

Police officers in Essex have managed to recover a stolen tractor and returned it to its owner in Great Totham...

NFU Cymru to host red meat summit
NFU Cymru to host red meat summit

NFU Cymru has organised a special livestock summit examining the challenges facing the Welsh red meat sector post-Brexit. The event...

Brexit: ‘British farming has lost the one thing which gave it confidence’
Brexit: ‘British farming has lost the one thing which gave it confidence’

Farming organisations and lobby bodies have warned that British agriculture faces a precarious future following last night’s House of Commons...

New £2.5 million AHDB push to promote pork
New £2.5 million AHDB push to promote pork

AHDB’s £2.5 million Midweek Meal campaign will see health-focused adverts promoting pork appear during prime-time TV shows like Coronation Street,...

‘Brexit or no Brexit; deal or no deal, we have 66 million mouths to feed’
‘Brexit or no Brexit; deal or no deal, we have 66 million mouths to feed’

NFU president Minette Batters has warned that leaving the EU without a deal could leave the country reliant on lower...

Meet the regional finalists in the 2019 Countryside Alliance Awards
Meet the regional finalists in the 2019 Countryside Alliance Awards

The finalists in the 2019 Countryside Alliance Awards have been announced, with businesses from across the country going head-to-head for...

Dog owner banned after Herfordshire sheep worrying incident
Dog owner banned after Herfordshire sheep worrying incident

A Hertfordshire man has been fined after his two dogs killed several sheep in Much Hadham last year. The owner...

Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president
Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president

Co. Antrim sheep farmer and vet Paul Crawford has been named as the new Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in...

Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president
Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president

Co. Antrim sheep farmer and vet Paul Crawford has been named as the new Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in...

Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president
Larne sheep farmer and vet named as new AVSPNI president

Co. Antrim sheep farmer and vet Paul Crawford has been named as the new Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in...

NI pork producers invited to an evening with Red Tractor
NI pork producers invited to an evening with Red Tractor

The Ulster Farmers’ Union, along with Red Tractor, is putting together an open event to promote the scheme’s work in...

NI pork producers invited to an evening with Red Tractor
NI pork producers invited to an evening with Red Tractor

The Ulster Farmers’ Union, along with Red Tractor, is putting together an open event to promote the scheme’s work in...

AHDB funds increased storage support amid CIPC uncertainty
AHDB funds increased storage support amid CIPC uncertainty

Potato store managers will be able to call on information and support from an £800,000 fund ring-fenced for sprout suppression...