Meetings organised on future levy-funded priorities as part of AHDB restructuring
THE Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has arranged a series of meetings with Scottish levy payers to discuss future levy-funded priorities.
That comes as part of a restructuring of the organisation which is designed to deliver more efficiency savings and better service to levy payers.
The meetings will also provide an opportunity for the Scottish levy payers to have their say as well as hear the latest market outlook to help them make the difficult business decisions they face.
AHDB collects around £3.2 million of its £57m of levies from Scotland.
That includes money from potatoes (£1,354,000), milk (£767,000), horticulture (£339,000) and cereals and oilseeds (£765,000).
Scottish levy payers benefit not only from the investment of the part of levy raised in Scotland, but from the full levy investment in research and development, knowledge transfer, market information, export development and promotion.
The organisation’s purpose is to equip levy payers with independent, evidence based information and tools to grow, become more competitive and sustainable.
The six meetings will follow what has been – in the words of AHDB independent board member George Lyon – a “triple whammy of a difficult summer” characterised by wet weather, overproduction and huge falls in farm prices.
Announcing the meeting dates at Potatoes in Practice in Dundee yesterday, Mr Lyon said: “We are taking a fundamental look at our priorities and reviewing every aspect of our activities, and the meetings later this year will give levy payers a chance to feed into that process directly.”
AHDB will also use these meetings to communicate how it is improving its performance by sharing best practice across sectors and working in a fully integrated manner which is expected to lead to yet more efficiency savings.
Mr Lyon added:“By operating in a more joined-up way, we can improve on the £3.8 million annual savings already achieved since merging five former levy bodies under one umbrella organisation.
“And by restructuring and integrating our teams, we can cut duplication, reduce waste and find more savings to invest in the tools the industry needs to survive these challenging times.”
The meetings will take place in November and early December in locations including Ayr, the Black Isle, Inverurie and Dundee.
AHDB confirmed that the full details of the meetings will be published at a later date. United Auctions sold 568 store heifers at Stirling on Wednesday to a top of 244.8 pence per kilogramme and an average of 215p (-9.2p on the week).
Meanwhile 642 store, beef-bred bullocks pealed at 293p and levelled at 223p (-4p).
Two-hundred-and-fortyeight store, the B&W bullocks sold to 200p and averaged at 159p (-6.4p).
The 68 store bulls peaked at a price of 227.4p and then levelled at 186p.
In the rough ring the 131 cows averaged at a price of 114.2p.