Farmers' Union of Wales president Gareth Vaughan today welcomed Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) proposals to protect farmers of traditional and conventional crops from the possible economic disadvantages of accidental contamination from GM crops.

Views are being sought on the proposals published in a WAG document entitled "Consultation on Proposals for Managing the Coexistence of GM, Conventional and Organic Crops in Wales".

The proposals include the imposition of strict liability on GM crop growers, a statutory redress mechanism, GM-free zones and a prohibition on GM crop cultivation in National Parks and Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

Welcoming the measures, Mr Vaughan said Welsh food producers would quickly lose their competitive edge if genetically modified organisms (GMOs) were used widely in the farming industry.

"The FUW was one of the first organisations to call on the National Assembly for Wales to establish a GM-free Wales and our view since 2000 has been that GMOs should only be tested in a controlled and regulated environment.

"Last year the FUW's milk and dairy produce committee held an internal consultation on the union's GMO policy position and a well attended debate on the issue took place at which both pro and anti-GMO scientists presented evidence to members.

"The subsequent responses received from our 12 county branches made it clear that the overwhelming majority of members maintain that GMOs would not bring any significant benefits to Welsh agriculture and that their premature release into the environment could be accompanied by significant risks.

"Our industry has spent a huge amount of money marketing food such as Welsh Lamb, Welsh Beef and Welsh eggs and the produce of farmers is becoming very highly respected. But going down the GMO route will quickly lead to us losing that competitive edge which we have so painstakingly built up."

Publishing the proposals, Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones said WAG's long-standing position is to adopt the most restrictive policy on GM crops compatible with European Union and UK legislation.

"It is not legally possible to declare Wales GM-free, but we will continue our restrictive approach. I am committed to maintaining consumers right to choose food without GM presence and the ability of farmers in Wales to grow organic and conventional crops free from GM contamination.

"The intention is for co-existence to be tightly regulated in Wales. Our proposed measures will be more restrictive than those proposed in England and Northern Ireland."

The consultation closes on September 22 this year.

The Prince of Wales has thrown his support behind a young farmer's determined bid to carry on the tradition of keeping Welsh mountain sheep on the Cambrian Mountain in Mid Wales.

Twenty-two-year-old Farmers' Union of Wales member Emyr Davies is the fourth generation of his family to farm 1,200 acres of hill land between 1,000 and 1,700ft surrounding the remote Carnau farmstead near Llanddewi Brefi, Ceredigion.

"I feel it is my duty to remain here and carry on the good work started by my grandfather and then my father," he told the Prince during a two-hour visit to the farm.

"My late grandfather was a sheep man through and through and my father also shares his passion for the Tregaron Welsh Mountain Sheep, a local breed of sheep native to these surrounding hills.

"They have been bred here for many generations and have become accustomed to their environment. Being a hardy breed they are capable of producing good lambs under harsh conditions."

The Prince, president of the Cambrian Mountains Initiative (CMI), was visiting the farm to discuss rural issues, food production and prospects for future generations.

He told the 160-strong gathering of neighbouring farmers and industry representatives said the initiative was designed to ensure there is a real and viable future for people like Emyr.

"There are a lot of people like Emyr, thank God, but there are so many complications in the market place and the general attitude to this form of farming. I try to remind people of the huge importance of the uplands, what some people call the Less Favoured Areas.

"The difficulty is to explain to people how much work and effort of management goes into this type of farming. The fact that these hills are grazed is part of the exercise but so many people who don't live in the countryside don't understand this.

"The stories of people like the Davies family and the contribution they make in the locality to these communities is something that is so precious, particularly to Wales.

"One of the things I became aware of when I became the Prince of Wales 40 years ago was that the population on the land in Wales was far higher than anywhere else in Britain and I suspect that this is the case today. With this initiative we are trying to ensure there is a future for these people on the land.

"At the end of the day I hope we can make a difference to ensure that there is a future for people in the uplands of the countryside and that we can ensure Emyr's sons and daughters will be able to work together to ensure the survival of this environment."

Emyr said the slopes and rocky terrain of the farm, which runs 1,200 Welsh Mountain ewes and 250-300 ewe lambs, means diversifying into growing crops, fruit and vegetables is not an option.

His father Huw (48) said it was very useful to be a CMI member. "We get a little bit extra for our lambs - after all, every little bit helps.

"I like to farm these hills but they have gone over too much to the mercy of the environmentalists. It's the sheep that keep the hills as they are if left to nature they will be overrun in no time.

"During the Foot and Mouth outbreaks places like the Brecon Beacons were beginning to become overgrown within a short space of time because the stock had gone from the hills."

Last year the prince painted a special watercolour of Cwm Berwyn to be used in the distinctive Cambrian Mountains brand. The original royal watercolour has been incorporated in the bilingual branding.

Farmers and food producers who sign up to the principles of the CMI will have the opportunity to use the brand identity. Other ideas include developing distinctive farm tourism and associated rural activities.

Earlier, the prince met FUW officials and other Welsh farming representatives for 90 minutes at his Carmarthenshire home, Llwynywermod, Myddfai, near Llandovery, to discuss the crisis in the dairy sector following the collapse of the producers' co-operative Dairy Farmers of Britain (DFB).

FUW's milk and dairy produce committee chairman Eifion Huws, a DFB member who has lost several thousands of pounds from investing in the company and non-payment of milk he supplied, said: "The prince revealed that he cares passionately about maintaining traditional Welsh dairy family farms which are the backbone of the industry in Wales.

"We welcome his obvious concern for the plight of the Welsh dairy farming sector and his genuine offer to do everything he could to help us overcome our concerns for the future.

"He told us he has asked his rural action group to work with farmers, suppliers, retailers and other key partners to see if there are solutions to our concerns."

The meeting was also heard the prince had made an undisclosed cash donation to the ARC-Addington Fund, which helps maintain the economic and social fabric of the farming community, and Farm Crisis Network, which provides pastoral and practical support to people during periods of anxiety, stress and problems relating to the farm household and business.

Gareth Vaughan was re-elected for the sixth successive time as president of the Farmers' Union of Wales during the organisation's council meeting in Aberystwyth this afternoon (Tuesday, June 16).

Mr Vaughan, who begins his seventh year in office, won the overwhelming confidence of the union's members when he was elected by delegates from all of the union's 12 county branches for the top post.

"I'm delighted to be re-elected as president once again and I look forward to driving forward the aims and ambitions of the FUW for another year in what is expected to be a challenging time for the industry," he said.

"We have seen long overdue improvements to livestock prices over the past 12 months - due primarily to the weakness of the pound - but these will have to be sustained for many years if the industry is to make up for what have been dire returns for more than a decade."

Born in Llanidloes in 1941, Mr Vaughan attended Manledd Primary and Llanidloes High Schools.

He left at the age of 15 to work on the family farm, and joined Llangurig Young Farmers Club where his interests included public speaking and drama. He runs a traditional beef and sheep unit at Cwmyrhiewdre Farm, Dolfor, near Newtown.

He farms in partnership with his wife of over 40 years, Audrey, and 11 years ago his daughter Catherine and son-in-law Brian joined the business.

Over the years the family has carried out extensive improvements, with shelter belts, new buildings, land drainage and farm road layouts. Some 2,000 metres of new hedgerow has been planted with the aid of grants from Radnor ESA.

Other hedge improvements were undertaken with the assistance of the Countryside Council for Wales.

Mr Vaughan has been an active member of the FUW for many years. He was chairman of the Newtown branch in 1988-89 and Montgomeryshire county chairman from 1991-93.

He has represented the county on the union's Grand Council and land use and parliamentary committee, the British Wool Marketing Board, the Meat and Livestock Commission liaison committee and the Agricultural Dwellinghouse Committee.

He was elected as the north Wales member of the FUW's national finance and organisation committee in 1998 before being elected vice president in 2000, deputy president in June 2002 and president in June 2003.

Mr Vaughan places great importance on supporting the local community and is involved with his local agricultural show, new hall committee and other local charities.

Two well-known Welsh Black Cattle breeders - both stalwarts of the Farmers' Union of Wales - were presented with awards during the union's annual general marketing today in recognition of their lifelong work.

Trefor Jones, founder of the Cwmcae Herd of Welsh Blacks at Llandre, Bow Street, near Aberystwyth, was recently installed as the breed society's president. He has exported cattle and sheep to Europe and is a mine of information on the problems of exporting cattle because of TB and other restrictions.

He is always willing to assist and promote the FUW and has exhibited his prize bulls at both Stradey Park and the Millennium Stadium to stress the union's support for Welsh Beef when the Scarlets and Wales played against the All Blacks.

Mr Jones always supports local and national shows and has won numerous prizes including the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society's beef champion in 2005.

Known to all as Trefor Cwmcae, he is a past chairman of the FUW's Ceredigion branch and is currently one of the county's delegates on the FUW Grand Council and Ceredigion's representative on the union's central livestock, wool and marts committee.

FUW president Gareth Vaughan presented him with the award in recognition of the agricultural industry in Wales.

Mr Vaughan also presented Richard ap Simon Jones, of Ysguboriau, Tywyn, with an award in recognition of services to the FUW and the agricultural industry in Wales.

Mr ap Simon Jones has been a leading of the FUW since its formation 54 years ago and is now regarded as a father figure of the union. He was national vice president between 1976 and 1980 - a crucial period in the development of the FUW when it was officially recognised by the government.

For almost the whole of his farming life in Ysguboriau, he has maintained unstinting loyalty to the union, regularly attending county and national meetings, and he still attends the county committee in Dolgellau and the FUW Grand Council as a life member.

He has made an outstanding contribution to the FUW and the agricultural industry, and was awarded the MBE for his services in the early 1980s. During the early 1990s, he became an influential chairman of the Gwynedd Flood Defence Committee, a post he held for 11 years.

He has also been a leading member of the Welsh Black Cattle Society - having been a former president and chaired its governing council for 12 years.

He has been a cattle judge at major agricultural shows - the Royal Welsh Show, the Royal Show, and Royal Highland Show - and is a Fellow of the Royal Agricultural Societies.

He began farming Ysguboriau in 1952 after marrying Gwenda Jones, whose family had run the farm since the beginning of the last century. Mr R ap Simon Jones has now retired from farming and the land at Ysguboriau, including adjoining farms, is farmed separately by sons William and Simon Jones who are also renowned stockmen.

In 1996, William won the supreme interbreed champion at the Royal Welsh Show with his Welsh Black cow and Simon, whose main interest is the sheep enterprise, was UK Shepherd of the Year in 1981

The Farmers' Union of Wales president Gareth Vaughan revealed today he was duty bound to condemn the Welsh Assembly Government's decision to scrap the Tir Mynydd scheme of payments to farmers within Less Favoured Areas.

"While the Union commends the position taken by the Assembly on Bovine TB, there is one recent WAG decision that we cannot condone and that is the one to abandon Tir Mynydd," Mr Vaughan told the union's annual general meeting in Aberystwyth.

"This decision brings to an end a policy based upon principles established more than sixty years ago under the 1946 Hill Farming Act - principles that recognise the fundamental importance of maintaining Wales's farming and rural communities in order to avoid deprivation, land abandonment, and rural depopulation.

"The abandonment of those principles in favour of environmental measures is a position that our members fundamentally oppose, whether changes in focus are driven by the European Commission or by the Assembly Government, and over recent weeks I have been approached by countless numbers of farmers who believe that their businesses and communities are threatened by the recent decision.

"The truth of the matter is that rural populations are an intrinsic part of the environment - they have created the environment. They play a key role in maintaining the environment. And the diversity of wildlife and biodiversity that we enjoy exists not in spite of farming, but because of farming."

Mr Vaughan stressed that the environment relied upon farming families and the majority of farming families relied significantly on the Tir Mynydd scheme, one of five agri-environment schemes in Wales due to be replaced by one scheme called Glastir from 2012.

"These families may well be threatened unless the new Glastir scheme is carefully crafted in a way that ensures that it is not overly prescriptive or bureaucratic and, above all else, fills the gulf created by the abandonment of half a century of handicap payments.

"We also have major concerns about the practicality for the Assembly of implementing the Glastir scheme, and I sincerely hope that sufficient staff will be available to produce perhaps as many as sixteen thousand detailed farm maps and agreements, while undertaking as many as 65 private interviews with farmers every single working day during the transition period.

"As part of the stakeholder group that will help formulate the Glastir scheme, the union is of course committed to doing all it can to ensure that Glastir is as practical and beneficial as is possible.

"However, be in no doubt that the FUW, like thousands of farmers across Wales, has major concerns regarding the Glastir scheme and the impact it will have on our rural communities. I am duty bound to condemn the decision to abolish Tir Mynydd."

Mr Vaughan reminded delegates there was no animal disease in Wales more concerning than bovine TB which costs the industry and taxpayers millions of pounds each year, and causes untold stress and suffering for all concerned.

"Following years of lobbying by the FUW, the Welsh Assembly Government and members from all political parties have taken the decision to stand shoulder to shoulder on the issue of TB in badgers, and this sends out a clear lesson in maturity and honesty to those amongst our English neighbours who threaten to undermine the efficacy of future Welsh and UK TB control measures.

"For too many years politicians have buried uncomfortable truths about TB in wildlife, pandering to animal rights extremists who, through threats and misinformation, have managed to steer government policy away from what is in the best interests of human health and the taxpayer.

"In Wales, such attempts to corrupt the democratic process are more common than ever - for example, in one leaflet that has been widely distributed by Badger Watch and Rescue Dyfed, no less than eight out of ten so called 'answers' to commonly asked questions are either grossly misleading or plain untrue.

"Such campaigns are deliberately designed to mislead members of the general public into lobbying against a badger cull, and I therefore hope that the Assembly's Rural Affairs Minister and her colleagues will stand up to such disgraceful campaigns of misinformation.

"Because what has been shown in Wales is that, by grasping the nettle, by refusing to allow animal rights extremists to divide and conquer, and by being honest with the general public about the role that badgers play in transmitting TB, ways forward can be found that will reduce incidences of disease in cattle and wildlife.

"I therefore, once again, congratulate the majority of National Assembly Members, the Welsh Assembly Government, and, in particular, the Minister for Rural Affairs for the courageous stance that has been taken on TB.

"That stance stands in stark contrast to the cowardly approach that has been adopted in England - an approach based on cowering in the face of intimidation from animal rights extremists and hiding behind one ridiculously decisive statement published in the Final Report of the Independent Science Group on TB that is an embarrassment to the scientific community, and is contradicted by scientific evidence from Great Britain and around the globe.

"The Defra approach not only shows a disregard for animal and human health, but also poses a wider risk of TB transmission from wildlife and the environment, as shown by the recent escalation of TB cases in humans and animals - and all in a world in which the vaccination of children against tuberculosis is no longer routine.

"I therefore, on behalf of our cross border farms, on behalf of farmers throughout the UK, and on behalf of the future health of our cattle, our wildlife, and our progeny, call on Defra to do the honourable thing with regard to TB, rather than risk dragging the whole of the UK down."

The Farmers' Union of Wales warned today that the closure of the only major milk bottling plant in Wales could result in a withdrawal of bulk tanker collections from many dairy farms in remote areas.

"Today's closure by the receivers of Dairy Farmers of Britain's Bridgend plant is a great shame for the industry," said Eifion Huws, chairman of the union's milk and dairy produce committee.

"It gives us great cause for concern that milk collections from small farms in remote areas will be threatened. Even before today's closure of the Bridgend plant many dairy farmers in West Wales were worried whether their milk would be picked up by tankers in future.

"I fear we could soon be left with the ridiculous situation of numerous farmers having to drive many miles to deliver their milk to processors and that milk then transported back for sale by retailers in the same localities.

"We are constantly being encouraged to cut down on food miles yet we are poised to increase food miles at a time when fuel costs are rising rapidly," added Mr Huws, who is also a victim of the DFB receivership as a member of the co-operative.

The Bridgend plant was closed with the loss of 279 jobs the day after receivers announced Milk Link Ltd had bought DFB's cheese-producing creamery at Llandyrnog, Denbighshire, which employs 170.

Fears that major changes are in store for the Welsh farming industry under the Assembly Government's forthcoming Glastir agri-environment scheme were outlined today by the Farmers' Union of Wales' outgoing Ceredigion chairman.

Speaking after rural affairs minister and Ceredigion AM Elin Jones attended a special county branch meeting on his hill farm at Cwmystwyth, Brynmor Morgan said: "After all is said and done, the colour and quality of the vegetation of our hills are controlled by us farmers who are the true custodians of the countryside.

"Whatever prescriptions come from the Welsh Assembly they should not risk affecting hill farm incomes in such a way that a clearance of the hills is triggered which could lead to Welsh uplands becoming a desert."

From 2012, the five existing agri-environment schemes will be replaced by one scheme, Glastir, in an attempt to meet future environmental challenges. Welsh Assembly Government officials are now working on the detail and engaging with industry representatives, including the FUW, to make sure it becomes a workable scheme.

Mr Morgan said dozens of members had an in-depth, frank discussion with Ms Jones with very informative questions and points put across. "But there were counter arguments made very strongly by the members and no punches were pulled.

"We trust that their views will be of value to the Welsh Assembly team," added Mr Morgan, who is the seventh generation to run his family's farm at Ty Newydd.

County executive officer Owen Jenkins told Ms Jones large numbers of FUW members waiting to enter the existing Tir Gofal scheme now felt like they have had the door slammed in their face.

He also pointed out that all those farming on common land would have to co-operate to enter the Glastir scheme and that could be a major problem.

Ms Jones said the decision to set up Glastir had been taken now in order to minimise the impact of farmers having to suffer major transitions in Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 payments at the same time.

"I have given FUW's president Gareth Vaughan an assurance that I want farmers' views because Glastir will not work if it is not practical for farmers and it must also be visibly light on bureaucracy."

Welsh food producers would quickly lose their competitive edge if genetically modified organisms (GMOs) were used widely in the farming industry, Farmers' Union of Wales president Gareth Vaughan said today.

Speaking after attending a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs (ACAF), Mr Vaughan said: "Our industry has spent a huge amount of money marketing food such as Welsh Lamb, Welsh Beef and Welsh eggs and the produce of farmers is becoming very highly respected.

"But going down the GMO route will quickly lead to us losing that competitive edge which we have so painstakingly built up."

The ACAF was set up in June 1999 to advise on the safety and use of animal feeds and feeding practices, with particular emphasis on protecting human health and with reference to new technical developments and new feed materials.

It was established following concern about the integrity of animal feeds, particularly over the implications of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) and the use of genetically modified feed ingredients.

"The genetic modification of organisms is an emotive subject around which there remain major concerns in terms of the impact the premature release of such technology into the environment will have and the significant power the technology affords major agrichemical companies over farmers.

"In the light of these and other concerns the FUW was one of the first organisations to call on the National Assembly for Wales to establish a GM-free Wales and our view since 2000 has been that GMOs should only be tested in a controlled and regulated environment.

"Following a resurgence in the debate amongst the farming community on GMOs, fuelled significantly by the global food shortages of the past two years, the FUW's milk and dairy produce committee last year instigated an internal consultation on the union's GMO policy position and, in order to inform these discussions, a well attended debate on the issue was held at which both pro and anti-GMO scientists presented evidence to members.

"The subsequent responses received from our 12 county branches made it clear that the overwhelming majority of members maintain that GMOs would not bring any significant benefits to Welsh agriculture and that their premature release into the environment could be accompanied by significant risks.

"However, one of the most significant concerns continues to be the control over GMO technologies currently held by the major agrichemical companies and the ways in which GMOs resistant to particular branded pesticides, or packaged with other tailor-made chemicals, might be used to develop monopolies and exert control over Welsh farms and farming practices."

A Welsh dairy farmers' leader today demanded that banks must show the same goodwill as the Government showed them during the credit crunch following confirmation that the Dairy Farmers of Britain (DFB) milk co-operative had gone into receivership.

"The Government showed goodwill to the banks by helping to bale them out. Now the banks must repay that goodwill and stand by the members and employees of DFB," said the Farmers' Union of Wales milk committee chairman Eifion Huws.

DFB employs a total of 2,200 at its cheese factory at Llandyrnog in north-east Wales and liquid milk dairy at Bridgend in south Wales plus other sites in the south-west and north-east of England and the Midlands.

"It also has 1,800 farmer members across Great Britain who supply over one billion litres to the food and drink industry who now stand to lose many thousands of pounds," said Mr Huws, an Anglesey dairy farmer and DFB member.

He added: "This is a sad day for DFB members, its staff and all its suppliers and it may stop other groups in the industry from setting up co-operative ventures which the Government is constantly encouraging us to do.

"It is estimated that the average DFB member will lose around £14,000 for their May and early June milk amounting to around £21m in total - in addition to an average farmer investment of around £25,000 which has already been lost.

"HSBC are understood to be the dominant banker for DFB members and I believe they should think very long and hard about how to help members by offering interest free loans, for example.

"After all, the loss of a much-needed milk cheque is a huge blow to all our cashflows. The question must now be put - how many more farmers can be expected to sustain such a big blow to their livelihoods?

"We wonder what will be the effect of the availability of all the extra milk for which DFB members will now be looking for a market," he added.

Farming leaders from across the dairy industry have issued a call on retailers and the food service sector to take steps to secure the future of British supply. The call comes as many dairy farmers are once again being paid less for their milk than it costs to produce it.

In a letter to all the major retailers, discounters and major food service players the NFU, Farmers for Action, Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers, Dairy Farmers of Scotland, NFUS and the Farmers' Union of Wales have called for action to increase confidence among dairy farmers to stop the erosion of critical mass within the sector.

The industry-wide group says that everyone in the milk supply chain needs to make a fair profit and calls for retailers to stop gambling with security of milk supply. The letter asks for three commitments from the industry's biggest customers:

· Commitment to sourcing British dairy products.

· Transparent and stable pricing mechanisms for liquid milk and cheese suppliers that offer producers a sustainable milk price.

· Promotion of the Red Tractor on all own label, British dairy products.

The letter states: "Our message is very simple. If you want to guarantee a supply of quality British milk, cheese and dairy products you must take steps to secure it."

Industry quotes:

NFU Dairy Board Chairman Gwyn Jones said:

"As British milk supply continues to fall, consumers are increasingly denied the opportunity of choice they deserve to purchase British dairy products; products which are produced to the highest welfare and environmental standards in the world."

"Consumers are paying a fair price for British dairy products but that money is not distributed fairly down the supply chain. The difference between profit and loss for dairy farmers in this country is a small fraction of the overall margin on milk and dairy products, which could easily be afforded."

Farmers For Action, Chairman David Handley said:

"In an unprecedented move by farmer organisations, this letter should leave no retailer or buyer in any doubt that we will no longer tolerate the current trend of low milk prices and the total imbalance of profits in the dairy chain."

RABDF chairman, Lyndon Edwards said:

"British dairy farmers must receive a fair and sustainable price for their milk immediately; otherwise consumers will not have the option to buy fresh British milk in future."

Dairy Farmers of Scotland Chairman, Iain Smith:

"Everyone involved should take this letter and its contents very seriously. Never before has there been such a level of discontent among dairy farmers -- not only in the UK -- but worldwide. UK milk buyers are only fooling themselves in using EU and world markets as benchmarks for prices if they are to expect a continued supply of milk."

FUW Vice-President, Eifion Huws:

"The fact that our respective organisations have come together and issued this stark warning demonstrates the seriousness of the situation. We all know of the devastating consequences that have resulted from short-sighted decisions in the financial industry. We are calling on leaders in the dairy supply chain not to make similar mistakes that will have long term repercussions for British food and farming."

Chairman, NFUS, Jimmy Mitchell:

"NFUS fully supports all producer organisations joining forces to promote the interests of all dairy farmers. We also believe strongly that the future of the British dairy industry depends on an effective supply chain which ensures fair returns for all parts of that chain. Only when this becomes a reality will producers have the confidence and enthusiasm to invest and reverse the decline in production."