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Mr James Paice MP launched New Crop Opportunities at Cereals
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News Releases 16 June 2006 BCPC launches New Crop Opportunities BCPC is delighted to announce the launch of its unique, new electronic farm management aid, New Crop Opportunities, at Cereals 2006. At the launch, Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Mr Jim Paice MP, explained that there were increasing demands for renewable energy, alternative sources of raw materials and new food products. He said, "There are huge opportunities for farmers to grow new crops to meet the needs of customers; many of whom may never even have thought of farming as a raw material source. I congratulate BCPC on producing this new resource." Mr Chris Todd, managing director BCPC explains "There is little point in farmers and growers making that leap into the unknown without considering the risks and benefits and likely returns. That is why New Crop Opportunities has been developed. We believe that it will provide farmers, growers and advisers with the must-have independent information that they need to make an informed decision on which alternative crops are best suited to their land and farm system. There is a huge range of crops to select, from blueberries to pumpkins, borage to willow, and for existing crops, new uses such as ethanol production from wheat or biodiesel from oilseed rape." New Crop Opportunities will enable farmers and growers to consider the market, the crop agronomy, water and nutrient requirements and what likely impact this could have on their labour and machinery. It also links into a dynamic financial model, from farm business consultants, Andersons, to give the farmer an indication on his likely returns. The product will fully launch in September 2006 with 50 crop options, but in such a fast-moving field, this will be expanded as further data on new crops and uses is generated. The advantage of having the publication on-line means that it will be more dynamic, interactive and easy to up date. The discussion forum facility will allow farmers to share their experiences on the benefits and problems that they have experienced when growing new crops and this will help to build the publication even further. By visiting www.newcrops.co.uk users can find out what crops are covered, access sample pages and then purchase on-line via the registrant's portal. A flexible approach to purchasing the product has been devised with time limited access to the data. Indicative costs are £35 for 24hours viewing, £75 for 1 week viewing to £175 for an annual subscription which will included updates and email alerts to new information. Further information is available from |
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