Lantra, the Sector Skills Council for environmental and land-based industries, together with XL Vets announced today (2 October) that farmers from across the region will be able to take advantage of a new set of activities designed to improve farm business performance and livestock health, as they marked the end of the first ever LandSkills Week (28 September - 2 October).

LandSkills Week saw the start of a £4 million winter training programme available to farmers, growers and foresters in six regions across England.  LandSkills East Midlands has already allocated over £200,000 to its winter training activities, including XL Vets programme, FarmSkills, which brings farmers, vets and industry experts together.

LandSkills East Midlands Programme Manager, Richard Loynes, said: "We are pleased to use LandSkills Week as a platform to inform cattle, sheep, pig and poultry farmers that FarmSkills is up and running and ready for farmers to access up to 70% to develop their skills and businesses."

There are four XL Vet practices in the East Midlands who will be running FarmSkills courses for farmers in subjects from foot trimming in cattle to bull fertility and soundness testing.  Vet Rose Jackson, from the Scarsdale Veterinary Group near Derby added: "We're really enthusiastic about the new courses we're able to bring to farmers across the region.  Working together with our farmers, we can help improve our region's livestock health and have a positive impact on farm business profits."

Loynes continued:  "FarmSkills is just one part of a wider range of activities that are being supported by the LandSkills programme and given the current economic climate their launch could not be bettered timed."