0:00:27 > 0:00:32The Derwent Valley, a place of contrasts.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35To the north, it cuts its way through high gritstone moorland,
0:00:35 > 0:00:40quiet forests and the grand reservoirs of the Peak District.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43To the south, flood meadows, pastures and a lost industry
0:00:43 > 0:00:45dominate the Derbyshire landscape.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56I'm using pedal power to explore the Upper Derwent Valley.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58This whole area may look untouched,
0:00:58 > 0:01:01but the whole landscape has changed over time,
0:01:01 > 0:01:05with one thing in mind - getting as much water as possible
0:01:05 > 0:01:08from here to the surrounding towns and villages.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13I'm 20 miles south of Matt in the Lower Derwent Valley.
0:01:13 > 0:01:18Here, the river flows past the hedges and fields of rolling rich farmland.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20This is where the water picks up speed,
0:01:20 > 0:01:22and it was by harnessing that energy
0:01:22 > 0:01:26200 years ago that this 15-mile stretch of river became
0:01:26 > 0:01:30an important part of the Industrial Revolution.
0:01:30 > 0:01:34Now, the mills stand silent, except this one,
0:01:34 > 0:01:37which doesn't produce cotton, but electricity.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41And from water, water, everywhere, to none at all.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45I'll be looking into the curious case of a river that simply disappears into thin air.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53Tom is talking about disappearing profits.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56Despite rising meat prices around the world,
0:01:56 > 0:02:00British pig farmers are still losing an average of £7
0:02:00 > 0:02:03on every animal they sell.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06So, what can be done to turn round the fortunes
0:02:06 > 0:02:09of the British pig industry. I'll be investigating.
0:02:09 > 0:02:14And Adam's finding out how to make money from his own rare breed pigs.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18Amazing! Absolutely fantastic.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Look at that.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36With its rivers and woodlands,
0:02:36 > 0:02:41the Derwent Valley is a haven for walkers, wildlife and, well, water.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47The upper part of the valley is famed for its impressive waters,
0:02:47 > 0:02:52which flow down to the industrial cotton mills of the Lower Derwent
0:02:52 > 0:02:55that played an important role in the Industrial Revolution.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Whilst Ellie's exploring the Lower Derwent,
0:03:00 > 0:03:04I'm on my bike to explore the upper part of the valley.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10On my travels, I'll be taking in its three impressive reservoirs -
0:03:10 > 0:03:12the Howden, Derwent and Ladybower -
0:03:12 > 0:03:17that provide water to Derby, Nottingham, Sheffield and Leicester.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19Between them, the reservoirs have a combined capacity
0:03:19 > 0:03:24of just under 465 million litres of water.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26That's a lot of cups of tea.
0:03:29 > 0:03:34The Howden and Derwent dams were constructed between 1901 and 1916.
0:03:34 > 0:03:38Just over a million tonnes of stone was brought in by railway
0:03:38 > 0:03:42to build what were at the time the two largest masonry dams in the country.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48Remnants of the old railway track can still be seen today.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51But lying just down here is the abandoned site
0:03:51 > 0:03:55of one of the strangest towns in the Peak District.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59Strange because it was purely nomadic,
0:03:59 > 0:04:02built for the workers on the dam and packed up
0:04:02 > 0:04:06and shipped on to another project once building work was done.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09Looks like the Edwardians were down with the flatpack concept
0:04:09 > 0:04:11way before the Swedes.
0:04:11 > 0:04:16Officially known as Birchinlee, it earned itself the nickname Tin Town,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18thanks to its corrugated iron huts.
0:04:20 > 0:04:25The town was laid out over two roads that you can still make out today.
0:04:25 > 0:04:29They were lined with everything, from a grocer's to a tailor's.
0:04:32 > 0:04:37I'm meeting ranger Dave Ashton to find out more about this unusual town.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41So, Dave, we're standing in what would have been the high street of Tin Town.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44- That's right, this is it. - How many folk would have been here in its heyday?
0:04:44 > 0:04:47In its peak, 1908, about a thousand.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51These are a bunch of guys who in the past had been working on sites
0:04:51 > 0:04:54like dams, railways and so on, as navvies.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58They'd not been well looked after by their employers. They'd been living in pipes,
0:04:58 > 0:05:01huts, caves, anything they could find.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06Of course, with that came a death rate, illness and so on.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09So when they were given permission to build these dams,
0:05:09 > 0:05:15the Derwent Valley Water Board were told they had to provide suitable accommodation for their workforce.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18And the engineers designed and built Birchinlee.
0:05:18 > 0:05:24Sounds like a children's programme, Tin Town, but it was called that because of the little huts.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27They were all made of corrugated iron, that wrinkly tin.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30But each one was lined with wood and had a Derbyshire grate.
0:05:30 > 0:05:35If you went in, you'd think you were in an Edwardian living room
0:05:35 > 0:05:38in any suburb in Sheffield. They made them really cosy.
0:05:38 > 0:05:43The folk of Tin Town had their own hospitals, school, an all-important pub
0:05:43 > 0:05:48and a recreation room that doubled up as a dance hall. They had their own little Strictly.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50How long were they here for?
0:05:50 > 0:05:53Did they get to see this place filling up with water?
0:05:53 > 0:05:58Some would have done. The first dam to finish was Howden,
0:05:58 > 0:06:00that was finished in 1912.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02But by the time Derwent was finished in 1916,
0:06:02 > 0:06:06the Great War was on and it became a low-key thing.
0:06:06 > 0:06:10A big gala opening of one, but things were happening that dwarfed
0:06:10 > 0:06:15what was happening here, so it was a subdued opening for Derwent.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19But it's not just their pioneering working conditions
0:06:19 > 0:06:21that the reservoirs are known for.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25During the Second World War, they were used for much more than storing water.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28If I'd been here 70 years ago,
0:06:28 > 0:06:32there would have been a Lancaster bomber so low over my head
0:06:32 > 0:06:36the wind from its propeller would have parted my hair.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40That's because the landscape provided
0:06:40 > 0:06:43the perfect training ground for the legendary Dambusters.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46The reservoirs and surrounding hills enabled pilots
0:06:46 > 0:06:49to practise their dangerous low-level flying skills
0:06:49 > 0:06:53in preparation for dropping the famous bouncing bomb.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Hardly surprising then, that the Dambusters film
0:06:57 > 0:07:00was also shot on location here in 1954.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12It's clear that man has influenced the landscape here,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16and at the heart of everything is the water.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19But to me, it still feels like being out in the wilderness.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23But the water harnessed here in the Derwent Valley wasn't just
0:07:23 > 0:07:27to keep Sheffield and the East Midlands in cups of tea.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29It was also used to power the industrial textile mills
0:07:29 > 0:07:33that this region is now famed for.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49Just over 200 years ago, mills like this began to harness
0:07:49 > 0:07:53the fast-flowing water of the Derwent to power cotton-producing factories.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56It was to give birth to a whole new way of working
0:07:56 > 0:07:58and revolutionise the world.
0:07:58 > 0:08:03It was local entrepreneur Richard Arkwright who made the breakthrough.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06He developed the water frame,
0:08:06 > 0:08:09a cotton-spinning machine powered by water, much like this one.
0:08:09 > 0:08:14It replaced the hand of man with mechanical operation, and for the first time,
0:08:14 > 0:08:18power was linked to large-scale mechanisation.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22- How important were Arkwright's innovations?- Hugely important.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25This is how the Industrial Revolution started.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28Arkwright invented mass production, if you like.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32He completely changed the way people's lives worked.
0:08:32 > 0:08:37We could produce so many goods that we could provide the world with a huge amount of spun cotton.
0:08:37 > 0:08:42What was it about this part of the world that led to this kind of innovation?
0:08:42 > 0:08:45The amount of water pouring off the Peak District.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48So much of the water comes down through the Derwent
0:08:48 > 0:08:51and they were able to harness that.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55At Belper, you had 14 water wheels all working on the same site.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58But eventually it moved away from this area. What happened?
0:08:58 > 0:09:03They found that Lancashire had a better climate
0:09:03 > 0:09:05because it's damper, so the cotton spins better.
0:09:05 > 0:09:08But all the cotton was pouring into Liverpool,
0:09:08 > 0:09:13so there was no point bringing it across the Pennines down in to Derbyshire.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17Although the boom here was short-lived,
0:09:17 > 0:09:20it transformed this valley for ever.
0:09:20 > 0:09:25The banks of the River Derwent are peppered with the imposing shadows of its industrial past,
0:09:25 > 0:09:29a reminder of the important role these mills played here
0:09:29 > 0:09:31in the history of this valley.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Ten years ago, they received World Heritage status,
0:09:34 > 0:09:36and although they hark back to former glories,
0:09:36 > 0:09:40there's now an interesting link here with a modern form of water power.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44Here at Masson, Arkwright's biggest cotton mill,
0:09:44 > 0:09:48the old water wheels were replaced with turbines 80 years ago.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52Now, these have been converted to power the site with hydro-electricity.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56Some, like the countryside charity Friends of the Peak District, believe
0:09:56 > 0:09:59hydro could be a viable option at smaller sites across the region.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01We spent about three years
0:10:01 > 0:10:04looking at about 150 sites,
0:10:04 > 0:10:06mostly old mill sites in the park,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10and found that about half had a reasonable potential for new hydro power.
0:10:10 > 0:10:15Critics have argued that hydro can be damaging to a river's ecology.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19A turbine, if not properly controlled,
0:10:19 > 0:10:22could actually just be a fish mincing machine.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25But there are lots of things you can do to stop the fish
0:10:25 > 0:10:27going down there.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31You can put screens there, so they're not diverted into there.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35We are, as they say, reinventing the wheel to some extent.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37But it just seems to be perfect.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40It's right for the National Park, it's right for heritage
0:10:40 > 0:10:42and done properly, right for the rivers and fish as well.
0:10:48 > 0:10:53A few local hydro schemes are already in place, taking advantage not only
0:10:53 > 0:10:58of the abundance of water here, but also an incentive scheme from the government
0:10:58 > 0:11:01which offers cash-back for the energy you generate.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04One man who has grabbed this opportunity with both hands
0:11:04 > 0:11:07is retired dentist Bob Griffiths.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11He's set about restoring this former corn mill and its 100-year-old turbine
0:11:11 > 0:11:13to create his own mini hydro-electric plant.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20- Hi, Bob, you're looking busy.- We've been busy for two years, Ellie.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Two years, my goodness! What's been going on the last two years?
0:11:23 > 0:11:26We moved in when the place was more or less derelict,
0:11:26 > 0:11:29so we've been restoring it.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31This is the roof. What's going on down there?
0:11:31 > 0:11:35What you can see there is a big U-tube,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38and attached to one end of it is the original turbine
0:11:38 > 0:11:40that was put in about 100 years ago.
0:11:40 > 0:11:45We took it out and restored it, so when the water comes in, it passes
0:11:45 > 0:11:51through the turbine, out through the U-tube and down the river.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55It's not only been quite a bit of work, but this can't have been cheap to set up.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58The total cost of refurbishing everything here
0:11:58 > 0:12:02to produce the hydro power has cost about £40,000.
0:12:02 > 0:12:03So it's not cheap.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05I'm keen to see it working. Can we have a look?
0:12:05 > 0:12:07- Certainly can, yes.- Right.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13ELLIE LAUGHS Oh, heavens!
0:12:13 > 0:12:16First off, we have to close the sluice gates that allow the stream
0:12:16 > 0:12:20to fill up and create enough water pressure for the turbine to move.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23That will then turn the generator.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26After which, fingers crossed, it'll be all systems go.
0:12:26 > 0:12:32- Here we are, this is the control panel, where it all happens.- OK.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35All we do to turn it on is press the second button.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37- Would you like to press it? - I would love to press it!
0:12:37 > 0:12:40- It's that one there. - Here we go.
0:12:40 > 0:12:45You've now turned it on. If you wait a few seconds and press it twice more,
0:12:45 > 0:12:48you'll see how much power you've started to produce.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51- Twice more? - And how many...- 14 kilowatts.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54- There we go.- Unfortunately, it doesn't mean much to me.
0:12:54 > 0:12:55What does that mean?
0:12:55 > 0:12:59What that means is that it's making 14.2 kilowatts per hour,
0:12:59 > 0:13:0524 hours a day, and that's enough power for about 25 houses per day.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09That's amazing. You don't need that much power, so what's happening to it?
0:13:09 > 0:13:12We feed all the power into the National Grid.
0:13:12 > 0:13:17And for that, we receive an income from the energy company
0:13:17 > 0:13:21between £25,000 and £35,000 a year.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24Wow! So it'll start to pay itself back really quite quickly.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28I'm hoping, fingers crossed, it will pay itself back within two years.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31But we were fortunate as a lot of the infrastructure was here already.
0:13:31 > 0:13:35It's making money, which is fantastic, but also there's a green element to it.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37It's very good for the environment.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41We save 65 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year
0:13:41 > 0:13:45going into the atmosphere from this renewable energy source.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49Bob has plans to reinstall a water wheel too.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53So the mill can function much as it did over 100 years ago.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57The restoration has also meant the water not used by the turbine
0:13:57 > 0:14:01is now redirected into the once depleted River Wye.
0:14:02 > 0:14:08Would you recommend, all the work you've put in, the scheme you've got, for other people?
0:14:08 > 0:14:12- Do you think it's worthwhile? - Absolutely. I would help anyone who wanted to do it.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15We have lots of sites along the Wye
0:14:15 > 0:14:18and the Derwent that are perfectly capable of being developed.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22- Wow, there's an offer!- I think that most people would do it
0:14:22 > 0:14:25if they knew how great it was when we did it.
0:14:25 > 0:14:30Well, it's certainly one retirement package with a difference.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33According to the British Hydropower Association, Britain has
0:14:33 > 0:14:38the potential for a further 2 gigawatts of untapped hydro capacity -
0:14:38 > 0:14:41enough to power 2 million homes.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44So it's possible that here in Derbyshire in particular,
0:14:44 > 0:14:49there could be a vibrant future along with a water-powered past.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55Now, whilst sheep and cattle farmers
0:14:55 > 0:14:57are making the most of rising meat prices,
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Britain's pig farmers are still struggling.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Tom's been to find out why.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11Over the last few months, we've been reporting on a new lease of life
0:15:11 > 0:15:15for sheep and cattle farmers because of the global demand for meat.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19But there's one animal that's still not making money.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21GRUNTING
0:15:21 > 0:15:25All is not equal in the British farmyard. The farmers of cows and sheep
0:15:25 > 0:15:29are finding they can get a good price at market,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32but pig farmers are discovering that on average,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34they're losing £7 per carcass.
0:15:36 > 0:15:37So why is that?
0:15:37 > 0:15:40I'm on a quest to find out why, in the last five years,
0:15:40 > 0:15:44it's estimated the industry has lost over 600 commercial pig farmers.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48And if things don't change, there may be many more to follow.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52Here in Worcestershire, as in most counties across Britain,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55the swine herd is in decline.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58Last year, there were just over 14,000 pigs in the county,
0:15:58 > 0:16:03but that was down nearly 50 per cent on the previous year.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08'Liz and Tony May have been pig farmers here for nine years.
0:16:08 > 0:16:13'But in the last 12 months they've almost reached breaking point.'
0:16:13 > 0:16:17How bad did it get over the last year for you both?
0:16:17 > 0:16:20Er, well, we got to a point at the beginning of the year,
0:16:20 > 0:16:23we had to cut back on the amount of sows that we kept,
0:16:23 > 0:16:27just to try and keep the cashflow going in the right direction.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30Er, and then, you know, it got to a point in June
0:16:30 > 0:16:34where we were close to going bust, to be honest.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37The price of wheat has gone up so much in the last couple of years,
0:16:37 > 0:16:40I think it's nearly doubled, and that's brought
0:16:40 > 0:16:42the overall cost of feed up.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46And also, we found that during the same time,
0:16:46 > 0:16:49the prices the butchers are paying haven't gone up at all.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52So we're looking at now, if you're finishing pigs on a commercial level,
0:16:52 > 0:16:56we're looking at losing sort of £20 to £30 per pig.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00- Per pig, you'd lose £20 to £30? - Yeah.- We kind of got to the point
0:17:00 > 0:17:02earlier on this year where were thinking
0:17:02 > 0:17:03perhaps we ought to give up.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08'But Tony and Liz have decided to stick with it.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11'A decade ago, we saw a peak in pig prices, so what has happened?
0:17:11 > 0:17:15'I asked industry expert Mick Sloyan to help shed some light
0:17:15 > 0:17:18'on where things might be going wrong.'
0:17:18 > 0:17:21Mick, the price for beef and lamb has been going up
0:17:21 > 0:17:25for farmers in this country. How's it doing for pigs?
0:17:25 > 0:17:27At the moment, it's going down.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30We peaked at about the mid-150s, and in the last eight weeks
0:17:30 > 0:17:33we've lost 10p, so we're down in the mid-140s at the moment.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37- So that's £1.40 a kilo?- That's right. That's what the farmer gets.
0:17:37 > 0:17:38That seems pretty low.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41It is, particularly when you look at the high cost of food at the moment.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45But there's a global increase in the demand for pig meat,
0:17:45 > 0:17:49- just like all meat, isn't there? - Well, pig meat's the world's most popular meat.
0:17:49 > 0:17:54It's about 42 per cent of all the meat eaten in the world is pig meat.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57It's helped, I have to say, a lot by China.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59You've got 1.3 billion people who love nothing better.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03Generally, looking at the global market, that's partly what's driving
0:18:03 > 0:18:06the increase in the prices of these other meats.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09Why isn't it having the same effect on the pig meat here?
0:18:09 > 0:18:13Well, the issue we've got is that we actually import most of our pig meat,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16believe it or not. 60 per cent of everything we eat in this country
0:18:16 > 0:18:20comes in from somewhere else. Mostly from the rest of Europe.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22That's putting a huge pressure on our market.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Part of the reason we're importing so much pork
0:18:25 > 0:18:28is that we simply don't produce as much as we used to.
0:18:28 > 0:18:328In the last decade, the British national herd has fallen
0:18:32 > 0:18:34by half a million pigs,
0:18:34 > 0:18:38and that's because hundreds of farmers have left the industry.
0:18:38 > 0:18:44What's led to this drastic change? A big part of the problem is cost.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48Though costs have risen for everyone across the livestock industry,
0:18:48 > 0:18:50it's particularly tough for pig farmers,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53because they have to spend so much on feed they buy in,
0:18:53 > 0:18:56sometimes accounting for more than 50 per cent
0:18:56 > 0:18:59of the cost of rearing a pig.
0:18:59 > 0:19:05- This feed is pretty dear now, is it? - It is currently 256 a ton.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09So just as the wheat price for our bread has gone up,
0:19:09 > 0:19:12the price of feed has gone up for your pigs, as well, yeah?
0:19:12 > 0:19:15- Yeah. I mean, in the last year it's gone up over £100 a ton.- Really?
0:19:15 > 0:19:17- Yeah.- That's a huge margin.- It is.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21With pigs, most of what they eat comes from the bucket,
0:19:21 > 0:19:25so you're always looking at buying in feed,
0:19:25 > 0:19:29whereas with other animals you're looking at more grazing, I suppose.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33So as the price of this stuff goes up,
0:19:33 > 0:19:36you need the price of these guys to go up at market.
0:19:36 > 0:19:37That would be ideal.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40Unlike other animals, pigs don't naturally graze on grass,
0:19:40 > 0:19:44which means farmers generally pay for most of their food.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47But it's not just the price of feed that's causing problems.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50To add salt to the wound, their European competitors
0:19:50 > 0:19:54are somehow able to supply pork at cheaper rates.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57At the present moment, we all have the same feed costs,
0:19:57 > 0:20:00but we have higher costs associated with welfare production.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02And that's what we're trying to see levelled up.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05We did some work a year or two ago
0:20:05 > 0:20:08which actually showed that two-thirds of all the pig meat that we import
0:20:08 > 0:20:12would be illegal to produce here on the grounds of welfare.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15This is the stall system that's banned here?
0:20:15 > 0:20:19In continental Europe, once a sow gets pregnant, you can actually
0:20:19 > 0:20:22put it in a small cage where it can only stand up and sit down.
0:20:22 > 0:20:27- And that's it.- Why does that enable them to produce more cheaply?
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Well, because it lowers your costs.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32You can get more pigs into a confined space,
0:20:32 > 0:20:34you don't have to invest quite so much,
0:20:34 > 0:20:36you can keep control of the animal,
0:20:36 > 0:20:40you can feed it in such a way you actually get maximum productivity.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43Additionally, they're not expending energy running about,
0:20:43 > 0:20:45which helps keep the cost of feed down.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47But there's another reason
0:20:47 > 0:20:50why British pig farmers are at a disadvantage.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52When it comes to exports,
0:20:52 > 0:20:56the industry has had two major blows in the last ten years.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00In 2001, we had a dramatic outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease
0:21:00 > 0:21:02most people will remember. The result of that
0:21:02 > 0:21:06was that a lot of our customers outside Europe banned our product.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09So we had to get back into those markets and persuade them
0:21:09 > 0:21:12that in fact we were producing a safe and wholesome product.
0:21:12 > 0:21:14The trouble was,
0:21:14 > 0:21:18in 2007, we had another outbreak of foot-and-mouth, and that really put
0:21:18 > 0:21:22that whole timetable back a good number of years.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24We're nearly there with countries like China,
0:21:24 > 0:21:27but we still have a little bit to go before we get there.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30The fact is, if we're going to make the most
0:21:30 > 0:21:34of the global demand for pork and reverse the trend for more imports,
0:21:34 > 0:21:37our industry needs to become more competitive.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41How do we do that? That's what I'll be trying to find out later.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47I've left the reservoirs of the Upper Derwent Valley behind me
0:21:47 > 0:21:50to head across the Snake Pass.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53It opened as a toll road through the Pennines
0:21:53 > 0:21:56between Sheffield and Glossop in 1821.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59Although it does snake its way through the high peaks,
0:21:59 > 0:22:01the Snake Pass actually refers
0:22:01 > 0:22:04to the serpents on the Dukes of Devonshire crest,
0:22:04 > 0:22:06major landowners in these parts.
0:22:06 > 0:22:11Sounds a bit more exciting than the A57, doesn't it?
0:22:12 > 0:22:16Earlier, I saw Tin Town, where the workers on the dam once lived.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19I'm heading to the centre of the village of Bamford,
0:22:19 > 0:22:22which also has a link to the reservoirs.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27But this place has a much more sinister connection to the water.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30When the village of Derwent was flooded to create the reservoir,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34the dead from the submerged churchyard were buried here,
0:22:34 > 0:22:36in Bamford.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41But getting buried in these parts has always had its difficulties.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44In days gone by, mourners had to trek miles along
0:22:44 > 0:22:48what was known as a corpse road to get to the nearest church.
0:22:48 > 0:22:52I'm meeting heritage buff Ken Smith at Chapelgate,
0:22:52 > 0:22:54an old packhorse route steeped in history.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58Ken, I'd never heard of corpse roads before today,
0:22:58 > 0:23:01but they're not just particular to this part of the world?
0:23:01 > 0:23:04No, they're not. There are corpse roads all over the country.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06Wherever there are outlying communities
0:23:06 > 0:23:08that are remote from their mother church,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12then there were routes from those communities to that church,
0:23:12 > 0:23:13to take the dead.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16There's a route from Edale, three miles, uphill,
0:23:16 > 0:23:20down the other side to Castleton church - that's the mother church.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23These are foot routes - I mean, those are quite steep hills.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25You're not going to get a cart up there easily.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28But it's not unusual for folk to get stranded in them
0:23:28 > 0:23:31in the snows, you know, you could even have people die
0:23:31 > 0:23:33carrying the dead to the burial place.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37'Can you imagine carrying a coffin up one of those hills?
0:23:37 > 0:23:41'Especially as the surface of these high peaks isn't the most stable.'
0:23:41 > 0:23:45- This area here, it's really lumpy and bumpy, isn't it?- Yes.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48These are the landslips, it's a geological phenomenon.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51If you can just see, against the crest of the hill,
0:23:51 > 0:23:53just below, that slight line.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56Those are the ramparts to a prehistoric hill fort,
0:23:56 > 0:23:57that's Mam Tor.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00And it's called the Shivering Mountain by some,
0:24:00 > 0:24:04because it's made of interleaving layers of grits and shale,
0:24:04 > 0:24:05which are always on the move.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07Always collapsing.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10'It's a challenging landscape - part of the reason why
0:24:10 > 0:24:12'it's so popular for outdoor pursuits.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16'But aspects of it are still very much managed.'
0:24:16 > 0:24:18It's not just the paragliders flying around today.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21There's a helicopter over here, what's going on?
0:24:21 > 0:24:23Yes, that's to re-vegetage the bare moorlands on the top.
0:24:23 > 0:24:28Because the bare moors, the carbon that's locked up in the peat
0:24:28 > 0:24:30is escaping into the atmosphere,
0:24:30 > 0:24:32so the whole process of re-vegetation
0:24:32 > 0:24:36means that we lock in the carbon
0:24:36 > 0:24:40and the only way to get the cut seedlings up on to the tops
0:24:40 > 0:24:42is to use a helicopter.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45- Right. Well, it beats going up those old tracks!- It certainly does.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49And the scars in the landscape are the old sledge routes,
0:24:49 > 0:24:51where peat was taken from the top
0:24:51 > 0:24:53to the farms at the bottom for winter fuel.
0:24:55 > 0:24:59'Today, this ancient highway that cuts through the rugged landscape
0:24:59 > 0:25:03'is a Mecca for mountain bikers and fell runners.
0:25:03 > 0:25:05'Later, I'll be going up there
0:25:05 > 0:25:07'to get down and dirty with the best of them.'
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Earlier, we heard how pig farmers
0:25:10 > 0:25:12are still struggling to turn a profit
0:25:12 > 0:25:16despite the huge rise in the global demand for meat.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18But as Tom's been finding out,
0:25:18 > 0:25:22there is still hope for a brighter future for the industry.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28I've discovered that unlike their colleagues in cattle or sheep,
0:25:28 > 0:25:32pig farmers in Britain are finding it hard to make money.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34These days, a staggering 60 per cent
0:25:34 > 0:25:37of the pork in this country is imported.
0:25:37 > 0:25:41That's partly because feed costs are rising so steeply,
0:25:41 > 0:25:44but that should be the same for farmers across Europe,
0:25:44 > 0:25:48so how come when it comes to pigs, our continental competitors
0:25:48 > 0:25:51are still able to undercut us?
0:25:51 > 0:25:56'They're currently saving money by working to lower welfare standards,
0:25:56 > 0:26:02'but by 2013 their rules will be brought more into line with ours.'
0:26:02 > 0:26:06They're suffering quite badly, as we are, in terms of poor profitability.
0:26:06 > 0:26:07And if they have to make
0:26:07 > 0:26:11the kind of investments we've done, I don't think they'll do it.
0:26:11 > 0:26:12Certainly not all of them.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15That'll mean that we'll have less production in the rest of Europe,
0:26:15 > 0:26:18and hopefully, that might lead to some higher prices
0:26:18 > 0:26:20for producers in this country.
0:26:20 > 0:26:24'Not only will there be a fairer system across Europe,
0:26:24 > 0:26:28'but it's also hoped we can put the export problems of the past behind us
0:26:28 > 0:26:31'and make the most of the growing global market.'
0:26:31 > 0:26:36If we can find growing markets in the rest of the world and particularly in South-East Asia,
0:26:36 > 0:26:37where they're prepared to pay,
0:26:37 > 0:26:41and at the moment, they pay more for pigs than we do, believe it or not,
0:26:41 > 0:26:44in this country, then those are the markets we need to target.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50But simply increasing exports won't solve the problems.
0:26:50 > 0:26:55To really start making money, production costs need to come down.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59Some believe the way to do that is to create bigger farms.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04Feed is the biggest single cost in rearing pigs.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08In this barn they've got about enough to feed 150 sows for a year.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11We're on Needwood Farm in Staffordshire,
0:27:11 > 0:27:14and Martin Barker is the managing director of the business here.
0:27:14 > 0:27:18Martin, how are you managing to drive costs down a bit?
0:27:18 > 0:27:23Well, because we're large and basically an integrated farmer,
0:27:23 > 0:27:25- we can grow what we consume. - Uh-huh.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29And that fact of being able to grow what the pigs eat,
0:27:29 > 0:27:30how crucial is that?
0:27:30 > 0:27:34It's very crucial, especially with the volatility in the grain market.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36£100 a ton one year, £200 the next.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39Our costs don't vary that much, maybe 10 per cent fuel increase.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44What it costs to grow and the value of it are two different things.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46Is that the only way to drive costs down?
0:27:46 > 0:27:47There's lots of ways, to be honest.
0:27:47 > 0:27:52'At a time when most farmers are struggling to make ends meet,
0:27:52 > 0:27:53'Midland Pig Producers
0:27:53 > 0:27:56'is making a substantial investment in the future.
0:27:56 > 0:28:02'This farm is already pretty big, with an average of 5,000 pigs,
0:28:02 > 0:28:05'but the company plans a new farm at Foston in Derbyshire,
0:28:05 > 0:28:07'which could be five times bigger.'
0:28:07 > 0:28:10Does a big unit enable you to do things you couldn't do
0:28:10 > 0:28:11if you just had a handful of pigs?
0:28:11 > 0:28:15Definitely, for example, we'll have our own feed meal on site,
0:28:15 > 0:28:18and to generate the electricity, we'll do that with a generator
0:28:18 > 0:28:20run on methane that's produced from the peat.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24You couldn't do that without enough pigs to create the methane.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29'But others believe this isn't the best way forward.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32'Helen Browning is an organic pig farmer in Wiltshire.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35'As far as she's concerned, bigger isn't necessarily better.'
0:28:35 > 0:28:38The way we've tried to survive over the years
0:28:38 > 0:28:40is not by getting bigger,
0:28:40 > 0:28:43we've got a reasonable size herd of about 250 sows,
0:28:43 > 0:28:46but we also grow the grain, we also keep dairy,
0:28:46 > 0:28:48we also keep beef cattle.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51So something works for us all the time,
0:28:51 > 0:28:53we don't have all our eggs in one basket.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56We've also diversified by getting involved in selling our products.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59And I think that sometimes it's not just about scale,
0:28:59 > 0:29:01particularly scale on concrete.
0:29:01 > 0:29:05I think that could be a bit of a death knell for a lot of farmers.
0:29:05 > 0:29:08One of the issues that the public often think about this
0:29:08 > 0:29:13is that when it comes to livestock, that big units are bad.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16Is it people like you who are spreading that idea?
0:29:16 > 0:29:18I think that big units are...
0:29:18 > 0:29:20You can have a large farming estate
0:29:20 > 0:29:23with lots of different animals on it, and that is not bad.
0:29:23 > 0:29:26What I and the Soil Association are concerned about
0:29:26 > 0:29:29is having a lot of animals in one airspace, on concrete.
0:29:29 > 0:29:31That's a very different thing.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35Whilst the welfare that Foston's proposing may be very good,
0:29:35 > 0:29:37I think when you get those size of units,
0:29:37 > 0:29:40when they come under financial pressure, which they will do,
0:29:40 > 0:29:43the pressure won't go away, then if they do go wrong,
0:29:43 > 0:29:44from a welfare point of view,
0:29:44 > 0:29:46they can go wrong in a very big way.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49'But that's not the view from Midland Pig Producers.
0:29:49 > 0:29:53'They feel these concerns about large farms are unfounded.'
0:29:53 > 0:29:56Is being big the only way for pig farming to survive?
0:29:56 > 0:30:00It's not the only way. There are small producers
0:30:00 > 0:30:04supplying local butchers in the niche market, it's quite profitable.
0:30:04 > 0:30:07The new farm people say we'll put small farms out of business.
0:30:07 > 0:30:08It's just the opposite.
0:30:08 > 0:30:11We need to get more efficient to stay in business.
0:30:12 > 0:30:16Whatever the solution, the fact remains
0:30:16 > 0:30:18there is a huge global demand for pork.
0:30:18 > 0:30:22What our farmers need to do is find ways
0:30:22 > 0:30:25of tapping back into that market.
0:30:25 > 0:30:28These piglets seem to have quite an appetite for my shoe leather
0:30:28 > 0:30:30and they do look great out here
0:30:30 > 0:30:33and at Midland Pigs, as well,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35they look clean and healthy.
0:30:35 > 0:30:38Altogether, it does give me some hope that done right,
0:30:38 > 0:30:41there is a future for British pig farming.
0:30:43 > 0:30:45Later on Countryfile,
0:30:45 > 0:30:49I'll be back in the saddle for a mountain biking challenge.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52I tell you what, it's a lot easier on the way down
0:30:52 > 0:30:53than it is on the way up.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56Adam's getting a kick out of milking.
0:30:56 > 0:30:58Stop it!
0:30:58 > 0:31:01And of course, we'll have the Countryfile weather forecast
0:31:01 > 0:31:02for the week ahead.
0:31:16 > 0:31:19Right across the Derwent Valley in the Peak District,
0:31:19 > 0:31:21Matt and I have been discovering
0:31:21 > 0:31:24how water is the lifeblood of this region,
0:31:24 > 0:31:27enabling this spectacular landscape to thrive.
0:31:27 > 0:31:32But here in beautiful Lathkill Dale, all is not as it should be.
0:31:32 > 0:31:35Flowing alongside me are the clear waters of the River Lathkill
0:31:35 > 0:31:37and to me, it all looks pretty good.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39But there's a problem.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45Because a mile or so upstream this is what you see,
0:31:45 > 0:31:49or rather, don't see, because the river has disappeared.
0:31:49 > 0:31:50Completely gone.
0:31:52 > 0:31:56I should be knee-deep in water,
0:31:56 > 0:31:59but nearly half of its six-and-a-half-mile course is dry
0:31:59 > 0:32:02and has been since the summer. But why?
0:32:02 > 0:32:03Well, to answer that,
0:32:03 > 0:32:06we need to understand how the river should work.
0:32:06 > 0:32:10You may not realise, but rivers can flow underground, as well,
0:32:10 > 0:32:12so when it rains up in the hills,
0:32:12 > 0:32:14some of the water is absorbed by rocks
0:32:14 > 0:32:17and goes into groundwater streams.
0:32:17 > 0:32:20Usually, there's enough water to re-emerge as springs
0:32:20 > 0:32:24to form the river, but here, clearly, something is going awry.
0:32:29 > 0:32:31Across the Midlands,
0:32:31 > 0:32:35it's been the driest 12 months since records began in 1910,
0:32:35 > 0:32:39leaving a number of rivers at dangerously low levels.
0:32:39 > 0:32:41For the Lathkill, though, it's getting worse.
0:32:41 > 0:32:45Historically, what's happened to this river?
0:32:45 > 0:32:49Well, it's dried up for about 100 years,
0:32:49 > 0:32:52but it's getting much worse, currently.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55The river dries up earlier, dries up more quickly
0:32:55 > 0:32:58and a longer length of river is affected each year.
0:32:58 > 0:33:01What impact does this have on the local ecology?
0:33:01 > 0:33:05Birds and mammals are quite capable of moving to wet areas.
0:33:05 > 0:33:07The fish, however,
0:33:07 > 0:33:11get isolated with receding water, so we have to help them.
0:33:11 > 0:33:14Every year, the Environment Agency
0:33:14 > 0:33:17has to rescue the population of brown trout,
0:33:17 > 0:33:21moving them downstream from isolated puddles,
0:33:21 > 0:33:23so they can return to spawn when it refills.
0:33:23 > 0:33:26This year, though, the water still isn't back.
0:33:26 > 0:33:28That's bad news for the trout
0:33:28 > 0:33:30and for local fishermen like Richard Ward,
0:33:30 > 0:33:33who's been fishing here for over 40 years.
0:33:33 > 0:33:34It used to be fantastic.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36It was full of water, full of ranunculus
0:33:36 > 0:33:38which was full of insects,
0:33:38 > 0:33:40full of fish, full of life.
0:33:40 > 0:33:42What's so good about fishing here?
0:33:42 > 0:33:44Well, the trout are wonderful - the brown trout.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47They were talked about in The Compleat Angler Fifth Edition.
0:33:47 > 0:33:51Charles Cotton describes them as the finest and reddest trouts
0:33:51 > 0:33:53in all England, and they are. They're amazing.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56The water's pretty special, too, isn't it?
0:33:56 > 0:34:00Well, when you've got the water, yes, cos it's limestone spring fed.
0:34:00 > 0:34:01If we could have the water back,
0:34:01 > 0:34:04the Lathkill would be fantastic all over again.
0:34:07 > 0:34:11Well, one man who might be able to help is hydrogeologist
0:34:11 > 0:34:16Professor John Gunn. He's been commissioned by Natural England
0:34:16 > 0:34:19to investigate if and how flow could be restored here.
0:34:19 > 0:34:22And he thinks he may have the answer.
0:34:22 > 0:34:25- Hi, John.- Hello, Ellie. - How you doing?- Very good, thank you.
0:34:25 > 0:34:27Can I assume that these buildings
0:34:27 > 0:34:30- are something to do with the disappearing river?- Yes.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33This is the remains of an 18th-century lead mine
0:34:33 > 0:34:37and underneath here is the drainage level which is a sough,
0:34:37 > 0:34:38a Peak District term
0:34:38 > 0:34:41and that is where we're going to find some of the water.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44So, down there, I'm afraid, you have to go.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47- Oh, really? Hence your outfit, I'm guessing.- Hence my outfit.
0:34:53 > 0:34:56This dale was extensively mined in the 18th and 19th centuries.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59These shafts would have been used
0:34:59 > 0:35:02to ferry valuable lead up from the mines below.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06Now, I'm the precious cargo heading the other way. Wish me luck.
0:35:13 > 0:35:17Phew! My word, John, that's quite an entrance.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19- Yes, well done indeed.- Thanks.
0:35:19 > 0:35:23- Welcome to Lathkill Dale Sough. - Thank you. What's a sough?
0:35:23 > 0:35:28So, a sough was a drainage level that the lead miners constructed.
0:35:28 > 0:35:30This one started about 1743.
0:35:30 > 0:35:36So, right up on the top was where the pump was.
0:35:36 > 0:35:38They used to pump the water up from depth
0:35:38 > 0:35:42and let it flow away down this level here.
0:35:42 > 0:35:44That allowed them to go deep and follow the lead.
0:35:44 > 0:35:49- So, is this the water that should be running up in the Lathkill?- Yes.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52This is the lower bit of the Lathkill.
0:35:52 > 0:35:56Further up, it's suffering because of a completely different sough -
0:35:56 > 0:35:58the Magpie Sough.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01We've got, if you like, a double whammy.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03We've got one sough that's taking the upper flow
0:36:03 > 0:36:08and what little bit is left is being captured by this sough.
0:36:08 > 0:36:10So, where does this water go now?
0:36:10 > 0:36:13There are some springs down there - the bubble springs
0:36:13 > 0:36:16and that's where I think the water's going to come out.
0:36:16 > 0:36:18But somehow, we've got to try and find out
0:36:18 > 0:36:21and one way we might do that is putting a dye into the water.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26'John's placed his fluorometer downstream on the river
0:36:26 > 0:36:29'which can detect traces of this harmless dye,
0:36:29 > 0:36:33'to tell us if that's where the water is flowing
0:36:33 > 0:36:34'and how long it takes to get there.'
0:36:34 > 0:36:35It's bright orange.
0:36:35 > 0:36:38It's bright orange there, but when you put it in,
0:36:38 > 0:36:40you'll see something rather special.
0:36:42 > 0:36:45Oh, my goodness! That is '80s green.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48I'm sure I had some socks that colour back in the '80s.
0:36:48 > 0:36:51I had some shoes that colour!
0:36:51 > 0:36:55'It'll take a day or so for the dye to flow through,
0:36:55 > 0:36:57'so I'll be relying on John for the results.'
0:36:57 > 0:36:59Is there anything that can be done
0:36:59 > 0:37:01to make sure it flows most of the year?
0:37:01 > 0:37:05The only way we could get the Lathkill permanently
0:37:05 > 0:37:09back on the surface would be to block the Magpie Sough
0:37:09 > 0:37:13which is the main impactor on the system
0:37:13 > 0:37:16and we'll also have to seal the bed of the river.
0:37:16 > 0:37:20Unfortunately, it's a big job.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25It's not a simple solution
0:37:25 > 0:37:28and neither is getting out. But a few days later,
0:37:28 > 0:37:30the results proved John right.
0:37:30 > 0:37:34The dye emerged 12 hours later at the springs further down the river,
0:37:34 > 0:37:36confirming the underground stream
0:37:36 > 0:37:40bypasses the dry stretch of the River Lathkill.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43It's not just the dry weather that's to blame
0:37:43 > 0:37:45for this particular disappearing river.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48The old lead mines have had a major impact, too.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51So, are sites like this old, dried-up weir head enough to
0:37:51 > 0:37:54prompt drastic action underground,
0:37:54 > 0:37:56or should we just go with the flow?
0:38:06 > 0:38:09Now, just like the farmer Tom met earlier,
0:38:09 > 0:38:12Adam's also trying to find a way of making money from his pigs.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15But first, there are a few jobs on the farm that need taken care of.
0:38:26 > 0:38:27Hello, lovely.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30Couple of weeks ago, I had some devastating news.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33Three of my White Park cattle were struck down with TB
0:38:33 > 0:38:37and two of them were suckling calves, so I had to make a decision.
0:38:37 > 0:38:41Do I slaughter the calves and get rid of them or do I hand-rear them?
0:38:41 > 0:38:43Cos they didn't have TB.
0:38:43 > 0:38:45And I decided, because they were so lovely,
0:38:45 > 0:38:49that I'd give them a chance and hand-rear them so now,
0:38:49 > 0:38:51I'm feeding them on a bottle
0:38:51 > 0:38:54and that's where this lovely lady comes in. She's the milk bar.
0:38:56 > 0:39:00Apple's one of my Gloucesters and has her own calf that she's suckling,
0:39:00 > 0:39:02but she's got plenty of milk to share.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06I need to hand-milk her for the White Park calves.
0:39:06 > 0:39:08They don't always take well to a new mother
0:39:08 > 0:39:10and this one can be temperamental.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13Animals will pretty much do anything for food
0:39:13 > 0:39:17so hopefully, she'll stay nice and still while I milk her.
0:39:17 > 0:39:19When you're milking a cow,
0:39:19 > 0:39:21if you stick your head in their hip like this,
0:39:21 > 0:39:23if they're about to kick you,
0:39:23 > 0:39:28you can feel it in your head before the foot hits you,
0:39:28 > 0:39:32so I'll be able to jump backwards if she's about to hit me.
0:39:32 > 0:39:34There's a good girl.
0:39:38 > 0:39:40As I said, rather temperamental.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44Enjoy your breakfast. Stop trying to kick me.
0:39:49 > 0:39:50Stop it!
0:39:54 > 0:39:59There we go. That should be enough. Take it down and feed them.
0:40:03 > 0:40:04Come on, then, babies.
0:40:07 > 0:40:08Here we go.
0:40:10 > 0:40:13They get a couple of litres, morning and night.
0:40:15 > 0:40:16Look at that!
0:40:19 > 0:40:22There, that's you done, you lovely girl.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26Right, you stay there while I do your half-brother.
0:40:29 > 0:40:31Right, come on, then, little fella.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36They've taken to the bottle really quickly.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39This one slightly more nervous.
0:40:39 > 0:40:43We're feeding them some hard palated food and hay and this milk.
0:40:43 > 0:40:45Really pleased with them.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47You're lovely, aren't you?
0:40:53 > 0:40:56Now I've sorted those two young scamps,
0:40:56 > 0:40:58it's time to deal with another.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06At this time of year, my rams are getting frisky
0:41:06 > 0:41:10and my next job is to take one in particular to meet the girls.
0:41:12 > 0:41:14- All right?- Yeah, got him.
0:41:17 > 0:41:20This is a new Suffolk ram lamb that we've got.
0:41:20 > 0:41:22He's a lamb - he was only born in January.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24He's absolutely tremendous.
0:41:24 > 0:41:26He's huge and this is the time of year
0:41:26 > 0:41:28when we're turning the rams out with the ewes
0:41:28 > 0:41:31and so that we know which ones they've mated,
0:41:31 > 0:41:34we mark their chest with a paint.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37So, let's rub this on his chest.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40Sometimes, the rams will wear a harness and have a chalk in it,
0:41:40 > 0:41:45but for a ram lamb like this that's never been out with ewes before,
0:41:45 > 0:41:50the harness can be a bit restrictive for him, so we just use this paste.
0:41:50 > 0:41:51We're using a ram lamb
0:41:51 > 0:41:53because in modern-day sheep farming,
0:41:53 > 0:41:56the genetics is improving all the time
0:41:56 > 0:41:58and so, with a younger sheep, in theory,
0:41:58 > 0:42:02he should have tip-top genetics and put that through into his lambs
0:42:02 > 0:42:05that'll grow like stink and produce fantastic lamb meat.
0:42:05 > 0:42:10We start with orange and then change the colour every ten days.
0:42:10 > 0:42:12- Go on, that way.- Over there, mate.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19From this, we can work out when the ewes will give birth in the spring.
0:42:19 > 0:42:22Looks like he's more interested in my motor at the moment.
0:42:22 > 0:42:24HE WHISTLES
0:42:25 > 0:42:28It's amazing when you turn a ram in with the ewes
0:42:28 > 0:42:31and the ewes are always instantly really interested
0:42:31 > 0:42:34and there'll be a number in there that are probably in season today.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37He's running over now, really excited.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42For a ram lamb that's never been out with ewes before,
0:42:42 > 0:42:4340's a good, sensible number.
0:42:43 > 0:42:47As he gets older and more mature, in a year or two's time,
0:42:47 > 0:42:52he should be able to deal with 70 or 80 ewes,
0:42:52 > 0:42:54but that's plenty to get him started.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56Shy, Mike, isn't he?
0:42:56 > 0:42:59He is a bit slow, isn't he? Slow learner.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02- There you go. - That's all your paint rubbed off.
0:43:02 > 0:43:03Nice orange one.
0:43:05 > 0:43:08While he carries on with the other 39,
0:43:08 > 0:43:10I've got hungry pigs to feed.
0:43:13 > 0:43:17I've got about 15 sows on the farm of various different breeds
0:43:17 > 0:43:19and they're doing all right,
0:43:19 > 0:43:23but commercial pig farmers are suffering a bit at the moment.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26'As we heard from Tom earlier, if you keep pigs,
0:43:26 > 0:43:29'making a profit is a bit of a struggle
0:43:29 > 0:43:32'and here on my farm, it's no different.'
0:43:32 > 0:43:38We feed these nuts and then we top it up with a bit of apple pulp
0:43:38 > 0:43:40to help save a bit of money.
0:43:40 > 0:43:43But for my pigs, really, to make a decent margin,
0:43:43 > 0:43:47we have to find a niche market with a bit of a premium
0:43:47 > 0:43:51and these Tamworth piglets and the little Iron Age ones over there
0:43:51 > 0:43:53make great sausages.
0:43:53 > 0:43:56Most of my pigs go down the road to my butcher,
0:43:56 > 0:43:58who makes fantastic bangers.
0:43:58 > 0:44:00But I'm always open to new ideas.
0:44:02 > 0:44:06I'm going to see a neighbour who's also a small-scale pig farmer
0:44:06 > 0:44:09but she's bucking the trend by making her pigs pay.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17- So, how's the summer been? - We've had a very busy summer.
0:44:17 > 0:44:19'Sarah Righton has recently had
0:44:19 > 0:44:22'a butcher's cutting room built on her farm,
0:44:22 > 0:44:24'so I've come to have a look. But before I do,
0:44:24 > 0:44:26'she's showing me her wonderfully named pigs.'
0:44:26 > 0:44:29Here are some of our Glamrock weaners.
0:44:29 > 0:44:30Glamrocks? What are they?
0:44:30 > 0:44:33Glamrocks are 50% Gloucester Old Spot
0:44:33 > 0:44:35crossed with a Hamrock boar,
0:44:35 > 0:44:38which is a half-Hampshire, half-Duroc, which is a bit leaner.
0:44:38 > 0:44:40We get the best of both worlds.
0:44:40 > 0:44:44Bit more meat, bit leaner. Still enough fat for good crackling.
0:44:44 > 0:44:47Little Glamrocks. Let me drive some out. Here, pigs!
0:44:47 > 0:44:51Come on, then. Let's have a look at you.
0:44:53 > 0:44:56Aren't they great! Look at them.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59Now, I'm struggling to make money out of my pigs,
0:44:59 > 0:45:01partly because of the cost of food.
0:45:01 > 0:45:04- The commercial people are really struggling, aren't they?- Yes.
0:45:04 > 0:45:06If we have to sell pigs on the open market,
0:45:06 > 0:45:09we lose money on it like everybody else does.
0:45:09 > 0:45:11More so, because our cost of production is higher
0:45:11 > 0:45:14because we've smaller numbers, we're very...
0:45:14 > 0:45:16We're not intensive by any means.
0:45:16 > 0:45:18But if we can make it into sausages, bacon,
0:45:18 > 0:45:24pork joints in the shop, then that's where we make our mark-up.
0:45:24 > 0:45:26It's been worse, so we've put a cutting room in now,
0:45:26 > 0:45:28we do everything ourselves.
0:45:28 > 0:45:30It's made the difference to our business.
0:45:30 > 0:45:33It'll be interesting to see your cutting room. I can see
0:45:33 > 0:45:35the butcher looking through the window.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37- He's ready to make sausages.- Great.
0:45:40 > 0:45:44- Goodness me! It's state of the art, isn't it?- We're really pleased.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47We've got a very happy butcher working here now.
0:45:47 > 0:45:50What's in your sausages, or is it a secret?
0:45:50 > 0:45:52If I told you I'd have to kill you!
0:45:52 > 0:45:57Basically, it's our Glamrock pork shoulder, mainly.
0:45:57 > 0:46:00We've also got some smoked bacon in here.
0:46:00 > 0:46:02And we'll add some seasonings and rusk.
0:46:02 > 0:46:04Also we've got some nice local mustard
0:46:04 > 0:46:06to go in for our breakfast banger.
0:46:06 > 0:46:09Lovely. It is all about adding value.
0:46:09 > 0:46:12You can't really compete with the wholesalers and supermarkets?
0:46:12 > 0:46:16No, we can't. Now we've got this facility, we can up our game a bit.
0:46:16 > 0:46:19I've often got spare pigs, porkers,
0:46:19 > 0:46:21so if you need some extras I can sell you some of those.
0:46:21 > 0:46:23That could work very well.
0:46:23 > 0:46:25Maybe you could make sausages and things for us too?
0:46:25 > 0:46:26That'd be fantastic.
0:46:26 > 0:46:28'Not only that,
0:46:28 > 0:46:32'but Sarah's sausage factory only runs three or four days a week.
0:46:32 > 0:46:34'So we could use it the rest of the time.'
0:46:34 > 0:46:36Brilliant.
0:46:41 > 0:46:43Very expertly done.
0:46:43 > 0:46:45Now this is the magical bit, I never know how you do this.
0:46:47 > 0:46:49'Even though I'm standing right next to him,
0:46:49 > 0:46:52'I still haven't got a clue how he's doing it.'
0:46:55 > 0:46:59Look at this! The man's a master.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01Extraordinary.
0:47:04 > 0:47:08Amazing. Absolutely fantastic.
0:47:08 > 0:47:09Look at that.
0:47:16 > 0:47:18With the pig industry in such a state,
0:47:18 > 0:47:21it's important that small-scale producers like me
0:47:21 > 0:47:23add value to their pork.
0:47:23 > 0:47:27Ventures like Sarah's got there is exactly what it's all about.
0:47:27 > 0:47:29I just hope I can make my pigs pay again.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34Next week, with farming officially the most dangerous job in the country,
0:47:34 > 0:47:36I'll be seeing what we can do to change that.
0:47:42 > 0:47:43'I've been using pedal power
0:47:43 > 0:47:47'to explore the Upper Derwent Valley, from its wooded reservoirs
0:47:47 > 0:47:50'to its jagged landscape at Chapel Gate in Derbyshire.
0:47:50 > 0:47:53'It's not the surface you'd drive your car over,
0:47:53 > 0:47:57'but mountain bikers, and seemingly the sheep, love a bit of rough.'
0:47:57 > 0:48:01As I've been finding out, this place is full of evidence of the way
0:48:01 > 0:48:05that locals have tried to conquer this challenging landscape.
0:48:05 > 0:48:09What I'm riding along at the moment is an old packhorse trail.
0:48:09 > 0:48:12But following in the hoof prints of those rugged ponies today
0:48:12 > 0:48:15are mountain bikers and their tyre tracks.
0:48:16 > 0:48:21'This is perfect terrain for some extreme off-roading.
0:48:21 > 0:48:23'I've been told a struggle to the top is part of the fun!'
0:48:23 > 0:48:25I think I'm in the wrong gear.
0:48:25 > 0:48:29'Over the years, flash flooding has eroded the track,
0:48:29 > 0:48:31'but it's recently had a £50,000 face-lift.
0:48:31 > 0:48:35'And if I can catch him up, I'm going to chat to project manager
0:48:35 > 0:48:37'and keen mountain biker Wayne Bexton.
0:48:37 > 0:48:39'He's very proud of his drains.'
0:48:39 > 0:48:41We're halfway up now, Wayne, up this little peak.
0:48:41 > 0:48:43This is the key, is it, to a good track?
0:48:43 > 0:48:46Absolutely. This is what we've put in place to try and get rid
0:48:46 > 0:48:50of the water as quickly as possible when it hits the surface.
0:48:50 > 0:48:53So we've put these pitched cross drains in, which are a throwback
0:48:53 > 0:48:58to some of the structures they put in on the original packhorse routes.
0:48:58 > 0:49:01Up here we get so much water that it's imperative
0:49:01 > 0:49:04we get rid of it as quickly as we can.
0:49:04 > 0:49:05You've resurfaced bits as well, yeah?
0:49:05 > 0:49:09In between each pitch drain, we've put down some stone surfacing,
0:49:09 > 0:49:10compacted that,
0:49:10 > 0:49:13and we've also tried to seed it to allow some grass growth on there.
0:49:13 > 0:49:15How popular is this place with mountain bikers?
0:49:15 > 0:49:19Hugely popular. Bit of a Mecca for mountain bikers.
0:49:19 > 0:49:20Great descent,
0:49:20 > 0:49:23it forms part of a number of circuits in the Peak District.
0:49:23 > 0:49:28- But everyone does head here for the Chapel Gate descent.- Right.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31- It's infamous.- Infamous, absolutely!
0:49:34 > 0:49:39'Well, what goes up must come down. And this is the daddy of them all.
0:49:39 > 0:49:44'If this has inspired you to get out and about, the BBC has got together
0:49:44 > 0:49:46'with a range of partners who offer activities across the UK.
0:49:46 > 0:49:49'Just go to our website and click on Things To Do.'
0:49:51 > 0:49:54Oh, lovely stuff! Brilliant. I tell you what,
0:49:54 > 0:49:57it's a lot easier on the way down than it is on the way up.
0:49:57 > 0:49:58Fantastic.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03'In a moment, I'll be swapping two wheels for three
0:50:03 > 0:50:05'for the latest on my rickshaw ride
0:50:05 > 0:50:09'from Edinburgh to London, raising money for Children in Need.'
0:50:09 > 0:50:14But first, here's the Countryfile weather forecast for the week ahead.
0:52:50 > 0:52:57.
0:53:10 > 0:53:12Derbyshire's Derwent Valley,
0:53:12 > 0:53:15where water flows through the limestone and gritstone
0:53:15 > 0:53:20of the Peak District hills into the reservoirs of the Upper Derwent.
0:53:22 > 0:53:24Matt has been exploring this area by bike.
0:53:24 > 0:53:28It may be the perfect way to appreciate this landscape, but it's
0:53:28 > 0:53:34also given him some useful training for his toughest challenge yet.
0:53:37 > 0:53:38'The British countryside is
0:53:38 > 0:53:41'the backdrop to my marathon rickshaw ride.
0:53:41 > 0:53:45'The challenge is to cycle a gruelling 484 miles.
0:53:45 > 0:53:51'I started in Edinburgh, my goal is to reach London in just eight days.'
0:53:51 > 0:53:55The thought of doing 80 miles in a day is awful. This is awful.
0:53:55 > 0:53:57'For weeks I've been in training.
0:53:57 > 0:54:01'Relying on pedal power has proved really tough.'
0:54:01 > 0:54:03Well done! Whoo!
0:54:03 > 0:54:08'The rickshaw weighs 24 times more than a regular bicycle, so when
0:54:08 > 0:54:09'the endless hills kick in,
0:54:09 > 0:54:12'I have to summon up every ounce of strength.'
0:54:12 > 0:54:15We're actually going slower than walking pace!
0:54:15 > 0:54:18'If I'm going to make it, it's going to take everything I've got,
0:54:18 > 0:54:22'but it's all for a good cause - Children In Need.'
0:54:29 > 0:54:31'This stretch is going to be the toughest.
0:54:31 > 0:54:33'It's pretty much uphill all the way.
0:54:33 > 0:54:37'There's little chance for me, or my convoy, to admire the view.'
0:54:39 > 0:54:42I feel like I'm getting a lot more at one with the rickshaw,
0:54:42 > 0:54:46because my first day I was just battling it.
0:54:46 > 0:54:5080% of what I was doing yesterday was wasted energy.
0:54:50 > 0:54:53Because it's not like a normal bike.
0:54:53 > 0:54:55'I've got to put in around ten hours of cycling a day,
0:54:55 > 0:54:58'whatever the weather.'
0:54:58 > 0:55:01The downhill bits are just so delightful, I cannot tell you.
0:55:01 > 0:55:02It's amazing.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05Hi, mate, all right?
0:55:05 > 0:55:07'At my next pit stop, I've arranged to meet someone else
0:55:07 > 0:55:11'who's doing their bit for Children In Need.'
0:55:11 > 0:55:15- Hello, Sarah. Is that you behind the camera?- Yes, it is. - How are you doing?
0:55:15 > 0:55:18- Fine, thanks.- Oh!
0:55:18 > 0:55:22- There we are. How are you? - How are you?- I'm a bit sweaty.
0:55:22 > 0:55:25I wouldn't get too close! How's it been going for you?
0:55:25 > 0:55:29- Have you got some shots of me? - I have.- Going like this!
0:55:29 > 0:55:32I've got something for you, actually, we could trade photos.
0:55:32 > 0:55:36- Have you seen what I've brought all the way up that hill?- Oh, wow.
0:55:36 > 0:55:41- There we are, do you recognise that? - I do. I've seen it quite a lot!
0:55:41 > 0:55:42That is brilliant, there you go.
0:55:42 > 0:55:46How pleased were you when you found out it was going to be
0:55:46 > 0:55:49- on the front of the Countryfile calendar?- Amazing.
0:55:49 > 0:55:52It's Tiverton Canal in Devon.
0:55:52 > 0:55:55It's the only one in the West Country with a horse-drawn barge.
0:55:55 > 0:55:56The light is perfect.
0:55:56 > 0:56:01I took about 200 that afternoon, it was one of the last I took.
0:56:01 > 0:56:05- Brilliant. Aw!- Just happened to be right.- The picture's beautiful
0:56:05 > 0:56:07and I know that phrase very well - "pulling power".
0:56:07 > 0:56:10- You do!- Especially round here.
0:56:10 > 0:56:13- That should be my little motto from here on.- Yes.
0:56:13 > 0:56:15It does suit the front of our calendar absolutely perfect.
0:56:15 > 0:56:17If you'd like to get your hands on one,
0:56:17 > 0:56:19here's John with all the details.
0:56:22 > 0:56:24The calendar costs £9,
0:56:24 > 0:56:27and a minimum of £4 from each sale will go to Children in Need.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30You can order it right now on our website...
0:56:35 > 0:56:43Or you can call the order line on 0844 811 7044.
0:56:43 > 0:56:48You can also order by post. Send your name, address and cheque to...
0:56:55 > 0:57:00Please make your cheques payable to BBC Countryfile Calendar.
0:57:01 > 0:57:05If you can text or donate, it would be much appreciated.
0:57:05 > 0:57:10All you have to do is text the word "Matt" to 70705
0:57:10 > 0:57:13and texts will cost you £5 plus your standard network charge.
0:57:13 > 0:57:16The £5 goes straight to Children in Need.
0:57:16 > 0:57:18If you want terms and conditions, you can find them at...
0:57:22 > 0:57:24Now that is it for now.
0:57:24 > 0:57:26Next week we're going to be on Cranborne Chase,
0:57:26 > 0:57:31once a playground for royalty, now a precious protected landscape.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35But from the hills of Hawick, for now, from myself and Sarah,
0:57:35 > 0:57:37see you next week.
0:57:50 > 0:57:52Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:57:52 > 0:57:54E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk