Isles of Scilly Countryfile


Isles of Scilly

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Where the warm rays of the spring sun first hit our countryside,

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where puffins and other sea birds make their homes -

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this breathtaking group of islands are the Isles of Scilly...

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..outstandingly beautiful,

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attracting thousands of visitors a year,

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but not all of those visitors are most welcome.

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I'm talking about brown rats.

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They're thought to be partly responsible for the decline

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in sea bird numbers but on St Agnes, they think they've eradicated them.

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I'll be finding out how.

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Matt's on his way here from the mainland.

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And I'm hoping to be one of those welcome visitors,

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as are my VIP travelling companions.

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But to be honest with you, they're not the kind of passenger

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that you'd normally expect to sit next to on a plane...

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Thank you.

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..especially as they have wings of their own.

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CHEEPING

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Come on, then, let's get you on board.

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Tom's down on the farm.

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Hardly a week goes by without someone

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being killed or seriously injured on our farms.

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A couple of the culprits,

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things cut can spear you or things that can kick you.

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Why is farming quite such a dangerous business

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and how can we make it safer?

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I'll be investigating.

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And Adam's visiting a dairy farm

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where cows aren't the order of the day.

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Now goat's milk and cheese is very popular,

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and to get goats milking, they have to give birth to kids.

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Finding a home for the billy kids, up until now,

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has been a bit of a problem.

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One farmer may have the solution.

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Oi! Get off my ear!

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White sands, sparkling seas,

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exotic gardens

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and bursting hedgerows,

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a gentle place,

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timeless.

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A paradise they call the Isles of Scilly.

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The Isles of Scilly sit about 30 miles southwest of Cornwall.

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The biggest of the five inhabited islands is St Mary's,

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where I'm about to embark on a sea bird adventure.

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20,000 sea birds will soon be returning here to breed,

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amongst them, some of our rarest -

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endangered species like the Manx shearwater and the storm petrel.

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I'm hitching a ride with the children of the Five Islands School,

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hoping to catch a glimpse of some of these rare sea birds.

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What have we got there? Let's have a look.

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We've got some kittiwakes!

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It may be a bit early in the season

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for the shearwaters and storm petrels,

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but the kittiwakes are already here in good numbers.

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This is the first good day that teacher Lucy Greenlaw

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has been able to take the pupils out.

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There's that seal. Can you see?

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Lucy, do you find that they learn better out here

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-than they do in the classroom?

-Absolutely, absolutely.

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We've been learning about sea birds for a couple of weeks now

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and just having this trip has really engaged them

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and really inspired them. They just love it.

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Why do you think they learn better in this environment?

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-It's first-hand experience, isn't it? Rather than looking in books.

-Yeah.

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Just being out in the open air is just a fantastic opportunity.

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I've been really impressed by their sea bird knowledge.

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We've got to teach these children about the sea birds

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so they can look after the future.

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And that's important, because the sea birds here need protecting.

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Numbers have declined drastically in recent years.

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The reason?

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Brown rats - a legacy of

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the hundreds of shipwrecks in the waters down the centuries.

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Literally leaving the sinking ships, the rats scurried ashore,

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colonising all of the islands and threatening the native sea birds.

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But now, something is being done about it.

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Jacqueline Pearson heads up the Seabird Recovery Project,

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a project set up especially to save the sea birds

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by culling the brown rats.

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The reason they're such a problem is we've got really special sea birds.

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Particularly the burrow-nesting ones - the Manx shearwaters

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and the storm petrels, and the brown rats are the greatest threat

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to them on land because they eat their chicks and their eggs.

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What makes Manx shearwater and storm petrels so vulnerable

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is that they nest in burrows in the ground -

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easy for rats to get into and steal the eggs.

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We do have evidence of none of the chicks fledging

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on St Agnes and Gugh because they're predated by the rats.

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-So, there's been no fledging at all?

-No.

-That's disastrous.

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Not for a long time.

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I mean, it's nearly in living memory we've had no chicks

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fledge on these islands.

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So right now, we're excited because

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if we're keeping these islands rat-free now,

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we should have the chicks fledging.

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As far as they can tell, the rats have gone from St Agnes.

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It's looking good for the sea birds.

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One species' loss is another's gain.

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What about the thorny question

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of the ethics of killing one animal to protect others?

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To put it in perspective, the Manx shearwater only breeds

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in one more place in England,

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which is on the Isle of Lundy in the Bristol Channel.

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And the storm petrel, this is the only place it breeds in England.

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So, these are incredibly special places for these sea birds.

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Now, the rats were accidentally introduced and ethically,

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it's a challenge for the RSPB

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and their partners every day to make these decisions,

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but we need to in order to safeguard and protect our important sea birds.

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The community on St Agnes

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have played a big part in ridding the island of rats - 3,300 in total.

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Even though it looks like the rats have gone,

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islanders like Rosie Felton remain vigilant.

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Now the island has been rat-free since December

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and now we have a monitoring system.

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-So, these are stationed...

-Can we look at inside?

-Yes.

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They're stationed around the island.

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Ooh, what's that? That's really odd, it looks like a tea light.

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-It's chocolate wax.

-I see. How does it work, then?

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Well, the rats really like the flavour of these,

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so they'll start gnawing away at these.

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And it's just evidence that they've been there.

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We have the Scilly shrew, which is native to Scilly,

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and the difference is they have a much smaller bite,

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so you can tell whether it's the shrew or the rat.

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So, fingers crossed, we'll just have little pinprick holes

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from the shrew and no big teeth marks from rats coming back.

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St Agnes is just the start -

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the bigger challenge remains,

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ridding the rest of the islands of their brown rats.

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But there's a problem -

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the thing about rats is that they're excellent swimmers

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and can easily cover two kilometres of open water.

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Because these islands are so tightly packed together,

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they can island hop.

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To stop this happening,

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you have to take out the rats from their outlying strongholds.

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My next stop is Samson Island -

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uninhabited, and beautiful.

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And I'm here to do my bit...

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Oh-h!

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..even if it means wading through freezing water little bit.

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'The island has its share of brown rats.

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'Up ahead, the orange hats are the Seabird Recovery team,

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'already hard at work.'

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-So, what's going on here, then? What's this?

-This is an ink trap.

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Basically, it's biodegradable ink

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on a bit of card,

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and this we'll put into the tube.

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The rat enters one side and he'll walk into the tube,

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walk across the ink,

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and then we get his footprints on the other side as he comes out.

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We have them placed around.

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We can basically pull out the bits of card, examine it,

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-and see exactly what's passing in and out.

-Amazing.

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'Only once they're sure it is rats they're dealing with,

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'then it's time to lay the traps.

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'New Zealander Elizabeth Bell

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'has done this kind of work all over the world.

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'She's going to show me how to bait a trap.'

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-Do I get one of those orange hats?

-You do.

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-I'm now part of the orange hat team.

-You're now part of the team.

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Oh, lovely!

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So, as you can see, we've got quite a lot of rat sign here,

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so we're going to put one of our bait stations here

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to be able to target the rats.

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So, you've kindly brought over the rodenticide.

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Also, because it's Easter, I've brought some choccy eggs

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-as I know they like chocolate.

-They love chocolate.

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I know it's not going to fit in that square gap, though.

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You're the expert. How would I do this?

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The easiest thing to do is put the piece of chocolate

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onto the wire and if they don't eat the whole thing,

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they'll leave teeth marks on it,

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so you can detect a rat has been in the station.

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'Each station gets baited up with a bit of my chocolate egg -

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'a seasonal touch for a serious problem.

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'Maybe one day the rats will be gone forever.'

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Jacqueline, do you think there will ever be a time

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when the Isles of Scilly are completely free from rats?

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That's the hope.

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That is the dream for these islands, to protect our sea birds.

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-And this is actually a global first, isn't it?

-Yes, if we could do this.

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I mean, so far, it's the largest community rat removal project

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that's happening right now on St Agnes.

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So, if we can move to the inhabited islands

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and work as a team to do it all,

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we'll be literally leading the way for the rest of the world,

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protecting our amazing sea birds.

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I'm hoping Matt's own little flock are ready

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to make the short journey over to Scilly from Cornwall.

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MUSIC: "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley

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Forget the Caribbean.

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Warmed by the Gulf stream,

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the Isles of Scilly are our very own exotic island paradise.

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And just a short hop from Cornwall, they're the perfect getaway.

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But amongst the jet set today are a new breed of high-flyers.

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# Don't worry

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# About a thing

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# Cos every little thing... #

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All right, my little lovelies. Are you all right in there?

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We'll be getting ready for take-off.

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# Singing don't worry

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# About a thing... #

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Once a fortnight, the "cheep" seats on board the Newquay flight

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are fully booked for VIDs - very important ducklings -

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travelling in style to the Isles of Scilly's largest island

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and main hub, St Mary's.

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28 miles to go. Doing well.

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If anyone's feeling a little airsick, just give me a quack

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and I'll hand in the bag.

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The journey for these flying ducklings began

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just a few hours earlier on the Cornish peninsula.

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Come on! Come on, slowcoach!

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DUCKS QUACK

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Hello.

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Tanya Olver is a rare breed among duck farmers.

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She does everything herself

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at her free-range duck farm near St Austell -

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rearing, processing, and even hatching.

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DUCKLINGS CHEEP

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The majority hatch within 48 hours of each other,

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but you'll get one or two that take longer.

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Sometimes they need a bit of a hand.

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Luckily, the membrane... Oh, wow, look!

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Luckily the membrane is still pliable. So, he'll unfurl his head.

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But I won't take him all the way out of the shell.

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I don't like to do that.

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I let them do that for themselves.

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And I'll put him in the drawer with the others.

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Tanya has spent the last seven years developing her own breed,

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the renowned Terras duck.

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It's a cross of traditional breeds that gives it good growth,

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good flavour and a really good fat-to-meat ratio.

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Sorry, there's one running around on the floor there!

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Come here, you little devil.

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SHE CHUCKLES

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See you later.

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Tanya's Terras duck meat is flying out the door to chefs

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in all quarters of the British Isles.

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But she's recently hatched a plan

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to export some of her hours-old ducklings

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to be reared on the Isles of Scilly.

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# Singing, don't worry

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# About a thing... #

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'And it doesn't matter how cute you are,

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'there's no ducking out of airport security.'

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-Good morning, good morning!

-Hello, Matt. Here are my ducklings for you.

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-Precious cargo.

-Yes, please go after them for me.

-I will.

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-How many are in here?

-There's 30 in there.

-Is there? OK.

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-Well, say goodbye.

-Cheerio! Safe flying.

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-Don't worry, I've got loads of travel games sorted out.

-Thank you!

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I can feel them all kind of puddling around inside.

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This one's nibbling on my finger.

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Morning! Do I just walk straight through?

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Yes, come straight through.

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SECURITY SCANNER BEEPS

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Here we are.

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-Right, and now, do we just reveal the cargo?

-Yes.

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-Ahh!

-Oh, look at them! Hello, guys!

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Oh, you're absolutely beautiful.

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Such a gorgeous, gorgeous golden yellow.

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Just got to check that there's nothing in the box

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that shouldn't be there.

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There we are.

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Can you just lift your little wing up and we'll have a look underneath?

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There we are, that's all fine.

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Just mind your little heads.

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# Every little thing's Gonna be all right

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# Singing, don't worry

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# About a thing... #

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Back up in the sky, we're making our descent

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towards Britain's most southwesterly point,

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the Isles of Scilly.

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# Rose up this morning

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# Smiled at the rising sun

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# Three little birds

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# Each by my doorstep

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# Singing sweet songs

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# Melodies pure and true

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# Singing... #

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Welcome to your new home.

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Gosh, it's sunny!

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-Right, here we are. Morning!

-Morning.

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-How are you doing, all right?

-All right, Matt. You all right?

-I'm good.

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Now, you're not just here for the luggage, are you?

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-Not just for the luggage.

-These are yours.

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-Lovely, thank you very much.

-Good lad.

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Now, where is the farm from here?

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It's just past that hangar there, and down through the gap, and we're home.

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-Great, so we can walk?

-Yeah, we can walk.

-Perfect, let's go.

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Part-time baggage handler and fireman Dave

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and his partner Kylie run Salakee Farm on St Mary's,

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the final destination for this precious cargo.

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Right, so you work here at the airport, then, and you farm?

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Yeah, I do three days up here.

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It frees me up to do four days down the farm, so it works quite well.

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Morning, all!

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-This is a great little route home, this.

-It's ideal.

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-And this is your place, is it?

-This is our place here now.

-Oh, wow.

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It's beautiful with all the daffodils.

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It's idyllic, Dave.

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Not so nice when it's blowing a gale, but it's not bad today.

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-Kylie, all right?

-Hi!

-Hello.

-This is Matt.

-Hi, nice to meet you.

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-Hi, Kylie.

-How are you doing?

-I'm good.

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DUCKLINGS CHEEP

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They are just the most delightful things to hold.

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They're all right at this age.

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There, you can stretch your little wings now, and your little legs.

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So, how did this all start for you? Where did the idea come from?

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We looked into milking cows, we looked into veg.

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You name it, we looked into it, really.

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But this seemed to be the only manageable one

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we could fit in around work, really.

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And also this is something that's not done on the Isles of Scilly,

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-so it's a real niche thing.

-What do you do with them, then?

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You receive them here. What happens from this stage?

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Once they kind of grow up, they go outside and live a nice

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-free-range life, taking in the lovely views for eight weeks...

-OK.

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..which is two weeks longer than commercial ducks.

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Commercial ducks have six weeks.

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They then go to a big processing room and then they get delivered

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to the general public or restaurants,

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so they stay on the islands. So, nothing leaves the island.

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Which is very different if you are, let's say, a cattle farmer?

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A few people send animals away.

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They go to the abattoir, they get processed on the mainland,

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packaged, and then come back. But I just think you lose your control.

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I mean, it's fine, but doing it this way,

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we've got complete control of what happens to the meat.

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And I presume you've had quite a bit of feedback from your customers?

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Yeah, some really, really good feedback.

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-On a winner here, then, Dave?

-Hopefully, yeah. I better had!

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It's proving a real plus for the inhabitants of these islands

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to be able to get their hands on meat reared

0:17:250:17:27

and readied for the table right here on the Isles of Scilly.

0:17:270:17:31

But it's not just the self-sufficiency

0:17:310:17:34

of these Cornish expats that's proving an attractive proposition.

0:17:340:17:38

Their taste is making waves among the island's foodie circles.

0:17:380:17:43

The moment of truth...

0:17:430:17:45

Just seems slightly weird, having just dropped off the latest batch...

0:17:460:17:50

-Don't think of it like that.

-Yeah, yeah, I know!

0:17:500:17:54

Wow.

0:17:560:17:58

I mean, if you like duck, it doesn't come much better than this.

0:17:590:18:02

-I know!

-Dave, do you have tea like this every night?

-I wish!

0:18:020:18:06

LAUGHTER

0:18:060:18:08

-Get a couple from the cold store and...

-We can't eat the profits.

0:18:080:18:11

Oh, my word. Thank you for a lovely, lovely time.

0:18:110:18:14

-I've thoroughly enjoyed myself.

-Thank you for coming.

-No problem.

0:18:140:18:17

But as Tom has been finding out, it's all too easy to forget

0:18:170:18:20

the potential dangers of working in the business of agriculture.

0:18:200:18:24

For many of us, farms are a picture of rural tranquillity.

0:18:320:18:36

But this picturesque scene masks a disturbing truth -

0:18:380:18:43

that agriculture is Britain's most hazardous industry.

0:18:430:18:47

In the last ten years, on average,

0:18:490:18:51

almost one farmer a week has died at work

0:18:510:18:54

and thousands have been seriously injured.

0:18:540:18:57

One of those was Darren Taylor.

0:18:570:18:58

Last October he was working on a farm in Yorkshire when the worst happened.

0:18:580:19:03

A farm worker's got caught in a potato harvester machine.

0:19:030:19:06

Initially we were told he'd been caught by his arm

0:19:060:19:08

but the crew's got to the scene now

0:19:080:19:10

and we've been told he's actually been caught by an arm and both legs.

0:19:100:19:13

The man on the ground that day was paramedic

0:19:130:19:16

Graham Pemberton from the Yorkshire Air Ambulance Service.

0:19:160:19:19

When we landed and approached the harvester, it was a bit graphic.

0:19:190:19:23

We could see Darren's leg protruding through the machinery underneath.

0:19:230:19:28

-Has that leg been in there since 6.30?

-Yes.

0:19:280:19:31

'It was fairly obvious we needed to give him

0:19:310:19:33

'some good painkillers straightaway.'

0:19:330:19:35

Hi, Darren, I'm Graham. We're going to get you out of here.

0:19:350:19:37

Everything's going to be good.

0:19:370:19:39

'We got his pain under control.'

0:19:390:19:41

We need some more oxygen, please.

0:19:410:19:43

'And then we started the process of getting him out of the machinery.

0:19:430:19:46

'It took about an hour.

0:19:460:19:48

'Darren's injuries were probably the most serious I've ever seen.'

0:19:480:19:52

I don't think I've ever seen anybody

0:19:520:19:53

who was as badly injured as Darren was who's survived.

0:19:530:19:56

Walk either side of the stretcher, yeah? Walk down. Just walk down.

0:19:560:20:00

'He's got life-changing injuries there.

0:20:000:20:03

'He's almost certainly going to lose two, maybe three limbs there'

0:20:030:20:07

of varying degrees. It's shocking, really, but these things happen.

0:20:070:20:12

Darren spent several weeks in hospital.

0:20:120:20:15

He lost one leg, the lower part of the other and half his left arm.

0:20:150:20:20

You work on them machines all the time so it's second nature,

0:20:200:20:23

but this particular day I just slipped, and it got me.

0:20:230:20:26

I mean, at the end of the day, I'm here.

0:20:260:20:28

It could have been a lot worse.

0:20:280:20:30

Six months on, Darren is still being treated for his injuries.

0:20:300:20:34

It's going to be a long road to recovery.

0:20:340:20:37

But the events of that day have stayed with everyone involved.

0:20:370:20:41

I think for every paramedic,

0:20:410:20:43

there are a number of jobs that accumulate over the years

0:20:430:20:48

that live with you and you'll never forget, and he's one of mine.

0:20:480:20:55

The Yorkshire Air Ambulance and paramedics like Graham

0:20:550:21:00

deal with at least one incident like this every month.

0:21:000:21:03

Farming accidents represent a reasonable proportion

0:21:030:21:07

of the work that we do, because of the nature of farm accidents.

0:21:070:21:11

The injuries tend to be quite severe,

0:21:110:21:14

so air ambulances are more likely to get sent.

0:21:140:21:17

The plant machinery they use is quite heavy,

0:21:170:21:20

so if you get caught up in it, it's going to inflict serious injuries.

0:21:200:21:24

Farmers work in places like barns and that,

0:21:240:21:26

which are very big, tall buildings

0:21:260:21:29

and so they fall off them fairly regularly.

0:21:290:21:31

When you go to a farming incident, you know you're almost certainly

0:21:310:21:35

going to somebody who's been quite seriously injured.

0:21:350:21:38

It's not just machinery that can kill or maim.

0:21:390:21:43

Farmers face a variety of dangers

0:21:430:21:45

from toxic chemicals to unpredictable livestock,

0:21:450:21:49

and all these add up to some horrifying statistics.

0:21:490:21:52

Agriculture employs less than 2% of Britain's labour force,

0:21:520:21:57

yet farming accounts for almost 20% of all workplace deaths each year.

0:21:570:22:02

The problem isn't getting worse, but it's not getting any better either.

0:22:040:22:08

And whilst death rates in other industries like construction

0:22:080:22:12

have fallen in recent years,

0:22:120:22:14

in the last decade,

0:22:140:22:15

the number of fatalities in farming has remained pretty much the same.

0:22:150:22:19

So, just what is the problem with farming?

0:22:190:22:23

The National Farmers' Union is extremely concerned

0:22:230:22:26

about the safety record of the industry.

0:22:260:22:29

Ben Ellis is their policy adviser.

0:22:290:22:31

We, as the NFU, think that the accident rate is too high

0:22:310:22:34

and we're doing our best to try and tackle the issue.

0:22:340:22:37

We see that a low accident record

0:22:370:22:39

is an indication of a professional and modern industry.

0:22:390:22:42

Why do you think it is that accident rates in farming are so high?

0:22:420:22:47

Well, it's a combination of factors, really.

0:22:470:22:49

Certainly, farmers are doing an inherently hazardous task -

0:22:490:22:53

be it handling livestock, using machinery,

0:22:530:22:56

doing maintenance on high roofs or moving heavy objects around.

0:22:560:23:01

And also, using chemicals as well.

0:23:010:23:03

So, there's a range of different tasks that they're doing

0:23:030:23:06

which are inherently dangerous.

0:23:060:23:07

Is there something also about the culture of farmers and farming

0:23:070:23:10

that they're quite sort of independent,

0:23:100:23:13

can-do, self-reliant types?

0:23:130:23:16

Absolutely right.

0:23:160:23:18

I think farmers, certainly, there's not a culture

0:23:180:23:21

of being reckless to health and safety by any means,

0:23:210:23:24

but there's certainly a can-do attitude.

0:23:240:23:27

Sometimes that can mean that they try to get the job done at any cost.

0:23:270:23:33

What we're trying to do is make sure that they don't do that

0:23:330:23:36

at a risk to themselves or others.

0:23:360:23:39

For the NFU, this is a problem that the industry

0:23:390:23:43

must urgently get to grips with.

0:23:430:23:46

But with no significant improvement in the last ten years,

0:23:460:23:50

the question is, can things change?

0:23:500:23:54

That's what I'll be finding out later.

0:23:540:23:58

I'm at one of the farthest-flung corners of Britain,

0:24:080:24:11

an archipelago of sand and rock, encircled by a turquoise sea.

0:24:110:24:15

28 miles adrift of the rest of the country,

0:24:180:24:21

the Isles of Scilly are further from the British mainland

0:24:210:24:24

than the coast of France.

0:24:240:24:25

Blissfully secluded they may be, but how do the islanders

0:24:280:24:31

cast away on these remote outcrops make a living?

0:24:310:24:35

Just 73 people call the Isles of Scilly's

0:24:360:24:39

least populated island, St Agnes, home.

0:24:390:24:43

Among them are Tim and Sam Hicks.

0:24:430:24:46

Their 14 acres, or around five and half acres,

0:24:460:24:49

make up the only dairy farm on the whole of the Isles of Scilly.

0:24:490:24:53

So, you've got Jerseys, then?

0:24:550:24:56

Yep, six Jerseys around on the farm and a couple of Ayrshires.

0:24:560:25:00

-OK.

-The Ayrshire's give us a nice creamy whole milk,

0:25:000:25:03

that's the blue top we sell.

0:25:030:25:05

The Jerseys' is pretty rich

0:25:050:25:07

and the people that don't like the rich Jersey milk buy a pot of cream.

0:25:070:25:11

In their miniature parlour, with room for two,

0:25:110:25:15

Sam and Tim's small herd produce just enough milk

0:25:150:25:18

to meet the demand for everyone on St Agnes,

0:25:180:25:21

with a few pints to spare.

0:25:210:25:23

And have you always been a dairy farmer?

0:25:230:25:26

No, I started off the farm 30 years ago

0:25:260:25:28

doing early potatoes and narcissi.

0:25:280:25:31

The potato market died off, so we were down to just the narcissi.

0:25:310:25:37

But then the demand for dairy came in

0:25:370:25:41

and I've now given over completely to the dairy side of things.

0:25:410:25:45

And what a spot you've got here!

0:25:450:25:47

I mean, this is just extraordinary, isn't it?

0:25:470:25:50

Every day is different.

0:25:500:25:51

You've either got a rough sea or it's beautiful blue or whatever,

0:25:510:25:55

and it's changing all the time.

0:25:550:25:57

I don't get fed up with it.

0:25:570:25:58

'It may look idyllic,

0:26:000:26:02

'but being a dairy farmer on an island like this

0:26:020:26:05

'doesn't come without its challenges.

0:26:050:26:07

'It requires a fair bit of multitasking.'

0:26:070:26:10

-Am I doing your job here, Sam?

-Mostly this is Mum's domain, really.

0:26:100:26:15

Wow, now that is the definition of full cream.

0:26:150:26:18

It's extraordinary, isn't it,

0:26:180:26:20

that your family do absolutely everything.

0:26:200:26:24

No tanker that's going to come and collect the milk

0:26:240:26:26

and take it off to a big central dairy.

0:26:260:26:28

So in the fact that we've got the cows,

0:26:280:26:30

we've got to take it all the way through

0:26:300:26:33

and pasteurise it, bottle it,

0:26:330:26:34

and then distribute it out to whoever wants it.

0:26:340:26:37

Sometimes there's not much left over for the pigs.

0:26:370:26:40

There's pigs involved as well? Hang on, where do they come into it all?

0:26:400:26:43

Yeah, through the winter we do have a surplus on the milk,

0:26:430:26:46

because there's less people around on this little island

0:26:460:26:49

and so what we do is we get some pigs in

0:26:490:26:51

and fatten them up on the surplus,

0:26:510:26:52

and then they're sausages for summer when our tourist market kicks in.

0:26:520:26:56

-So, nothing goes to waste.

-We try not to.

-It's great. What a system!

0:26:560:27:00

The dairy industry is part of what makes the British countryside tick.

0:27:080:27:12

The sight of cattle grazing happily on spring grass

0:27:120:27:16

is a reminder of where our milk comes from.

0:27:160:27:18

But this week, Adam's at a dairy with a difference.

0:27:180:27:21

It's producing milk from another four-legged friend.

0:27:230:27:26

Goats are one of our oldest domesticated breeds of livestock.

0:27:310:27:35

They're farmed all over the world because they're versatile

0:27:350:27:37

and can cope in a variety of conditions.

0:27:370:27:40

Not only that, they're a dual-purpose animal,

0:27:420:27:45

which means they produce milk and meat.

0:27:450:27:48

In fact, almost three-quarters of the world's population eat goat meat.

0:27:480:27:52

So in places like Nigeria, China and India,

0:27:520:27:55

it's part of their staple diet.

0:27:550:27:57

But it's not so commonly eaten here in the UK,

0:27:570:28:00

although that might be about to change.

0:28:000:28:02

'Will Frost farms 2,500 goats for both milk and meat

0:28:050:28:09

'on this farm near Thorncombe in Dorset.'

0:28:090:28:12

-Hi, Will.

-Hi, Adam.

0:28:120:28:14

What a lovely sight, all these goats.

0:28:140:28:16

Yes, it's one of the larger ones in the country,

0:28:160:28:18

-one of the larger herds.

-And why goats, not cows?

0:28:180:28:22

We were milking cows, actually,

0:28:220:28:24

and in 1996 we decided to go into goat milk production.

0:28:240:28:28

And how common is that in Britain?

0:28:280:28:30

How many people are milking goats now?

0:28:300:28:32

What we produce in a year in the UK,

0:28:320:28:35

it's about half of the cow's milk production in a day.

0:28:350:28:39

-Really?

-Yeah, yeah.

0:28:390:28:41

What are their temperaments like?

0:28:410:28:44

-Do you have to manage them very differently?

-We do a little bit.

0:28:440:28:47

They do get stressed quite easily,

0:28:470:28:50

so everyone's got to be quite quiet with them and gentle.

0:28:500:28:54

But if you handle them well, then they're lovely animals to work with.

0:28:540:28:58

Goats are sociable animals and like living together.

0:28:580:29:01

Will keeps his herd indoors all year round.

0:29:010:29:03

But wouldn't they prefer to spend some of their time outdoors?

0:29:030:29:07

They hate the rain, actually.

0:29:070:29:09

They're a sort of goat which traditionally comes from

0:29:090:29:13

more of an arid sort of background and warmer climates.

0:29:130:29:17

-Can we go and see them in the parlour?

-That would be great, yeah.

0:29:170:29:21

Will has an amazing rotary parlour

0:29:240:29:26

that can milk an astonishing 800-900 goats an hour.

0:29:260:29:30

But even with all this technology, it's still hard work.

0:29:300:29:34

They milk three times a day at 5am, 1pm and 9pm.

0:29:340:29:37

This is pretty impressive, Will.

0:29:410:29:43

This is the main milking parlour.

0:29:430:29:45

This is an 80 point rotary milking parlour.

0:29:450:29:47

How many minutes to get the goats all the way around the rotary?

0:29:470:29:50

It takes about a minute and a half to go right the way round.

0:29:500:29:54

How many litres of milk would you get from a goat in a day?

0:29:540:29:57

-About 3.5 litres.

-OK.

-We're aiming for four at peak.

-Yeah.

0:29:570:30:01

And what are they eating in the trough, here?

0:30:010:30:03

Yeah, well, they're eating just some pellets.

0:30:030:30:06

So they get a little enticer, just helps them come on every milking.

0:30:060:30:10

But they seem to enjoy it. It's not like they have to be forced on.

0:30:100:30:13

No, absolutely. It wouldn't go very well

0:30:130:30:16

if they didn't enjoy it because they need to flow well.

0:30:160:30:19

And it's part of their daily routine, I suppose.

0:30:190:30:21

Yeah, absolutely. They love their daily routine.

0:30:210:30:24

The goats know exactly what to do in this rotary parlour.

0:30:270:30:30

The idea is to keep things moving.

0:30:330:30:36

The nannies enter the system just like on a theme park ride.

0:30:360:30:40

And while they're happily munching on some nuts,

0:30:400:30:43

Will and his team harvest the milk.

0:30:430:30:45

So, unlike a cow, a goat is like a sheep. It only has two teats.

0:30:450:30:50

So they've got these cups or clusters to put on

0:30:500:30:53

and you can see the teat is getting squeezed by a plastic sleeve

0:30:530:30:56

and the milk is running down the tube, into a central pipe

0:30:560:31:01

and then it goes into a cool fridge tank out the back.

0:31:010:31:04

'It's this milk that's turned into a range of products

0:31:060:31:09

'and Will's invited me into his house to taste some.'

0:31:090:31:12

Right, we've got a test for you here.

0:31:120:31:14

We've got goat's milk in one of those glasses,

0:31:140:31:18

the other's got cow's milk.

0:31:180:31:20

-So see if you can tell the difference.

-OK.

0:31:200:31:22

That tastes like cow's.

0:31:260:31:28

Mm! This tastes very similar, but a slight difference.

0:31:320:31:35

I'd guess that this one is goat's milk,

0:31:350:31:37

but there's not a lot of difference.

0:31:370:31:38

Well done. You got it right, actually.

0:31:380:31:41

A lot of people can't tell the difference,

0:31:410:31:43

but, I mean, the great thing about goat's milk,

0:31:430:31:45

it's fantastic for kids with eczema or allergies.

0:31:450:31:49

-Try some cheese.

-Mm!

0:31:490:31:51

-It's probably about 12 months old.

-Mm!

0:31:520:31:56

-That's got a good flavour. It's lovely, isn't it?

-Mm.

0:31:560:31:58

-Not too strong. Delicious.

-No.

0:31:580:32:00

-And this is a softer one.

-Eight weeks' old.

0:32:000:32:04

Mm! This is really creamy. It's delicious, isn't it?

0:32:060:32:09

-Yeah.

-Lovely.

-Really good.

0:32:090:32:11

With all these goats producing milk, presumably they have to give birth,

0:32:110:32:15

so half of the kids born will be male.

0:32:150:32:17

-What do you do with them?

-Well, we're finding a home for all the males now

0:32:170:32:21

into the meat market, actually. So we rear those on another site.

0:32:210:32:25

-Come and have a look at them.

-OK. A bit of cheese for the road.

0:32:250:32:29

'The kids are raised in a kind of goat creche.

0:32:300:32:33

'First I'm going to see the nanny kids,

0:32:330:32:35

'the young females that'll be used

0:32:350:32:37

to replenish the older milking stock.'

0:32:370:32:39

-How do you feed these, then? With a little bit of these pellets.

-Yeah.

0:32:390:32:44

So they sort of have a little bit of pellets ad lib all the time.

0:32:440:32:48

And they're on these milk machines.

0:32:480:32:50

I see. It's mixed in the machine and comes out of the teat?

0:32:500:32:52

-Yeah, that's right.

-Oh, there we go.

-Yeah.

0:32:520:32:54

And how difficult is it to teach them how to use that?

0:32:540:32:57

You have to train them. They'll get the hang of it in 48 hours.

0:32:570:33:00

-Really? So quite quickly.

-Yeah.

0:33:000:33:03

So these are the female kids to replace the nannies in the herd.

0:33:030:33:06

What about the male kids?

0:33:060:33:07

That's been a bit of a problem finding a home for them, hasn't it?

0:33:070:33:10

It has done in the past, but it's fantastic now.

0:33:100:33:14

We're using a guy called James Whetlor, who's actually here today,

0:33:140:33:17

but we found a really good meat market for the billy kids.

0:33:170:33:23

'Former chef James Whetlor is a kind of middleman.

0:33:230:33:27

'And he's here to check out the latest billy stock.

0:33:270:33:29

'He buys goat meat from farms like Will's

0:33:290:33:32

'to supply top-end restaurants.'

0:33:320:33:34

So, what are you doing here?

0:33:340:33:36

We're just weighing them to see they're up to 35 kilos,

0:33:360:33:39

which is about what we want for slaughter weight.

0:33:390:33:41

-And how old are these goats?

-About five or six months.

0:33:410:33:45

How did the goat meat thing come about?

0:33:450:33:47

I moved back to Devon after being a chef in London for 12 years

0:33:470:33:50

and I got a job working for Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

0:33:500:33:53

We had four goats of our own, the time came to slaughter them,

0:33:530:33:56

I thought, "I'll put them on the menu at Hugh's

0:33:560:33:58

"and see what happens." And they flew out of the door.

0:33:580:34:01

And suddenly, a light went off in my head,

0:34:010:34:03

maybe I can bring the two together and I can sell goat meat in London.

0:34:030:34:06

Now, goat meat doesn't have a great reputation.

0:34:060:34:09

You think it can only be curried.

0:34:090:34:11

Yeah, well, we're not selling goat, we're selling kid.

0:34:110:34:15

Some of the people that use it say it is just like using a spring lamb.

0:34:150:34:18

They're much more versatile.

0:34:180:34:19

I understand you've got some deliveries.

0:34:190:34:21

Actually, I'm doing one this afternoon if you want to come along.

0:34:210:34:24

-Brilliant. Will we get to try some?

-Yes, you will.

-Fantastic!

0:34:240:34:26

'It's a nearby delivery to a restaurant in Bristol.

0:34:300:34:32

'Chef Matthew Williamson is going to be preparing some special dishes.'

0:34:350:34:39

-So, goat on the menu.

-Yeah. We love having goat on the menu.

0:34:410:34:45

It cooks really well and it's really versatile.

0:34:450:34:47

And how would you break this down? What sort of cuts do you use?

0:34:470:34:51

Well, from the foot to the head there,

0:34:510:34:54

we've got the shanks there which we'll cook traditionally.

0:34:540:34:57

The legs, we sort of barbecue those.

0:34:570:34:59

The loins on the other side, we sometimes like to cure them,

0:34:590:35:02

make a sort of ham-type product, which is really popular.

0:35:020:35:05

The breast, we tend to either roast or braise, a bit slower.

0:35:050:35:09

And then there's... The neck, we really love.

0:35:090:35:11

It's got really succulent meat.

0:35:110:35:13

And the shoulder, as well, we'll tend to slow cook.

0:35:130:35:16

-I'll prepare some of this and you guys can have some.

-Lovely!

-Great.

0:35:160:35:19

Here we've got some of the goat leg that's been seared off

0:35:300:35:34

and some of the breast that's been roasted.

0:35:340:35:37

Thank you very much.

0:35:370:35:39

Now, it's not as strong as I thought it was going to be.

0:35:420:35:45

I've eaten goat before, but it must have been adult goat

0:35:450:35:48

because I always tell people, "If you like strong lamb, you'll like goat."

0:35:480:35:51

-But actually, this is quite subtle in flavour.

-It's really light.

0:35:510:35:54

I think that reflects the young animal.

0:35:540:35:57

-This is a little bit of breast.

-That's some of the breast,

0:35:570:35:59

which has got quite a lot of fat on it. But it's not greasy fat.

0:35:590:36:03

That's lovely. That's got lots of flavour, hasn't it?

0:36:030:36:05

Congratulations, guys. It's just fantastic, isn't it?

0:36:070:36:10

Finding a use for an animal that is otherwise going to waste,

0:36:100:36:13

which is a travesty.

0:36:130:36:16

And here you are, creating a delicious, wonderful dish.

0:36:160:36:19

Luckily, Adam's never suffered a serious injury on his farm,

0:36:280:36:31

but as we heard earlier,

0:36:310:36:33

farming is one of the most hazardous industries to work in.

0:36:330:36:36

So, can anything be done to change that?

0:36:360:36:38

'Beautiful though they are, farms can be dangerous.

0:36:450:36:48

'In recent years, accident rates on British farms

0:36:510:36:54

'have remained stubbornly high.

0:36:540:36:57

'On average, someone is seriously injured every day.

0:36:570:37:01

'And last year, 29 people lost their lives.

0:37:010:37:05

'So, what can be done to make the industry safer?

0:37:080:37:11

'James Chapman is a young farmer

0:37:130:37:14

'who knows exactly how easily things can go wrong.

0:37:140:37:18

'At just 23 years old, he lost his arm while operating a slurry tanker.'

0:37:180:37:24

Without turning it off, I went straight in to check

0:37:240:37:26

the machine was running the right direction.

0:37:260:37:29

This bit here was unguarded.

0:37:290:37:31

As I leaned over it, it grabbed hold of my jumper

0:37:310:37:34

and it sucked me into the rotating shaft.

0:37:340:37:37

-It tore your arm off there and then?

-Yeah, ripped it straight off.

0:37:370:37:39

You must have been aware before and since

0:37:390:37:42

that this is a very dangerous business.

0:37:420:37:45

Like all these things, you think it'll happen to other people,

0:37:450:37:48

that it doesn't actually happen to you.

0:37:480:37:50

Unfortunately, it did happen to me.

0:37:500:37:52

'For James, one of the main reasons why farming is dangerous

0:37:520:37:55

'is the culture itself.'

0:37:550:37:58

In farming, there's a lot of people that are quite rufty-tufty.

0:37:580:38:01

There is that culture of, "Yeah, I work in a dangerous industry,

0:38:010:38:06

"but I quite like the fact I work in a dangerous industry.

0:38:060:38:09

"I like people to think of me

0:38:090:38:11

"as quite a masculine chap, if you like."

0:38:110:38:15

'Today, he's talking about his accident

0:38:150:38:17

'with students from Warwickshire College.'

0:38:170:38:20

Look at the machinery you're going to use

0:38:200:38:21

or the livestock you're going to be working with

0:38:210:38:24

and think, "Is this the safest it can be? Can I...?"

0:38:240:38:27

'Thanks to James and the focus on safety here,

0:38:270:38:30

'the message is getting through.'

0:38:300:38:33

It's a huge part. And it doesn't feel like it's a chore

0:38:330:38:36

because you're just told to do it from day one.

0:38:360:38:38

Last year, we had a full set of lessons all about it

0:38:380:38:41

and we watched videos of tractors falling down hills and stuff,

0:38:410:38:44

which was all quite scary and made you think a lot about it.

0:38:440:38:48

Usually, during the summer when you're busy,

0:38:480:38:50

you haven't got time to think as much because you're out working.

0:38:500:38:53

But it pays dividends to make the effort to ensure what you're doing

0:38:530:38:57

is done safely, because you may make a decision you may regret

0:38:570:39:00

for the rest of your life.

0:39:000:39:01

'These future farmers seem to have no illusions about potential dangers.'

0:39:010:39:07

But what about those who've spent their lives in the business?

0:39:070:39:09

The average farmer is in their mid 50s

0:39:090:39:12

and their attitude to health and safety

0:39:120:39:15

can be very different to students like these.

0:39:150:39:19

'The Health and Safety Executive is the regulatory body

0:39:190:39:22

'that monitors safety in the workplace.'

0:39:220:39:24

I gather you're advising on a way

0:39:240:39:25

-of stopping people being killed so much by these.

-Absolutely.

0:39:250:39:29

A remarkable number of people are injured by their own tractors.

0:39:290:39:32

'Rick Brunt is their Head of Agriculture.'

0:39:320:39:34

Why do you think farming is such a dangerous business?

0:39:340:39:37

I don't think it's dangerous,

0:39:370:39:38

I think it's an industry where the risk isn't well managed.

0:39:380:39:41

And people are so familiar with what they're doing every day,

0:39:410:39:44

they do it the way they've always done it and don't think about it.

0:39:440:39:47

So you think there no reason why it has to be inherently dangerous,

0:39:470:39:50

given the variety of risks we're talking about?

0:39:500:39:52

The variety of risks is there, but the ways people end up being killed

0:39:520:39:55

are exactly the same as they've been for decades.

0:39:550:39:57

They fall off roofs, they get run over by vehicles.

0:39:570:40:00

There's nothing difficult about tackling those problems

0:40:000:40:02

-other than attitude.

-You say, "other than attitude" -

0:40:020:40:06

-that is a difficult thing to change.

-Absolutely.

0:40:060:40:08

And all we're doing, everything we're geared up to do

0:40:080:40:12

is to inform farmers and support them and help them

0:40:120:40:15

so that they can understand those risks and deal with them.

0:40:150:40:18

'But have they got their approach right?

0:40:180:40:20

'18 months ago, the HSE began to charge for investigations

0:40:200:40:24

'where faults are found. That's led to concerns that

0:40:240:40:27

'people are less likely to report accidents, or even seek advice.'

0:40:270:40:33

One of the reasons farmers have told us they're not reporting

0:40:330:40:36

is that they fear you will come and fine them

0:40:360:40:39

or make them have to pay a lot of money,

0:40:390:40:41

so they'd rather not report it.

0:40:410:40:43

There's a multitude of reasons people don't report.

0:40:430:40:46

A belief they don't have to, that it doesn't apply to them,

0:40:460:40:49

or, as you say, a fear.

0:40:490:40:51

From our point of view,

0:40:510:40:53

if what they've been doing is complying with the law,

0:40:530:40:56

then there's not going to be any prosecution.

0:40:560:40:58

What they get is an honest view of what went wrong.

0:40:580:41:01

'The National Farmers' Union

0:41:020:41:04

'feels that this is a policy that isn't working.

0:41:040:41:06

'But they do agree with the HSE that high accident rates are mainly

0:41:060:41:11

'a cultural problem and something that still needs to be addressed.'

0:41:110:41:15

The fact is, the number of fatalities on farms has remained

0:41:150:41:19

stubbornly high for the last decade. How frustrated are you by that?

0:41:190:41:22

Incredibly frustrated.

0:41:220:41:24

And certainly, the number of accidents needs to come down.

0:41:240:41:27

That's what we're working towards.

0:41:270:41:30

But we are looking at a culture change

0:41:300:41:32

which will take time to feed through.

0:41:320:41:35

Is this a culture change you want to see happen or something you can

0:41:350:41:37

actually see evidence that things are beginning to change?

0:41:370:41:40

Certainly, health and safety profile

0:41:400:41:43

has been raised a lot with our members.

0:41:430:41:46

And we're hearing more and more of farmers

0:41:460:41:49

wanting to improve safety on their farm.

0:41:490:41:51

We're giving a lot more guidance out to members.

0:41:510:41:54

I think we are starting to see the green shoots of a culture change.

0:41:540:41:58

But I think it will take time for that to be seen in the statistics.

0:41:580:42:02

There is a lot of agreement that the attitude of farmers

0:42:070:42:11

is a key stumbling block to making this a safer business.

0:42:110:42:16

So in a farming industry that's so steeped in heritage

0:42:160:42:20

and history, this is surely one tradition that has to change.

0:42:200:42:25

We've seen that for the younger generation, safety is a priority,

0:42:260:42:29

but for the hundreds of thousands of people

0:42:290:42:32

already working on British farms,

0:42:320:42:34

a significant cultural transformation could be some time coming.

0:42:340:42:39

I'm in the Isles of Scilly, where earlier, I heard how the island

0:42:470:42:50

of St Agnes had dealt with its brown rat problem once and for all.

0:42:500:42:55

Here on Tresco, it's all about a quite different animal.

0:42:570:43:00

Not one they're trying to get rid of,

0:43:000:43:02

but one they're trying to encourage.

0:43:020:43:04

'These are the world-famous Abbey Gardens on Tresco.

0:43:060:43:10

'All sorts of weird and wonderful plants thrive here.

0:43:100:43:14

'As habitats go, it's about the last place you'd expect to find

0:43:140:43:17

'one of our best-loved animals.

0:43:170:43:19

'Gardener Dave Hamilton has promised me a sighting.'

0:43:190:43:23

Oooh, it's empty. They're hungry.

0:43:230:43:26

'These nuts are a bit of a clue as to who's going to be stopping by.'

0:43:300:43:33

-Right, there you go, Dave. How long now, then?

-Not very long.

0:43:350:43:38

I reckon they'll be pretty hungry by now, so it's just a case of waiting.

0:43:380:43:42

'And waiting.

0:43:430:43:46

'And waiting a bit more.

0:43:460:43:48

'And then...'

0:43:490:43:50

There's something up there! Right in the background. Can you see?

0:43:500:43:53

'A red squirrel.

0:43:540:43:57

'One of our most beloved creatures,

0:43:570:43:59

'right here in the most exotic setting imaginable.'

0:43:590:44:01

Right there! Oh, in the sunlight. What a beaut!

0:44:030:44:07

'Red squirrels are not native to the Isles of Scilly.

0:44:080:44:11

'These were brought from the mainland.

0:44:110:44:13

'The first red squirrels ever to set a furry foot on the islands.'

0:44:130:44:17

What was the thinking behind bringing them in?

0:44:170:44:19

We know the red squirrel is threatened on the mainland

0:44:190:44:23

by the more aggressive grey squirrel,

0:44:230:44:25

so these islands could become a nice safe haven for the red squirrel.

0:44:250:44:29

We've got no predators, an abundance of food on the island.

0:44:290:44:31

So we can offer these squirrels a safe haven

0:44:310:44:34

and the plan really is for the numbers to increase here,

0:44:340:44:37

then the success story would be one day to introduce them

0:44:370:44:40

back to the mainland.

0:44:400:44:43

They tend to get them from the feeder

0:44:490:44:51

and bury the nut underneath the pine needles.

0:44:510:44:53

And how do they cope with all the flora here?

0:45:000:45:03

There are these firs, which is wonderful, but it's quite tropical.

0:45:030:45:05

There are some very unusual plants here.

0:45:050:45:08

We have got these plants from the southern hemisphere

0:45:080:45:10

and I'm sure a lot of them

0:45:100:45:12

would become a food source for the red squirrels.

0:45:120:45:14

We've got the proteas here and they're full of sugary sap,

0:45:140:45:17

so it's possible the squirrels might have a bit of a sugary tooth

0:45:170:45:21

-and perhaps start having a go at the proteas.

-Amazing!

0:45:210:45:25

'Sweet tooth or no, hazelnuts will do for now.

0:45:270:45:32

'Here's an unwelcome visitor.'

0:45:330:45:35

-There's a rat there now, there.

-Oh, yes.

-Just disappearing.

0:45:350:45:39

'A brown rat -

0:45:410:45:42

'scourge of the island's sea bird populations,

0:45:420:45:45

'as I found out earlier.

0:45:450:45:46

'Does this spell trouble for the squirrels?'

0:45:460:45:49

On this thorny issue of getting rid of rats using the rodenticide,

0:45:490:45:53

how would that impact the squirrels?

0:45:530:45:55

There are ideas. One idea, for instance

0:45:550:45:58

we could try with the bait boxes,

0:45:580:46:00

is to lengthen the actual piping that leads to the bait box.

0:46:000:46:04

The red squirrel might be reluctant to enter that dark hole,

0:46:040:46:07

purely because natively, that's where its predators are hiding.

0:46:070:46:12

Another idea would be to perhaps introduce

0:46:120:46:15

humane traps over parts of the island.

0:46:150:46:17

But I'm positive there's always solutions to any problem.

0:46:170:46:20

'This must be like paradise to the reds.

0:46:230:46:26

'The gardens at Tresco are unlike anywhere else they'll have seen.

0:46:260:46:32

'There's all sorts here - plants, trees and shrubs

0:46:320:46:35

'from all over the world.'

0:46:350:46:37

The climate is mild.

0:46:370:46:41

There is hardly ever snow and even frost is pretty unheard of.

0:46:410:46:45

There are plants here that would fail in Cornwall,

0:46:450:46:48

just 30 miles that way.

0:46:480:46:51

'And the colour doesn't stop with the plants.'

0:46:550:46:58

These are beautiful golden pheasants.

0:46:580:47:00

I don't think I've ever seen a more beautiful plumage on any bird.

0:47:000:47:04

'Keeping everything in tip-top condition

0:47:060:47:08

'is head gardener Andy Lawson.

0:47:080:47:10

'It's a varied job and you've got to have a head for heights.'

0:47:100:47:14

What a view, I'm telling you!

0:47:140:47:16

'It's a good workout, too.'

0:47:160:47:18

Oh, yeah, that was good!

0:47:180:47:20

So you've clearly got your work cut out here, then, Andy.

0:47:200:47:23

Yeah. We don't try to do this too often.

0:47:230:47:25

It's one of the less common jobs. But the garden grows so fast,

0:47:250:47:30

even new year, this year, 234 different species in flower.

0:47:300:47:34

-At new year?

-Yeah.

0:47:340:47:36

That must keep you cheery at that dark time of year.

0:47:360:47:38

It makes it feel like spring is always here.

0:47:380:47:40

I've got a favour to ask you.

0:47:400:47:42

I know these are all very special plants, but I wondered

0:47:420:47:45

if I could take a very particular Tresco bouquet as a gift for Easter.

0:47:450:47:50

Certainly.

0:47:500:47:52

We'll find you some from different parts of the world.

0:47:520:47:55

Perhaps a bit of Madeira, a bit of South Africa, a bit of New Zealand.

0:47:550:47:59

That's gorgeous. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

0:48:000:48:03

-No problem at all.

-Good stuff.

0:48:030:48:05

The flowers are my contribution to a special Easter garden

0:48:060:48:09

on the nearby island of St Agnes.

0:48:090:48:12

These are the children of St Agnes School

0:48:160:48:18

also gathering bits and pieces for their Easter garden -

0:48:180:48:22

a quiet little corner outside the church.

0:48:220:48:25

Can I have a look at this garden? Wow, look at this!

0:48:290:48:33

What is it about the garden that means it's all about Easter?

0:48:330:48:37

It's about around the time when Jesus was crucified.

0:48:370:48:41

What's the stones all about? Who knows what they're for?

0:48:410:48:44

That's the tomb where Jesus was put into after he died.

0:48:440:48:48

And some ladies who were following him

0:48:480:48:50

came to have one last look at him

0:48:500:48:53

and the stone was already rolled back and he was gone.

0:48:530:48:58

And the angel said that he's risen from the dead.

0:48:580:49:02

I've got one thing to add to it that I got from nearby...

0:49:020:49:05

Let me go and get it. It's not small, I'm afraid.

0:49:050:49:08

I've got a giant bouquet from the gardens at Tresco.

0:49:080:49:11

-Can I put this down in here?

-Yep.

0:49:110:49:13

-Who's going to have one of these at their house?

-ALL: Me!

0:49:130:49:17

-Are you going to have chocolate eggs in it?

-ALL: Yes!

0:49:170:49:21

-Can I come to your house?

-ALL: No!

0:49:210:49:24

Chocolate eggs or not, you've got to admire the children's handiwork.

0:49:270:49:32

The Easter story told in sticks and stones

0:49:320:49:35

and shells from this picture-perfect island.

0:49:350:49:38

'We're being treated to the Isles of Scilly -

0:49:490:49:52

'a dazzling collection of gem-like islands

0:49:520:49:55

'at Britain's southwest extremity.

0:49:550:49:57

'I've already delivered some high-fliers

0:50:000:50:02

'from the Cornish peninsula

0:50:020:50:04

'to the island's main hub, St Mary's,

0:50:040:50:07

'to be reared from farm to fork on the archipelago.

0:50:070:50:11

'Now I'm on the diminutive island of St Agnes, population, 73,

0:50:110:50:16

'with the Isles of Scilly's only dairy farmer, Sam Hicks,

0:50:160:50:19

'for a milk round with a difference.'

0:50:190:50:22

Now, as a young lad, I used to do a milk round.

0:50:220:50:25

It was my first paid job.

0:50:250:50:27

I have to say, it was quite different to this.

0:50:270:50:29

-I used to deliver a lot more crates.

-Ah, right. In a place like this?

0:50:290:50:32

Not in a place like this, no. Didn't have the scenery.

0:50:320:50:35

-Mind you, I did used to get a fiver a morning.

-A fiver?

-Yeah.

0:50:350:50:38

-And my rates have gone up since then.

-Have they?

0:50:380:50:41

LAUGHTER I'm still on a fiver.

0:50:410:50:45

-Come on, I'll give you a hand.

-Let's get these on.

0:50:450:50:48

# In the street just after dawn when you can't hear a sound

0:50:480:50:53

# With me milk cart every morn I go upon me round... #

0:50:530:50:58

-Right, some whole milk for these guys.

-OK.

0:50:580:51:00

-These are the people who run the boat service.

-Oh, right.

0:51:000:51:03

-Got to look after these people, then.

-Yeah.

0:51:030:51:06

-One large?

-Yeah, one large.

0:51:060:51:08

Your milk's here!

0:51:100:51:11

-Do you need anything else?

-No, I'm fine, thank you.

0:51:110:51:14

-Are you the milkman today?

-Well... Yes, if that's all right with you.

0:51:140:51:18

-Right.

-All good?

-Yeah, all set.

-Great.

0:51:200:51:23

The good thing with plastic bottles, you don't have to get the empties.

0:51:230:51:26

No glass either.

0:51:260:51:28

OK, so there's two big greens here

0:51:300:51:32

and two big blues around the corner, OK?

0:51:320:51:34

-Yep.

-I'll pick you up there.

0:51:340:51:36

# In the streets just after dawn when you can't hear a sound

0:51:360:51:41

# With me milk cart every morn I go upon me round... #

0:51:410:51:45

It's just like the good old days.

0:51:490:51:51

-What do we need for the lighthouse?

-Two pints of semi-skimmed.

0:51:510:51:54

'With St Agnes' deliveries done, there's one last drop-off to go.'

0:52:010:52:05

So, I grab the whole crate and take the whole crate?

0:52:050:52:07

-Yeah, the whole crate on board, please.

-OK.

0:52:070:52:09

Right.

0:52:110:52:13

Onwards. We'll see you when we do.

0:52:130:52:15

OK. Cheers, Matt.

0:52:150:52:18

How are you doing, all right?

0:52:180:52:20

-Good. And you? Shall I have that?

-Yeah.

0:52:200:52:23

This brings a whole new meaning to the term "milk float".

0:52:230:52:25

'The smallest populated Scillonian island of Bryher

0:52:330:52:36

'measures in at a mere mile and a half long

0:52:360:52:39

'by half a mile wide at its widest point.

0:52:390:52:41

'This is the most westerly inhabited place in England.'

0:52:430:52:47

I see a sign that says, "Here." That'll do me.

0:52:470:52:51

End of the milk round. Oh!

0:52:510:52:54

-Hello!

-Hi!

-Is this for you?

0:52:560:52:59

-Oh, it is! Fantastic!

-All of it?

-Yes.

-Wow!

0:52:590:53:03

It's not just for me to have. It's for making fudge.

0:53:030:53:05

MUSIC: "Pure Imagination"

0:53:050:53:07

'Issy Taylor runs, unsurprisingly,

0:53:070:53:10

'Brier's only fudge kitchen, with her mum, Kristine.

0:53:100:53:13

'They make the fudge to a secret family recipe

0:53:130:53:16

'that they refuse to divulge.'

0:53:160:53:19

It's milk, butter and clotted cream,

0:53:190:53:21

sugar, condensed milk, syrup,

0:53:210:53:25

but there's another ingredient you haven't seen.

0:53:250:53:28

I won't tell anyone the recipe.

0:53:300:53:33

Not even my son-in-laws.

0:53:330:53:36

'Issy discovered the recipe in an old family cookbook

0:53:370:53:40

'when she was just 11 years old.

0:53:400:53:42

'She made the fudge to earn some pocket money,

0:53:420:53:45

'selling it from a table at the farm gate.

0:53:450:53:48

'20 years on and believe it or not,

0:53:480:53:50

'there's still an honesty stall here.

0:53:500:53:52

Scilly sea salt. That looks delicious!

0:53:540:53:57

Well, that's my rounds done and dusted. And it's been a real treat.

0:53:590:54:04

-That's a good manoeuvre.

-How are you doing?

0:54:070:54:09

That's a really good manoeuvre.

0:54:090:54:10

-Permission to come aboard, my dear.

-There you go. How are you doing?

0:54:120:54:15

-Good. What have you been doing?

-All sorts of things!

0:54:150:54:18

But look, happy Easter to you!

0:54:180:54:19

I've remembered to bring you something, too.

0:54:190:54:22

There you are. This is...

0:54:220:54:24

-Well, it's Scilly sea salt, but it's fudge.

-I can't wait for it.

0:54:240:54:27

What a wonderful way to end the programme.

0:54:270:54:29

That is all we've got time for from the Isles of Scilly.

0:54:290:54:31

Next week, we're going to be in the Yorkshire Dales,

0:54:310:54:34

celebrating what has been voted as 75 icons of Yorkshire.

0:54:340:54:37

-And I will be both in Whitby and on the Moors.

-Yes.

0:54:370:54:40

-And I'll be in the Dales, no doubt wearing a flat cap.

-Course you will.

0:54:400:54:43

-Hope you can join us then.

-See you then.

-Right.

-Dig in!

0:54:430:54:46

-Do you want half of this egg?

-I want all of it!

0:54:460:54:48

Because I definitely want to try some of that fudge.

0:54:480:54:50

Salt and sweet. What a mix!

0:54:500:54:52

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