A NEW cattle collection centre will allow beleaguered beef and dairy farmers to start moving animals and help reduce pressure on limited winter feedstocks.

A collaborative venture between Stratford-based national livestock marketing co-operative Meadow Valley Livestock and Henley Auction Sales Ltd, the Henley centre will be able to handle 60 finished cattle and animals qualifying under the OTMS scheme, moving them on to a number of outlets.

Clive Mahoney, Meadow Valley ruminant manager, said he believed there was every chance the number of stock that could be moved would grow.

"We are in discussions with a number of outlets who see the advantages the collection centre offers. In particular, they appreciate the reduced number of deliveries they will have to handle and the increased biosecurity our scheme provides. We also expect the scheme to prove popular with farmers, especially as the recent bad weather is causing a rapid end to late season grazing."

The collection centre at Henley Market will accept deliveries of booked-in cattle Mondays from 12noon to 2pm. They have to be booked with Jayne Field on 01789 731718 by 2pm the preceding Thursday.