Author: Rhys Gregory

Contented cows on a North Wales coast farm are being fed on a diet of malted barley that’s left over after being used to make whisky. The Aber Falls Distillery, at Abergwyngregyn, is just 500 yards from Pentre Aber Farm where farmer Will Davies has a herd of 400 cattle, half of them dairy cows, and every day they tuck into four tons of the barley from the whisky stills. It helps make the whisky from Aber Falls some of the greenest in the UK with the water used being pumped up from a borehole while the distillery’s visitor centre…

A development of much-needed affordable homes near Crumlin, Caerphilly is now complete. Built on a 4.2 acre green field site, Pobl Group’s Ton Y Felin development has brought 60 energy-efficient homes consisting of one-bedroom apartments and two and three-bedroom homes to Croespenmaen. The homes were created using timber frame structures provided by Celtic Offsite, a social enterprise within the United Welsh Group. Celtic Offsite also produced the fitted insulation for the structures at its factory in Caerphilly. Construction of the homes was then completed on site by contractor M&J Cosgrove. Neil Robins, Managing Director of Celtic Offsite, said: “Our team…

Large-scale 3D printing company, Lunia 3D, formerly based in Cowbridge, has upsized and moved its offices to Cardiff after a strong first four years in business. The business was founded by childhood friends, Ken Pearce and Yousef Ahmed, both 26 and from Newport. The pair reunited after a decade to combine their skills and launch the business in 2020, transforming what was a garden shed hobby to a successful 3D printing firm within the space of 12 months. The pair were supported initially by a £2,000 Start Up Loan from the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme to invest…

Four men have been sent to prison for a total of 45 years after being convicted of burgling a house in the St Mellons area of Cardiff in June 2023. On June14 last year the four men and a 17-year-old boy travelled to Cardiff in two hire vehicles with altered registration numbers. Charlie Seeney and Thomas Hagans broke into the address and stole a safe which was hidden inside. Simon Seeney – Charlie’s father – and Ras Thomas were also present with the two vehicles. Detectives investigating the burglary were able to identify the hire vehicles and tracked them travelling…

RSPCA Cymru has issued an appeal for information after a hedgehog was shot with an air gun. The hedgehog was found in a garden in Pembroke Road, Haverfordwest, on Saturday 23 March. Concerns were raised when the hedgehog was found wandering around in the day so a resident contacted local hedgehog rescue Pembrokeshire Hogspital. Ginny Batt, who runs the Pembrokeshire Hogspital, collected the hedgehog and found an injury on his neck/shoulder. She said: “Following initial treatment, I soon realised that something was seriously wrong so on Monday 25 March I took him to the vets. It was then discovered that…

The Met Office has issued a Yellow weather warning for wind in Wales this weekend. The warning has been put in place for Saturday, 6 April between 8am and 10pm. A deep area of low pressure, will bring a spell of very windy weather to parts of western Britain and Northern Ireland this weekend. Gusts of 50 mph are expected quite widely on Saturday, while some exposed spots, particularly on the coast, will see 60 to 70 mph gusts with large waves also likely. What should I do? Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions…

Bannau Brycheiniog National Park is paving the way for increasingly sustainable travel in Wales’s countryside, with the installation of 16 new electric vehicle (EV) charge-points – funded by BMW UK through its Recharge in Nature partnership with UK National Parks. In addition to enhancing the UK’s EV charging infrastructure, the partnership also sees the two organisations collaborate on nature restoration and community impact projects. The new charge-points, which are now live, are split evenly between Bannau Brycheiniog National Park’s Visitor Centre in Libanus and Craig-y-Nos Country Park. The installation means EV drivers can now top up their batteries while enjoying…

Forest Feastival has announced the full trader line-up for its five weekends of flavour. Running from 19 April to 19 May, Forest Feastival will return to the Merthyr Mawr Estate, bringing its family-friendly global feast to these unique woodlands by the sea. Two new food zones have been created to help visitors navigate the menu with a Wildfire area dedicated to chefs cooking over open flames and Feasts from the East showcasing the diversity of Asian flavours on offer. Traders include a mix of familiar Street Food Circus favourites alongside new arrivals like Bristol’s award-winning Gourmet Warriors, Brecon’s Hill’s Burgers…

A North Wales trailer maker has teamed up with TV presenter Matt Baker in a mission to give an aspiring farmer a “life-changing” opportunity. In his new Channel 4 series, Our Dream Farm with Matt Baker, the Countryfile and former The One Show presenter follows the journey of seven prospective farming tenants as they try to secure a 10-year tenancy with the National Trust. Over the course of eight, hour-long, episodes viewers will see the potential tenants being put through their paces in a series of rural tasks under the guidance of some of the country’s leading farming experts to…

A new fertility clinic is set to open in Pencoed, Bridgend bringing hope to those on the path to parenthood. Part-funded by a £350,000 loan from the Development Bank of Wales, The Fertility Home has been set-up by cousins Merve Koca and Isabelle Beckmann, a Senior Clinical Embryologist with an MSc in Clinical Embryology from the University of Oxford. Based at Bocam Park, the new private clinic has a licence from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. With a dedicated theatre, laboratory and consultation rooms, fertility treatment services will include IVF, ICSI, IUI, and egg freezing and donation along with…