Thirty German students from the DLG Academy have visited a Suffolk agricultural machinery maker to learn about its pioneering seed drill technology.

The German Agricultural Society group visited Claydon Drills’ headquarters at Wickhambrook, near Newmarket, to learn more about the agronomic and cost-saving advantages of its Claydon Strip-Till System, pioneered by the firm’s founder, Jeff Claydon.

The technology is now used by farmers in 26 countries, including Germany, across the widest range of climatic conditions and soil types.

The visit was the latest in a series by student groups from all over the world, including the UK, Denmark and France.

Claydon exports manage Jacob Darby introduced to them the benefits of the patented two-tine drilling technique, which was invented by farmer and engineer Jeff in 2002.

Following a tour of the Claydon factory, taking in the new Hybrid T6 trailed drill, the students toured the Claydon family’s 1,000 acre farm to look at a range of combinable crops which were established using the Claydon System.

At a time when crop returns have fallen dramatically but production costs have continued to rise, placing profit margins under severe pressure, farmers are looking to a more advanced, economical and ecological approach to crop establishment.

The complete Claydon System, comprising the Claydon Straw Harrow, Claydon Hybrid Drill and Claydon Rolls, is up to five times faster, one-third the cost and more reliable than a plough-based approach and typically 50% less than the cost of a min-til system, the company claims.

It is also said to improve timeliness, enabling crops to be established at the optimum time, under the best conditions, resulting in significantly higher yields.