Stamping out rural crime will come under the spotlight with the launch of a new farm safety and security feature area at the Livestock Event next month.

The new security feature, developed by event organisers at the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers, will be located in the Machinery Hall. It will showcase some of the latest farm security systems and provide the opportunity for visitors to talk to experts and police officers targeting rural crime. The exhibit, which has been organised with collaboration from NFU Mutual, will include Dorset Police's custom tractor together with farm equipment fitted with a range of security markings and tracking devices.

"Rural Crime is costing the industry £53m a year and to avoid becoming a victim, farmers need to keep one step ahead of criminals who are targeting the countryside," said NFU Mutual rural affairs spokesman, Tim Price.

He continued, "This new exhibit is designed to inform farmers about current rural crime trends and the best ways to secure a farm. However, every farm is different, so there's no such thing as a single solution to rural security. That’s why it is important farmers understand how rural thieves operate and seek security which works for their type of farming and location. It's also a very topical issue for the livestock sector as we're currently receiving high levels of claims for stolen livestock, trailers, quad bikes, loaders and diesel."

The Livestock Event will take place at the Birmingham NEC between Wednesday 3rd and Thursday 4th July.