PETER King is a familiar face to many farmers in North Yorkshire and South Durham, writes Rural Affairs Editor Mike Bridgen.

He has worked in agriculture for 45 years - 41 of them for the same animal feed company.

Now aged 65, he has put his salesman's shoes away, although he is continuing with his own grain buying and seed business.

Mr King started as a trainee salesman at J Bibby and Sons Northallerton depot on March 1, 1967.

"I'm probably about the last of the good old fashioned sales people," said the father-of-two who lives with his wife, Judith, at Pine Hills, in Guisborough, east Cleveland.

Bibby's was one of the big four animal feed companies in the country.

The depot, at Northallerton, was next to the railway station. Animal feed was delivered to the sidings by train direct from the company's mills, in Liverpool. Four wagons then distributed the feed to farms.

The salesmen had training sessions each month, to keep them up-to-date with product changes and nutritional details.

It resulted in them having incredibly detailed knowledge with which to advise farmers.

In those days they did not specialise - Mr King looked after dairy, pig, poultry and sheep farms as well as advising on seed and grass seeds through the company's Twyford Seeds.

He said: "When I started, I was handed about 50 customers and 800 tonnes of business - I got that up to 10,000 tonnes."

He was selected by Bibby's to appear in a Channel 4 TV series explaining different jobs.

He was with Bibby's for 41 years until it was bought by Associated British Foods who later sold it to Pye Feeds.

Mr King loved his work and the friendships he developed with many farming families.

He said: "They are the salt of the earth, some have very little money but they are so kind and generous.

"I was told many times that I was one of the family and told not to knock, just walk in - but I never did that because I have respect."

Cake was a regular feature of his visits, with one farmer's wife telling him he could not go that day because she had not baked. When he turned up, a freshly-made coffee cake was waiting