NFU President Minette Batters said: “This Bill is one of the most
significant pieces of legislation for farmers in England for over
70 years and it is absolutely vital that it is tailored to
farming’s specific needs and ambitions.
“Our farmers provide the nation with safe,
traceable and nutritious food produced to some of the highest
standards of animal welfare, environmental protection and food
safety in the world. With the right policy framework in place we
can build on this to lead the world in the production of
climate-friendly food and realise our ambitions to reach net zero
by 2040.
“I’m pleased that the government has clearly
listened to many of the concerns we raised with the Bill in the
last Parliament and has acted to ensure the vital role of farmers
as food producers is properly valued. However, farmers across the
country will still want to see legislation underpinning the
government’s assurances that they will not allow the imports of
food produced to standards that would be illegal here through
future trade deals. We will continue to press the government to
introduce a standards commission as a matter of priority to
oversee and advise on future food trade policy and
negotiations.
“It is encouraging to see that the Agriculture
Bill now recognises that food production and caring for the
environment go
hand-in-hand. Farmers
are rightly proud of their environmental efforts and it is
crucial this new policy recognises and rewards the environmental
benefits they deliver, both now and in the future. Alongside
this, the government’s commitment to invest in supporting farmers
to improve productivity will be critical, given the delivery of
sustainable and climate-friendly food systems cannot be achieved
in the absence of viable and profitable farm
businesses.
“A commitment to regularly report on food
security to Parliament is reassuring but this must be more than
simply a box-ticking exercise. It is vital that British farming
continues to contribute a significant proportion of our nation’s
food needs and that we set the ambition of growing more, selling
more and exporting more British food. We look forward to more
detail about how exactly the food security provisions will
operate and how they account for the strategic importance of a
robust and resilient domestic farming
sector.
“The commitment to long-term future budget has
addressed a significant concern of ours and will provide much
needed clarity for farmers. We recognise that the way farmers are
supported will change and the announcement to regularly report,
evaluate and monitor how the schemes will operate will go some
way to ensuring that any money taken from farmers as part of the
phase out of the Direct Payments (BPS) will stay within
farming. With our future relationship with the
EU, our largest export market for agri-food products, still
unclear, the government must ensure farmers remain sufficiently
supported to weather any economic storms
ahead.
“Ultimately, farmers do not want to be ever
reliant on government support payments to realise a fair level of
income. One of the keys to a thriving farm business is a
transparent and fair supply chain, so the pledge in this Bill to
improve both of those aspects is really
important. Across many sectors we have seen
inexplicable downward price pressure, including most recently in
the beef sector. Stamping out unfair trading practices and
improving the bargaining position of farmers in the supply chain
are vital steps we must take across all of the farming
sectors.
“In the coming days we will scrutinise this
Bill in great detail to ensure that it provides the policy for a
thriving farming sector post-Brexit. The NFU will work with both
the government and MPs in the coming weeks to ensure that this
Bill delivers on these vital issues not only for farmers, but for
our nation as a whole in the years ahead.”
