On Feb. 25, UK Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Steve Reed announced new reforms aimed at enhancing farming profitability.
Addressing farmers at the NFU conference in Westminster, Reed outlined plans to ensure a thriving farming sector while reiterating the government’s commitment to food production and fostering rural growth, according to a press release.
His speech introduced a series of new policies designed to increase financial returns for British farmers, including:
- Extending the Seasonal Worker visa route for five more years giving farms a pipeline of workers and certainty to grow their businesses. Annual quota reviews will ensure we strike the right balance – supporting farms while gradually reducing visa numbers as we develop alternative solutions.
- Back British produce: British farmers handed a major boost under new requirements for government catering contracts to favour high-quality, high-welfare products that local farms and producers are well placed to serve. The move marks a major leap in achieving the government’s ambition for at least 50% of food supplied into the £5 billion public sector catering contracts to be from British producers or those certified to higher environmental standards.
- £110 million investment in technology: The Farming Innovation Programme which supports research and development of agri-technology for farmers, for example the chemical free cleaning for integrated milking equipment, which lowers energy costs and chemical use. The Farming Equipment and Technology Fund provides grants of up to £25,000 to buy new equipment such as electric weeders to reduce chemical use.
- Protecting farmers in trade deals: The government will uphold and protect our high environmental and animal welfare standards in future trade deals.
- Strengthening Britain’s biosecurity: Setting up a new National Biosecurity Centre to transform the Animal and Plant Health Agency animal health facility at Weybridge, investing £200 million to improve our resilience against animal disease to protect farmers and food producers.
“I will consider my time as Secretary of State a failure if I do not improve profitability for farmers across the country,” Secretary Reed said. “My focus is on ensuring farming becomes more profitable because that’s how we make your businesses viable for the future. And that’s how we ensure the long-term food security this country needs.”
This follows the commitments made at the Oxford Farming Conference, where the Environment Secretary outlined the government’s vision for the farming sector, which includes:
- Using planning reforms to support food production: Ensuring our reforms make it quicker for farmers to build the buildings, barns and other infrastructure they need on their farms to boost food production.
- Diversifying income streams: Helping farmers make additional money from selling surplus energy from solar panels and wind turbines by accelerating connections to the grid, supporting them during difficult harvests and supply shocks.
- A fair supply chain: Boosting profitability through fair competition across the supply chain. New rules for the pig sector will come this spring, ensuring contracts clearly set out expectations and changes can only be made if agreed by all parties. Similar regulations for eggs and fresh produce sectors will follow with the government ready to intervene with other sectors if needed.
