Speaking at the NFU Conference, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Steve Reed announced new reforms which the government states will make farming more profitable.
These include:
- Extending the Seasonal Worker visa route for five more years giving farms a pipeline of workers and the certainty to grow their businesses
- New requirements for government catering contracts to favour high-quality, high-welfare products that local farms and producers are well placed to serve
- The Farming Innovation Programme which supports research and development of agri-technology for farmers, for example, chemical-free cleaning for integrated milking equipment, which lowers energy costs and chemical use.
- The government will uphold and protect our high environmental and animal welfare standards in future trade deals.
- 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.
Many of these policies had already been announced in one way or another, however, Mr Reed is also expected to say: “The underlying problem is that farmers do not make enough money for the hard work and commitment they put in.
“I will consider my time as Secretary of State a failure if I do not improve profitability for farmers across the country.
“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.”
Alongside these key reforms, he will also announce a British food summit for early summer, which will be hosted by the Prime Minister, annual payment increases for Higher Level Stewardship schemes and an extension to the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme.
Responding to the speech, Country Land and Business Association (CLA)’s president Victoria Vyvyan said: “The CLA has been calling for an increase in Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) payment rates across a range of options, so this is a welcome announcement and will boost thousands of agreement holders.
“It is also pleasing to see continuity of schemes such as Farming in Protected Landscapes, which the CLA has long-championed and has been well-received by farmers, though it lacks the crucial detail of the size of the funding pot.
“Under the pressure of government’s inheritance tax changes it will be hard for farms to take advantage of the opportunity to supply schools, hospitals and prisons.
“We also welcome another window of the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF) this spring, and hope the reopening of the capital grants scheme later this year will help to restore some confidence in the system after last year’s frustrations.”