Farmers tell Sunak ‘clock is ticking’ to fulfill promises

A farming union boss said “the clock is ticking” for the Government to get inflation under control to help farmers protect Britain’s food security.

National Farmers Union president Minette Batters said this would help farmers produce food more reliably.

She said: “It’s ticking for Government to start putting meaningful, tangible and effective meat on the bones of the commitments it has made.

“Commitments to promote domestic food production, to properly incentivise sustainable and climate-friendly farming, to put farmers and growers at the heart of our trade policy, to guarantee our food security and to back British farming and British food.”

In her speech to delegates at the NFU conference in Birmingham, Environment Secretary Therese Coffey stressed the need for biosecurity.

In 2022, the UK experienced its largest outbreak of bird flu, with millions of birds dying in the country.

Ms Coffey said: “Farmers have always been at the heart of animal health and welfare. We know it is absolutely vital to strengthen biosecurity and prevent diseases.

“Indeed, data on this unprecedented outbreak of avian influenza – both in scale and spread, in wild birds and poultry farms – underlines the need for us to rise to the increased threats of diseases.”

The NFU used the conference to launch resilience plans for different farming sectors, which it says will help businesses become more efficient and produce more sustainable food.

NFU deputy president Tom Bradshaw said: “In the current economic climate, the production of affordable, climate-friendly food, energy and fibre is more important than ever.

“Yet British farmers face huge challenges, from extreme weather events to crippling energy, feed and fertiliser costs, which are limiting our ability to deliver these crucial products for the nation.

“To overcome these barriers, we need to build resilience into our agri-food supply chains by improving efficiency, increasing on-farm carbon storage and producing more renewable energy.

“This will enable a more sustainable future for farm businesses, both financially and environmentally, and a more secure supply of British food, fuel and fibre for the country.”

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