Sector councils have had to make tough decisions to deliver on levy payer priorities as AHDB faces a decline in the value of the levy, according to the board’s chief executive Tim Rycroft.
Despite a 37.6 per cent cut in the value of the levy due to inflation and changes in AHDB’s tax status, Mr Rycroft said the board was not in a position to ask for an increase as it needed to earn back the trust of levy payers.
He was speaking as the board outlined the sector priorities following its Shape the Future vote.
“It is a big piece of context that the levy has not increased for over 10 years,” he said.
“It was one thing when inflation was low, but inflation is not very low anymore. It means we have to be sharply focused. But it is the same situation the levy payer is facing, the effect of inflation on their business.”
But he added: “I would love to be in a place where levy payers say ’we like what you do and would like you to do more’.”
The results of the vote threw up some surprises for AHDB, with the environment lower down the agenda for levy payers than expected.
But Mr Rycroft said farmers recognised the best way for them to become more sustainable was to be more efficient, and they would rather the body focused on that than on becoming a ‘campaigning organisation’.
The board’s work on people in agriculture also scored relatively low on levy payers’ list of priorities, with Mr Rycroft acknowledging other organisations could do that better and they needed to focus on things AHDB was in a unique position to offer.
The sectors will still be working together on areas where there are synergies, such as the livestock sectors working together on exports and marketing and on data and digital.
The sector councils have made the decisions on priorities using the results from the vote, which had meant tough choices, but the idea was to show accountability.
“When we stop some work, somebody will always be cross,” said Mr Rycroft.
“We have made choices based on what you think is most important.”
He added it had been a difficult two years for AHDB and publishing the sector plans was a ‘source of pride and accomplishment’.
“We clearly have listened,” he said.
