Defra non-executive director Ben Goldsmith has called for ‘rewilding’ to be renamed ‘wilder farming’ in order to reassure farmers they are central to the movement.
The UK Government has so far shown it does not care about protecting our standards, but Ministers can fix their betrayal of farmers by banning low-standard imports in the Trade Bill, says Deidre Brock, SNP food and rural affairs spokesperson.
Trade Ministers are trying to build bridges with farmers, but without legal guarantees to protect our standards, their efforts will not be enough, says Mark Bridgeman, president of the CLA.
Many fear nature restoration represents a threat to farming communities in the uplands, but nothing could be further from the truth. ‘Wilder farming’ is a better way to describe the changes needed than ‘rewilding’, says Defra non-executive director Ben Goldsmith.
In February, a key Government adviser was telling Ministers UK food production is not critically important. Let’s hope the pandemic has shown our trade negotiators the opposite is true, says Neil Farmer, an arable and sheep farmer from the Herefordshire-Worcestershire border.
The farming community has reacted angrily to Farming Minister Victoria Prentis’ failure to take part in a live Cereals webinar on Brexit and coronavirus this week.
Farm groups are very focused on trade policy, but their time would be better spent pushing for farmers to get a fairer price for their food, says Cornish lamb and beef farmer Rona Amiss.
The Conservatives have been clear – they will not allow our food standards to be undermined in trade deals, says Andrew RT Davies, Welsh Tory Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
The Agriculture Bill contains much good, but I hope we in the Lords can improve it in the areas of transition, productivity, support for tenants, food security and health, says Lord Donald Curry.
The UK is the world’s third largest exporter of sheep meat and provides a range of environmental benefits, but in order to retain this stellar record, we need a trade deal with the EU, says NSA chief executive Phil Stocker.