As an arable farmer I am critically aware that the sector is facing an economic challenge every bit as severe as fellow farmers in other parts of the industry and I wanted to take this opportunity to write to you, as chairman of the national and South West combinable crops boards, to highlight in brief some of the work the NFU is doing on your behalf.
1. Access to futures markets: Under MiFID (The Markets in Financial Instruments Directive) farmers could find access to futures markets restricted. The NFU sees these markets as an essential tool for managing risk and is meeting with the Financial Services Authority and others to ensure that this Directive does not penalise famers.
2. Fighting for Crop Protection Products: In July the NFU secured emergency use of enough neonicotinoid seed treatments from the Chemical Regulation Directorate to treat five per cent of the oilseed rape crop in England (around 30,000ha).
3. Encouraging an investigation into the fertiliser market: The NFU has written to the EU Commission to encourage an investigation into competition in the fertiliser market and offered to support European activity to help ensure our fertiliser market operates in a fair and transparent manner.
4. Working for a better CAP: The NFU successfully negotiated for modulation to be set at 12% rather than 15%, for winter and spring varieties to count as different crops for the purposes of crop diversification and achieved derogations for farmers to be able to cut their hedges in August if they plan to plant grass or OSR during that month.
5. In addition… The NFU is also working to increase the weights and speeds at which tractors can operate on the roads (building on the increases announced in March 2015), improving the legislation around the use of farm saved seed and working to ensure members receive fair wayleave payments.
To understand more about the work we are doing, please come to the Devon County Showground on Thursday 10 September at 7.30pm where NFU President Meurig Raymond and the national sector board chairmen, including myself, will be discussing these issues in more detail. RSVP to c291dGgud2VzdEBuZnUub3JnLnVr or 01392 440700 if you plan to attend.
Yours sincerely,
Mike Hambly
South West & National Combinable Crops Board Chairman