Our asks are in priority order as follows:
1. Standing charges
Postpone and rethink the introduction of crippling energy standing charges in farming sectors.
2. Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism for fertiliser
Postpone and review the CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) implementation to prevent it becoming a barrier to fertiliser reaching the UK market. Introduce long-term measures to offset CBAM-related costs on farmers and ensure that the funds raises are used to support productivity in the sector.
3. SFI support for protein crops
The NFU is calling on the government to fund the increase in uptake of leguminous protein crops to realise the value of these crops as nitrogen-fixing tools within the arable rotation. Thus allowing growers to optimise the efficient use of artificial fertiliser alongside strategically and environmentally beneficial crop production methods that support domestic food production and environmental improvement.
Read our sustainable protein action plan.
4. Fuel duty increases in Autumn 2026
Postpone the phasing out of the 5p per litre fuel duty cut that has been in place since March 2022. For red diesel, this is only 1p per litre, but the 5p for road diesel would make a difference for getting raw materials onto farm and produce into supply chains.
5. Official control charges
Postpone and take a different approach to the introduction of inefficient FSA (Food Standards Agency) official control charges which will impact medium-sized abattoirs.
6. Fairness in the supply chain
Progress fairness in the supply chain efforts across all sectors (clarity of contracts, sharing risk and reward).
7. Market transparency for fuel and fertiliser
There is a role for Defra and the fertiliser and fuel supply chains to support greater transparency, whether through regular reporting or a requirement for suppliers to publish indicative prices, stocks, trade and consumption data while respecting competition law.
This should improve farmer confidence and decision‑making, particularly during periods of volatility.
The NFU welcomes the increase in weekly fertiliser price reporting from AHDB during the Middle East conflict.
For red diesel, there is no recognised index, no regular reporting, and very limited pricing data. Members are increasingly telling us they are only being given the price at the point of delivery. This erodes trust and leaves farmers with no ability to challenge or benchmark what they are being charged.
In a functioning marketplace, prices for immediate and deferred delivery would be visible, smoothing demand and reducing the incentive for opportunistic pricing.
The powers of the Agricultural Supply Chain Adjudicator could be extended to investigate practices in the agricultural input markets.
If transparency continues to struggle, there could be a role for mandatory price reporting to support the balance of power in key input markets.
8. Import duties on key inputs
Suspend import duties on critical inputs such as fertiliser including urea (6%) and ammonium nitrate (6%) (main supply countries are already 0%).
