He writes:
Every day, in all weathers, British farmers are out in the fields producing the food you love to eat. Whether it’s great British beef, lamb, milk, eggs, wheat for bread, fruit, vegetables, or sugar beet, British farmers grow or rear it with pride and passion.
The standard and quality of food we produce in this country is among the highest in the world, and British farmers are rightly proud of the work they do. It is becoming increasingly clear to us that the public wants food they can trust – safe, good quality food that has been produced to the very highest welfare standards. Brexit presents an unprecedented challenge to the affordability, availability, and choice of food for UK consumers and it is vital that the high environmental and welfare standards that farmers work to, and the public expect, are maintained.
Farming is the main driving force behind the rural economy and is the bedrock of the UK’s food and drink sector, now worth £112 billion to the nation’s economy. It will continue to play a crucial role in post-Brexit Britain by providing a safe, secure and affordable supply of food to some of the highest welfare and environmental standards in the world while also looking after more than 70 per cent of the nation’s countryside.
The agriculture industry faces huge challenges in the upcoming months and years, but we are ready and willing to take on those challenges and to build on our current successes. It remains crucial the Government maintains free and frictionless trade with our major trading partner, the EU, and secures the benefits of existing EU preferential trade arrangements with other countries.
With new policies that focus on food production and farming post-Brexit, we will also have the opportunity to build on our well-deserved reputation of excellent quality food and high welfare standards and trade more globally, in turn putting more back into our own economy.
It is a testament to our farmers that shoppers who eat British food do not have to worry about welfare standards. We are leading the world in animal health and welfare and the majority of British farmers adhere to Red Tractor regulation, which ensures that food can be traced back to British farms.
While I farm a mixture of produce, including potatoes and crops, I also keep a dairy herd. Any farmer keeping livestock will tell you that these animals become an integral part of your life, and you want them to have the best life possible. A happy cow is a productive cow. The NFU and farmers around the UK are working hard to ensure these world-leading standards are not undermined by bad trade deals, but that we can continue to provide safe, high quality food for the nation and the wider world after our departure from the EU.
Hand-in-hand with the production of traceable, delicious food for every purse, farmers work hard caring for the environment we all cherish and enjoy. For us, it isn’t – and never has been – a case of either or. It’s both. We are custodians of the countryside and we have been protecting and enhancing the natural world for generations while producing food to feed the nation. Farmers take great pride in caring for the farmed landscape we all enjoy, but food production is at the heart of all farming businesses.
At our annual conference this week, farmers will be reflecting on all the great things the farming industry has achieved over the past few years. The NFU will be joined by Government officials – Defra Secretary Michael Gove will be attending and speaking – as well as industry experts and over 1,500 farmers and growers. Our conference benchmarks another year of providing food for our nation and showcasing the fundamental role that food and farming has to play in Britain, both now and post-Brexit.
As a nation we are on the brink of great change. Brexit has provided a unique opportunity to shape our way of life, and the farming sector is ready to embrace the opportunities that the right Brexit deal can bring. We are proud to deliver food produced to the high standards that the British public have come to expect. With the right policies, trade deals and forward thinking, farming has the potential to drive Britain’s success in a post-Brexit world.