With the full FAR (Farm Assurance Review) and its 56 recommendations published in January leading many organisations with recommendations against their name (including the NFU) having published their intentions for action, the Farm Assurance Review is now firmly into a ‘monitoring and reporting’ phase.
The NFU, UK farming unions and AHDB commissioned FAR lead Dr David Llewelyn, with support from Promar, to undertake a detailed and independent monitoring and reporting exercise to quiz organisations and report back on how they are responding to the review. The interim report published today is the first phase of that work, with a final report expected in spring 2026.
“We are committed to the important role of assurance in underpinning the safety of the food produced on British farms.”
NFU President Tom Bradshaw
What does the report say?
The interim report provides an update on the feedback from 40 organisations invited to complete a ‘progress’ questionnaire, including the NFU. The picture presented in the report is mixed and highlights the many positive steps that have been taken by assurance schemes and other organisations as well as noting those organisations that have made limited or no moves to deliver or shape the recommendations of FAR.
The focus of the interim report is on those recommendations with the most immediate timescales, though the report does highlight the perhaps overly-ambitious delivery targets that were presented.
Read the report in full at: Promar | Farm Assurance Review.
NFU recommendations
The report notes how NFU workstreams have adapted to ensure that the FAR becomes a key element of organisational decision-making and references the leadership role that the NFU has taken in convening others to focus on foundational recommendations from the FAR, such as defining the ‘purpose and scope’ of assurance and exploring opportunities for earned recognition.
Embedding the FAR recommendations in our sector board priorities has also been noted in the report, with particular praise for the work of the Combinable Crops Board.
In terms of the more practical recommendations, the NFU is also helping to guide and maintain pressure on transformational changes such as increasing the use of technology to make the audit process more efficient, considering relevant environmental standards and establishing principles for smarter uses of data.
All of this is underpinned by a more transparent approach to governance and a greater emphasis on communicating the value that assurance standards bring – whether in risk reduction and demonstration of due diligence, or as a tool for increasing market share and accessing new markets, and importantly, as a way to ensure that British food products can command a higher value.
Commitment to change
Responding to the report's publication, NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: “The NFU is continuing to work hard on multiple aspects of the report’s recommendations including driving improvements around simplifying and reducing farm audits, recognising the importance of sector autonomy, enhancing the use of data and technology, and ensuring farmers and growers have a greater voice in the development of standards.
“We will continue to meet with other farming unions, AHDB, Food Standards Agency and representatives from farm assurance schemes to deliver the recommendations of the report and ensure our members see the benefits of the changes being made. We are committed to the important role of assurance in underpinning the safety of the food produced on British farms."
Dr Llewellyn noted that the fact that 40 organisations made contributions to the report indicates there "there is a commitment to change the nature and delivery of farm assurance and to reaffirm the position of the farming community as a key part of the farm assurance system".
"Disappointingly, other government bodies have not yet been as engaged as might have been wished," he acknowledged. "It remains to be seen, in the second monitoring round next year, whether they will play their part in driving improvements in the farm assurance system that could, in turn, assist with the development of government farming and food policies."
Progress
This interim report demonstrates a real desire to deliver meaningful change to the farm assurance landscape through targeted evolution and collective action. We are grateful to AHDB and the other UK farming unions for their help in driving this work forward and to the organisations and assurance schemes who have made steps to engage.
We note that this report highlights some organisations who have yet to fully engage for a variety of reasons and particularly highlights some government departments, as well as noting variability across assurance schemes and the supply chain in some instances, but this shouldn’t diminish the fact that the backdrop is ultimately one of real effort to make progress.
The NFU gives thanks to David Llewleyn and the team at Promar for their efforts towards driving progress.
What next?
The FAR remains a crucial piece of work and we are working closely with our sector boards to ensure that outcomes focus on achieving the best deal for each sector rather than just focusing on a ‘broad brush’ approach.
We have undertaken extensive work with the supply chain, regulators and farm assurance schemes to ensure a consistent understanding of the recommendations and to facilitate joint working on those recommendations that highlight multiple organisations having a responsibility for delivery.
The final report in spring 2026 will build upon this interim review and will focus on the longer-term recommendations of the original FAR.
