NFU elections 2022: Meet your new officeholder team

23 February 2022

A photo of the NFU officeholders.

Minette Batters has been re-elected to lead the NFU’s officeholder team and continue to represent more than 46,000 farmers and growers across England and Wales.

Minette Batters will serve as President for a further two years, alongside Tom Bradshaw as Deputy President and David Exwood as Vice President.

This will be her third term as NFU President.

President Minette Batters

Mrs Batters said: “I’m truly honoured to lead the NFU at such a crucial time for British food and farming. My focus in the coming years, as we enter a new era for British agriculture, will be to ensure a bright and resilient British farming sector that continues to provide the nation with high-quality, climate-friendly, affordable food for generations to come.  

“I have a vision of a sustainable and resilient food industry with a new economic model which ensures a fair return from supply chains and drives profit back into the land, enabling us to maximise the potential for sustainable food production and environmental delivery on farms.

“There remain significant challenges facing our sector that need to be addressed. I will continue to work with government to ensure they back British farming in trade deals, urgently address the industry-wide labour crisis, help tackle rural crime, and develop domestic policy that enables farmers to produce sustainable food alongside caring for the environment and working towards net zero.

“I would like to congratulate Tom Bradshaw on his election as Deputy President and to welcome David Exwood into the Officeholder team. I look forward to working with both Tom and David in representing our farming and growing members at this critical time. I would also like to pay tribute and personally thank Stuart Roberts for his incredible contribution to the NFU over the past four years as an officeholder.”

NFU Deputy President Tom Bradshaw

NFU Deputy President Tom Bradshaw said: “I’ve been proud to represent our industry as Vice President over the past two years and I am very much looking forward to building on this work as Deputy President alongside Minette and David.

“Our sector is going through some of the biggest changes in 70 years and we must focus on turning this change into opportunity. We are currently farming in a challenging and uncertain business environment and it’s important we receive fair returns in the supply chain so we can continue to produce fantastic food for the nation and boost our social, economic and environmental contribution.”

NFU Vice President David Exwood

NFU Vice President David Exwood said: “I’m incredibly proud and grateful to have the chance to represent Britain’s farmers as part of the officeholder team.

“For me, the next two years are about creating new opportunities for profitable food production alongside net zero and biodiversity enhancement. I look forward to working with Minette and Tom to help steer the sector through changes to domestic farming policy and grasp the opportunities that come our way.”