Over two-thirds (67%) of British farmers are not confident about the future of British food production, according to a new survey.
The survey, conducted by agri-tech business Hectare, involved over 500 livestock and arable farmers in the UK.
The farmers had improvement doubts related to all aspects of the UK’s food production industry, including food inflation, government support schemes and high input costs.
Only one in 10 livestock farmers predicted production to increase as inflationary pressures ease, and a further 14% of beef, sheep and poultry farmers are concerned inflation rates will rise even higher than their recent peak.
26% of livestock farmers and 33% of grain farmers said the lack of clarity around new government support scheme replacing the EU Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) was their biggest concern.
Additionally, 12% of all farmers surveyed said they are “worried” about the ending of the EU BPS, with 15% of grain farmers in particular concerned about difficulties in forecasting their cashflow over the next year.
Co-founder of Hectare, Andrew Huxham, said the lack of confidence farmers have for the future of food production is unsurprising given the current issues the sector is facing.
“It’s not surprising British farmers lack confidence in the future of food production – it’s been an uncertain few years for everyone involved,” he said.
“Undoubtedly, many are feeling vulnerable post Brexit now the EU Basic Payments Scheme – seen by many as a base income which helps them weather the peaks and troughs inherent in agriculture – is being phased out.
“Trade deals with countries like Australia and Canada have also raised questions around fairness for British farmers, and how to secure quality and provenance when sourcing large quantities of our produce from overseas.”
Food production
Huxham urged farmers to not lose hope yet, as he said he does see cause for greater farmer confidence in the UK’s ability to produce food in the future.
“UK farmers should be confident about the future – good food production requires a real desire to produce quality food in a sustainable way that enhances the environment, and farmers are doing a really good job of this already,” he said.
“British farmers are very aware of the fragile environment and decline of species and habitats which has occurred over the decades – they care deeply about the environment and know there are more ways to increase sustainability measures to secure the future of domestic food production, while protecting and enhancing the environment for future generations.”
Hectare said this desire to increase sustainability measures to secure the future of food production is already being reflected in the “ever-increasing” consumer awareness of where their food comes from and its environmental impact.
