Just over 24 hours after the ‘Brexit and Our Land’ consultation drew to a close, NFU Cymru president John Davies told members now was the time to “realise their ambition” to put Wales back at the forefront of international agriculture.
The sentiment was echoed by the three other NFU presidents in attendance who stressed the importance of farming for food production.
National Farmers’ Union president Minette Batters told the audience: “I do not want to see our industry treated by Government as park keepers. ‘F’ is farmers.”
Ulster Farmers’ Union president Ivor Ferguson added: “As farmers, the environment is important to us but food production is our number one goal.”
Davies recounted Wales’ past successes in leading the industry internationally as he addressed farmers and industry colleagues at the annual NFU Cymru conference in Llandrindod Wells today (November 1).
He said the end of the consultation gave the industry a landmark moment to “design, develop and implement a policy made in Wales for Welsh farming”.
Davies urged Cabinet Secretary for Energy, Planning and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths AM, to take on board the views of thousands of farmers who want to see food production placed at the heart of future policies.
2,800 replies
The ‘Brexit and Our Land’ consultation saw NFU Cymru engage with over 2,500 members at its events, and more than 2,800 farmers and allied businesses submit their own unique responses to the consultation through the union’s designated consultation hub.
Davies said: “For the first time in our nation’s history, we have the opportunity to design, develop and implement a policy ‘Made in Wales’ for Welsh farming.
It’s an opportunity to put in place the cornerstones for a new policy to realise our ambition for further sustainable growth and development of our food and farming industry.
“At NFU Cymru we are proud that the Welsh public associate Welsh farmers, first and foremost, with providing safe, high quality and traceable food.
“I want to ensure that consumers in Wales, the UK and further afield can continue to enjoy, and choose, the top quality food that we produce here in Wales.
“We are proud to be the cornerstone of a food industry that has seen fantastic growth in the past decade and we want to ensure that the healthy and nutritious food we produce on our farms can underpin the continued growth of an industry worth nearly £7 billion to Wales.”
Sir George Stapleton
During his speech, Davies recalled the pioneering work of Sir George Stapleton in Aberystwyth in the early part of the last century, whose innovation in the field of plant breeding and grassland improvement was renowned the world over.
He added: “We have the opportunity, through this consultation, to make sure that Wales continues to be seen as a country at the forefront of agricultural improvement and productivity.
We recognise that, as an industry, we are at a pivotal time in our history, and it is for this reason that NFU Cymru has undertaken an unprecedented level of engagement with our membership.
“Any membership organisation is only as strong as its members, and our members, along with the businesses and communities that are built on Welsh farming, have joined together united in making sure that our voice is heard at this crucial juncture.”
