The National Sheep Association (NSA) has welcomed the public release of the future operational intentions for the levy of the beef and lamb sector of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
NSA chief executive, Phil Stocker, said that the plans outlining the focus of the beef and lamb sector were a “necessary and brave” statement by AHDB.
“AHDB has clearly listened to the feedback from levy payers and their future direction aligns well with the view of our association,” Stocker said.
“NSA said the most important thing for the UK sheep sector was to invest and develop our marketplace.
“NSA also said that work to underpin and accentuate our reputation was crucial – those two work areas are completely intertwined and of course, we need ongoing market intelligence to understand trends and help farmers and processors make good decisions.”
Stocker said he recongised that some difficult decisions may lay ahead for the AHDB levy board.
“We cannot expect AHDB to focus more in certain areas, with a reduced financial resource, without stepping back in some areas.
“The answer again aligns with much of what NSA said in its response to the consultation on this matter, that more could be done in partnership and by bringing people and organisations together through a facilitated approach.
“AHDB now recognises that it’s not the organisation’s role to tell farmers how to farm but more to enable farmers to make decisions that are right for them. NSA welcomes this new direction and the work done by the new beef and lamb sector council.
“It’s the council, under the leadership of its chair, Colin Bateman, that has set this new direction and we now await AHDB’s executives’ work as they work out exactly how to deliver and what this means in practice,” he concluded.
AHDB beef and lamb
The sector plans for AHDB beef and lamb were published as part of a commitment to outline how the sectors’ levy payments will be invested over the next five years.
The beef and lamb sector council stated it has refocused activities around three themes that support the overall reputation of the sector:
- Exports (market access, trade shows, international marketing);
- Marketing (We Eat Balanced, education);
- Insight and evidence (market intelligence, animal health and welfare, environment, genetics).
