Defra has launched the Farming Roadmap, which sets out how the government will aim to provide long-term stability for the industry.
Farming Roadmap 2050: Growing England’s Future follows the publication of Baroness Minette Batters’ independent Farming Profitability Review, and subsequent action from the government’s response to it, ensuring farmers will have better access to the tools, technology, skills and supply chains they need to invest, innovate and grow, Defra said.
“I have spent every day in this role rebuilding our relationship with farmers brick by brick because they’re such an important part of our economy, our society and our environment. We are looking at how farming is valued economically and socially to ensure it receives the recognition it deserves,” Defra secretary Emma Reynolds said.
While many of the measures outlined within it are not new, the roadmap aims to draw all the policy strands together for a long-term vision. With the growing impacts of extreme weather and climate, it sets out how farmers can adapt through nature-based solutions such as improved soil health and water management.
Developed in partnership with farmers, the roadmap’s measures include:
- To boost profits and productivity, the government will work in partnership with industry to create Sector Growth Plans starting with horticulture and poultry and bring farmers, retailers and investors together on the Farming and Food Partnership Board.
- It will cut EU trade friction through a new Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
- It will give egg and fresh produce growers legal protection against unfair supply chain practices under fair dealing regulations.
- Collaborative models such as co-operatives will play a much larger role, enabling collective purchasing and joint investment that lower costs, spread risk and support stronger returns.
- An additional £53 million for the Farming Innovation Programme will bring total innovation funding this year to £123m, including dedicated funding rounds focused on robotics and soil health and water management.
- The government will review how the economic value of agriculture is measured, ensuring farming receives the recognition it deserves. A single figure of 0.6% of Gross Value Added is misleading because it captures only primary agricultural activities. Working with the Office for National Statistics, the government will look to develop new supplementary statistics to include the wider food supply chain, from processing and manufacturing to distribution and retail.
- Seasonal Worker visas will continue until at least 2030, providing reassurance to the UK horticulture sector.
- To build resilience, the roadmap sets out how farmers can reduce reliance on costly inputs like fertiliser through new technology and smarter nutrient management and adapt to the growing impacts of extreme weather and climate change through nature-based solutions such as improved soil health and water management.
- Multiple government services will, over time, be replaced with a single digital farming account to reduce administrative burdens, alongside improved data quality and standards to enable access to private markets.
- On sustainability, Environmental Land Management schemes will become more focused and better targeted, with mitigation and conversion payments phased out over time as good practice becomes standard practice with regulatory standards increasing in some areas, while long-term payments for public goods such as habitat creation will continue.
While the roadmap sets the long-term direction, Defra said the government response to the Farming Profitability Review reflects immediate action to improve farm profitability now. Measures being taken forward include:
- Extending supply chain fair dealing regulations to egg producers and fresh produce
- Launching a dedicated task-and-finish group to unlock private sector investment in sustainable farming
- Establishing a new UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary area to cut export friction
- Opening the new SFI26 application window to all eligible farmers this month
- Opening the new £30 million Farmer Collaboration Fund this summer to support groups of farmers to grow their businesses, build partnerships and share best practice
- Transferring the Groceries Code Adjudicator from the Department of Business and Trade to Defra to support a more joined-up approach to food supply chain fairness
- Considering changes to the National Planning Policy Framework following recent consultation, including proposals to make the system more supportive of the infrastructure farmers need.
Defra said said the roadmap ends years of uncertainty for farmers and ‘marks the most significant moment for English agriculture since the Second World War’.
Mrs Reynolds added: “Farmers feed our nation and manage the land that shapes our countryside, yet their contribution has never been valued in the way it deserves. Our roadmap marks a shift away from only looking to the next harvest and towards a plan that gives farmers the long-term clarity they need to innovate, invest and grow with confidence for generations to come.”
Reaction
NPA chief executive Lizzie Wilson said: “Of course, we welcome the overall goals of the strategy to provide farmers with long-term stability and boost their resilience in the face of the multiple challenges they face.
“In particular, we are very supportive of moves to reform the planning system to remove the blockages that stifle growth and our ability to meet welfare and sustainability requirements.
“We look forward to taking a proactive part in a long-term pig sector growth plan when our turn comes and we are pleased with the plan to review farming’s wider economic contribution.
“But as many independent pig producers once again are fighting for their immediate futures, our members need to see see these positive sentiments turned into actions that will provide the protection and support required to survive and thrive.”
NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: “After nearly two years of waiting for this roadmap, it’s good to see resilience, profitability, productivity and sustainability at its heart – all areas we’ve been urging the government to focus on. The government is right to say that the national security context has changed. Combined with climate and economic shocks, the fragilities of our food system now feel very exposed, and we need to move rapidly into delivery mode to turn this around.
“However, while the roadmap is full of ambition, it falls short on action and even shorter on the means of delivery.
“The roadmap sets out a welcome multi-year direction for farming, yet there is no long-term funding to go with it. Intent alone won’t deliver a secure and affordable supply of homegrown food for the nation, nor care for 70% of England’s landscape.”
CLA president Gavin Lane said: “The ambition of Defra’s long-term Farming Roadmap is welcome, but for many farmers the immediate challenge is staying profitable. High costs, low returns and increasingly volatile weather continue to put huge pressure on farm businesses.
“The roadmap must now be matched by action. Farmers need a stable policy environment, greater clarity on farming schemes, meaningful planning reform and a more joined-up approach to rural affairs across government.
“Without profitable farm businesses, the government’s ambitions for food production and nature recovery simply will not be achieved.”