OF&G chief executive Roger Kerr has given a withering assessment of the new Environment Secretary’s address to the Oxford Farming Conference earlier today. 

Kerr said: “Sadly, today’s announcement by Environment Secretary, Steve Barclay at the Oxford Farming Conference falls short on credibility. While we wholeheartedly welcome support for British farmers, Government must make a real commitment to a consistent, thorough, and well-resourced system-wide strategy.

“The ‘biggest upgrade’ to SFI (Sustainable Farming Incentives) payments feels like a band aid to patch up Defra’s £227m underspend. Uptake of the environmental schemes has been staggeringly low, and this seems to be a last-ditch attempt to win over disillusioned farmers.

“As an organic certification body, we applaud greater transparency on food labelling to ensure consumers can make informed choices. However, Government has repeatedly undermined UK food producers. A series of international trade deals and a Genetic Technology Act that remove safeguards for shoppers, all lessen any clear point of distinction for supposedly high farming standards and will make it harder for UK farmers to compete with much larger producer nations.

“Suggesting that a ‘buy British button’ will compensate for these strategic failures is quite frankly unbelievable, especially when it was only eight weeks ago that ex-minister Jacob Rees-Mogg was calling for more imported food to negate the need seasonal workers.

“Government’s scattergun approach leaves producers and shoppers confused and frustrated.

“At a time of serious climatic and economic extremes we need properly considered and progressive policies that support UK farming in delivering climate friendly, people positive food production.”

Main image. Environment Secretary, Steve Barclay, addressing the Oxford Farming Conference. Courtesy, Oxford Warning Conference