Top Suffolk farmer urges politicians to back home-grown food

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) is marking its annual Back British Farming Day today by asking MPs to wear a wheatsheaf pin badge - after a survey suggests farmers' popularity is growing.

An online OnePoll survey carried out for the NFU in June 2023 found of 10 occupations, farmers ranked second (47%) after nurses (65%) - up from fourth place in 2022.

Of the 2000 adults in England and Wales polled, 87% supported increasing self-sufficiency in UK food production compared to 80% when asked in 2022.Andrew Blenkiron, Suffolk NFU branch chairman, said he was "over the moon" at the huge public support indicated by the poll.

“We want to thank people for their continued support.

“As a farmer in Suffolk I am incredibly proud to produce high quality, healthy, affordable, Red Tractor-assured food for people to enjoy. 

"As all farmers I am committed to producing food to the highest standards of animal welfare, while continuing to protect and enhance the environment." 

Back British Farming day was a "fantastic opportunity" for the industry to showcase all that it does and for others to show their support, he said.

Farming made a "significant" contribution to the economy and was moving towards a fully sustainable future with "many solutions" to the climate change challenge.

"What we really need now is to see our politicians value what we do and back the production of home-grown food and our family businesses,” he said.

More than 100 MPs are expected to attend a Back British Farming Day breakfast reception at the House of Commons today where they will be offered a wheatsheaf pin badge.

NFU president Minette Batters said the survey results showed the public was behind the sector.

Ninety per cent of the public feel farming is important to the UK economy while 81% agreed that British farms should grow as much food as they can to provide national food security, the poll revealed.

“Britain’s farmers and growers are truly inspirational, and it is heart-warming to know the public really value the work we do in producing fantastic homegrown food," she said.

“This food underpins the British food and farming sector and is worth more than £100bn to the national economy, all while protecting and enhancing our landscapes."

She thanked the public for their support - and said the NFU poll showed a very high proportion wanted home-grown food.

“This is a clear message that the public backs our calls for government to prioritise homegrown food production and legislate to ensure the UK’s self-sufficiency does not drop below its current level of 60%,” she said.

“We’ve had everything thrown at us over the past 18 months – soaring production costs, global market instability caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine, extreme bouts of weather and significant delays to farm payments.

“The empty shelves we’ve seen this year speak for themselves - we need to be producing more of our food here."

She called for statutory government targets for food production in the same way as it has set goals for the environment.

“Fundamentally, investing in domestic food production means we can increase our productivity, create more jobs and deliver much more for the economy and for the environment," she said.

Christy Willett, chair of the Essex branch of the NFU, added: “Essex farmers are proud to care for the countryside to produce healthy, quality food.

“We also enhance the landscape by providing habitats for wildlife and we can offer real solutions to mitigate climate change.

“Via our many footpaths we provide places for people to relax and enjoy the beauty of nature. We know that a simple walk in the countryside is good for our physical and mental well-being."