Farmer Confidence at Lowest in England and Wales Since Survey Began, NFU Says
{Farmer Confidence – This survey is very important. We need to carry farmers with us as we tackle global warming – Earth and Leaf Editorial}
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Farmer Confidence at Lowest in England and Wales Since Survey Began, NFU Says
The National Farmers Union cites extreme wet weather and post-Brexit phasing-out of EU subsidies as main reasons for slump.
Farmer confidence has hit its lowest level in at least 14 years, a long-running survey by the biggest farming union in Britain has found, with extreme weather and the post-Brexit phasing-out of EU subsidies blamed for the drop.
The National Farmers’ Union warned there had been a “collapse of farmer confidence” and that the outlook was at its lowest since the annual poll of its members in England and Wales began in 2010.
Most farms are expecting to reduce food production next year, with arable farming particularly badly hit.
Tom Bradshaw, the NFU’s president, pointed to extreme wet weather and the phasing-out of EU basic payment scheme (BPS) subsidies as key reasons for the downturn.
“Our concern today is that if members don’t have confidence, then we as a country can’t deliver food security,” said Bradshaw.
The annual survey of almost 800 farmers asks respondents to rate the prospects of their business, with the four responses all given weighted scores – very negative (-1), negative (-0.5), positive (0.5) and very positive (1). These are added up to give an overall confidence index score.
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