Farming & Food Partnership Board meets with hort in focus

The first meeting has taken place of the inaugural Farming & Food Partnership Board, aiming to forge a new path in the way British agriculture is led and supported.

Chaired by environment secretary Emma Reynolds, with farming minister Dame Angela Eagle as deputy chair, the board was created to bring government and industry together to drive a more productive, profitable, and resilient food system.

Building on Minette Batters’ Farm Profitability Review, the board’s goal is to put farm productivity and profitability at the centre of decision making, champion homegrown produce and strengthen the nation’s supply chain.

Representatives from AHDB, Agricultural Industries Confederation, British Retail Consortium, Food & Drink Federation, IGD, NFU and UK Hospitality met for the first time this week to shape the board’s mission, ways of working and sector growth plans. Their input will inform its future membership and priorities, the government explained.

”The first Farming and Food Partnership Board meeting marks a major moment for British farming, bringing the whole food chain together to deliver real change for farm and food businesses,” Reynolds said. ”We are working with industry to boost productivity and profitability, support innovation, drive growth and make it easier for the whole supply chain – from farm to fork – to succeed.”

The board’s work is intended to complement the Food Strategy Advisory Board (FSAB), supporting wider work to drive change across the food system.

Early work will focus on targeted Sector Growth Plans, led by industry and co-designed with government, to tackle barriers to growth, unlock investment, accelerate technology uptake, and boost farm returns.

Horticulture and poultry will be the first sectors in focus, reflecting their potential to drive growth and increase domestic production. Work on the horticulture plan will begin immediately, with poultry to follow this summer.

Subgroups may be established to bring together experts from across government and industry to tackle key challenges and deliver tangible improvements in farm profitability.

The government also stressed it is working closely with industry to support farmers facing rising diesel and fertiliser costs linked to the Iran war, with Reynolds having attended COBR on Monday to coordinate the response. Ministers have raised concerns about price gouging with the Competition & Markets Authority, insisting that profiteering “will not be tolerated”.

Members in attendance at the meeting included Tom Bradshaw (NFU), Robert Sheasby (AIC), Sarah Bradbury (IGD), Kate Nicholls (UKH), Emily Norton (AHDB), Balwinder Dhoot (FDF) and Andrew Opie (BRC).