Union reiterates its position as talks with GCC continue
The NFU has written to Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling for the government to continue its balanced approach to trade and to protect UK production standards as trade negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) progress.
The GCC currently imports approximately 85 per cent of its food requirements, which the NFU said presents opportunities for British farmers. However, there remain concerns over animal welfare standards on imports in particular.
The NFU noted that when he spoke at the union’s conference in 2023, Starmer made a commitment to protect Britain’s high production standards. More recently, Defra secretary of state Steve Reed set out in the government’s New Deal for Farmers that it will “protect farmers from being undercut by low welfare and low standards in trade deals”. The NFU has urged the government to continue to stand by this pledge.
NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: “Balanced and mutually beneficial trade deals can provide a real economic boost, including for farm businesses.
“A modern trade deal with the GCC, if fair and balanced, could offer huge potential for agricultural exporters. But, as always, this balance depends on the government upholding its commitments to not allow greater market access for food imports which have been produced in ways that are illegal here.
“This would undermine Britain’s reputation for high animal welfare standards that our producers deliver, and consumers value and rightly expect. It’s vital the government takes the same balanced approach it took with the recent India and US trade agreements. This is the next test to see if the government will stand strong and protect the standards our country demands and values.”
