Luke Pollard MP has welcomed the Government’s new Farming Roadmap, “Farming 2050: Growing England’s Future”, which brings clarity on the future of farming in the South West.
Many farmers have been understandably concerned about the uncertainty in the farming sector. Whether it’s changing schemes, rising input costs, or simply not knowing what the long-term direction is, it’s made planning ahead much harder than it should be.
This Roadmap is designed to change that. For the first time, it sets out a clear long-term plan for farming through to 2050, giving farms across the South West greater stability and confidence to plan ahead.
At its core, the plan focuses on three things: making sure farm businesses are profitable, supporting sustainable ways of working the land, and helping farms stay resilient in the face of rising costs and global pressures.
For farmers, this means a continued commitment to maintaining domestic food production at least at current levels and recognising it as vital to our national security. It also means protecting the most productive agricultural land, improving routes to market through stronger supply chains, and backing investment in innovation, skills and technology to help businesses grow.
Luke Pollard MP said:
“I recognise the pressures many farms in the South West are under. By providing a shared plan for delivery, the Government is standing alongside our farmers through global uncertainty, taking decisive action to reduce operating costs while the conflict in the Middle East continues.
Already, the Government has announced a new £30 million Farmer Collaboration Fund, to support groups of farmers to grow their businesses, build partnerships and share best practice.
But the Government plans to go further by investing in the skills and people the sector needs, supporting training and new entrants so that the hard-earned knowledge of farmers is passed down to the next generation.
As a former Shadow Environment Secretary, it’s great to see that the Roadmap commits to bringing at least 60% of agricultural soil under sustainable management by 2030. Soil health is a core productivity and resilience tool, improving yields, nutrient efficiency, drought tolerance and flood resilience.
This marks a clear break from the failures of the past, and a significant step forward in delivering a clear future for farmers here in Plymouth and creating a profitable, productive, sustainable and resilient farming sector through to 2050.
As always, I want to ensure Plymouth’s voice is part of this process as the Roadmap is being delivered. If you’d like to share your thoughts, please feel free to contact me on [email protected]”