A strong domestic farming sector is, and always will be, a linchpin for national security. As Secretary of State, I will always champion British farming and rural communities. I have visited farms up and down the country, and in all these interactions, I have seen the ingenuity, determination and pride that defines our British farming communities. Whether the farming is arable, livestock, horticulture or mixed enterprise, the message I hear consistently is that to become profitable, productive and resilient, farmers need clarity and certainty from the Government. That is exactly what I intend to deliver.
Today, I am publishing Baroness Batters’ independent farming profitability review. The Government commissioned this review to examine how we can support farm businesses to become more profitable. Doing so is essential for our country’s economic growth and food security, enabling a stronger, more productive domestic farming sector that also helps keep high-quality British food on shelves for consumers who want to buy British.
I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Baroness Batters for her exemplary efforts in leading this review. Drawing on her years of experience and deep understanding of working farms, alongside months of research and stakeholder engagement, she has produced a breadth of work that will help in the development of our long-term 25-year road map for the sector.
The review makes 57 recommendations and highlights the sector’s potential to stand at the heart of Britain’s economic renewal. It calls for stronger partnership between the Government and industry, better data to drive productivity, smarter regulation, and more targeted innovation themes, which are central to this Government’s plan for change and essential to my vision to grow the rural economy.
One theme stands out very strongly from the review, and that is the need for agriculture, the food industry and the Government to work in partnership. I could not agree more. That is why, today, I am establishing a new farming and food partnership board, which I will chair, alongside the farming Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Wallasey (Dame Angela Eagle), as deputy. It will be about serious action and a strong voice at the centre of the Government bringing together senior leaders in farming, food, retail, and finance.
The new board will help shape decisions, remove barriers to investment and tackle the challenges the sector faces. This is a key element of our cross-Government food strategy.
Importantly, the board will not take a one-size-fits-all approach. It will focus on specific agricultural sectors, tailoring growth in sectors like horticulture and in poultry, where there is significant untapped potential to increase homegrown production. I want to unlock the untapped opportunities in specific parts of the food chain and deliver specific sector plans.
I want to give farmers confidence to grow and invest. Most farmers are small and medium sized business owners, as well as custodians of the land, and they want to sell their produce for the best price and have a long and sustainable future. Helping them do so strengthens the whole food chain—supporting households with reliable, affordable access to British produce at a time when the cost of living remains a concern for many families.
Alongside the launch of the board, the Government are today setting out immediate actions to back farm businesses:
This week, the Housing Secretary, my right hon. Friend the Member for Streatham and Croydon North (Steve Reed), and I took action to cut wasteful bureaucracy, and are changing planning rules to make food production a priority for councils. This will mean the system is more supportive of the infrastructure farmers need. That is a win for getting more on-farm reservoirs, greenhouses, polytunnels and farm shops built quicker.
We are tackling barriers to private finance, bringing together farmers, agrifood businesses and major financial institutions to attract investment into farm transformation and productivity and nature.
We are stepping up action on supply chain fairness, including continued scrutiny of unfair practices and consideration of changes to Groceries Code Adjudicator oversight.
The Government can and must create opportunities for farmers beyond our own shores. We are creating opportunities overseas through our trade deals for our world-class food and drink, from British beef in the US to a whole range of produce in India.
But we can go further. Our global network of agriculture attachés has unlocked an estimated £100 million in export deals this year alone, and there is more potential out there. I am going further and setting up dedicated trade missions for British agriculture, so that farmers and growers can get their products to new markets overseas.
This is just the start. Our 25-year farming road map will give farmers clarity and confidence for the future. We are doing more than ever—cutting bureaucracy, driving investment, opening global markets—because British farming matters not just for rural communities, but for every household that values affordable, homegrown British food.
Today’s announcements form a core part of the Government’s overall food strategy, focused on backing British farming, strengthening food security and supporting profitable, resilient farm businesses for the long term.
In addition to the Government’s initial response set out here, we will carefully consider all of Baroness Batters’ recommendations as we continue to develop our 25-year farming road map which will be published in 2026.
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