Briefing Beyond 2020 New farm policy Photo: flickr.com/photos/tomaskohl Photo: principle of public benefits for public would be extra capital and short term Summary investment. It should deliver diversity infrastructure support with specific in production and farming and be help for smaller businesses, and a Sustain presents principles and underpinned by effective regulatory new publicly funded programme of policies that would deliver better and enforcement systems, based low cost advice and support for a food and farming when we leave on the precautionary principle, to farmer-to-farmer advisory network. the European Common Agriculture protect people, the rural economy, Policy. We believe that a focus environment and livestock. UK The wider policy framework on high volume, low standard trade deals must not undermine needs to be reformed. This includes: production is wrong for the UK the delivery of this vision in each maintaining and enhancing land farming industry. Nor do we want devolved administration and should based regulations to prevent harm; a a relaxation in standards as the enable other countries to deliver strengthened and extended Groceries political trade-off for cuts in farm their own food sovereignty. Code Adjudicator to protect farmers support. from unfair trading practices and The policies we propose would policies to encourage retail diversity; Instead, new devolved farm policy include a new, universally available maintaining the organic legal should be based on a strong Land Management Support scheme standards; new labelling regulations commitment, supported by the with three elements: a menu of to ensure consumers drive up taxpayer and a well regulated outcomes; an organic scheme; and demand for food based on higher market, for sustainable, resilient, a whole-farm scheme. Specific LMS standards; reforms to the tenancy nature friendly farming that can strands would be available to boost: rules; strong labour regulations to deliver healthy diets for all, ensure agro-forestry; horticulture; new value farm workers and enhance safe food and high animal welfare entrants and succession planning. employment and reemployment; high and which minimises negative global There is a strong case for front public procurement standards and impacts. Financial and other support loading and / or capping payments delivery; and trade policies which must be targeted and based on the to use the support wisely. There promote these commitments. 2 Briefing - Beyond 2020 - New farm policy Introduction A new farm and land use policy This briefing has been developed Brexit presents the opportunity 2. Ongoing support for farming in consultation with working party but the need for change is clear. and sustainable land management members drawn from the Sustain There is ample evidence that for i.e. maintain a support level (such membership1 and forms part of the UK, policy needs to do more as the £3billion currently spent a wider Sustain programme on to ensure UK farmers can deliver overall), set as required, to ensure Brexit to deliver high standards for a sustainable, healthy, ethical food sustainable land use and protection food, farming and fishing (including system for UK citizens.2 We know of our environment, food security, supporting a Policy Commission and our farm and food system is broken: rural economy, the diversity of size promoting new legal frameworks). from adverse public health impacts, and type of farms and a ladder for It summarises the principles and lost farmland wildlife and diversity, those who want to enter this industry. policies needed to deliver better to farm income crises, animal health It should be sufficient to do this and farming in the UK (not including and welfare problems, rapid decline provide an emergency safety net for land based aquaculture). These are in smaller and family farms, and extreme hardship only.4 proposed as a contribution to the damage to the global environment. debate on policy after 2020 when As we leave today’s European 3. Application of the public money the current European schemes and designed system, so we should now for public good (or benefit) regulatory frameworks are due to take the chance to fix it. principle.5 This must be carefully end. defined and applied fairly to avoid We believe the following principles commodification of nature and This briefing refers mainly to should underpin future farm policy: unintended consequences such as agriculture policy in England though some goods or land types being many of the principles proposed 1. A clear commitment to fair, neglected by both public policy are common across the UK. In healthy, humane and environmentally and the market. Key to this will be terms of the devolved nations, there sustainable food, farming, fishing rewarding farmers for adopting should be no top-down UK policy. and land management for the and maintaining agro-ecological Agriculture should continue to be UK after withdrawal from the EU, approaches (including organic fully devolved when we leave the EU. establishing agroecology as the and agroforestry), resource (soil, The nations could and should agree underlying principle of farming. water) protection, public access, a consensual framework which Any changes to the fiscal support maintaining and enhancing nature maintains UK-wide structures where and regulatory regime must and biodiversity, conserving needed. contribute to environmental, social landscapes, High Nature Value and public health goals3 including farming6 and heritage features, high carbon reduction, biodiversity, animal welfare and in ensuring a rural livelihoods, and a reduction in supply of sustainable healthy food obesity (estimated to cost the NHS where not supported by the market. £4bn). It should include delivering on the industry commitment to reduce GHG emissions from agriculture by at least 3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year (3MtCO2e) by 3 For instance via (a) targeting support to 2022, climate adaptation, as well domestic supply of healthy foods including fresh fruit and vegetables to address the as priorities such as the National huge trade gap and replace unhealthy Pollinator Strategies. 1 Sustain is an alliance of around 100 foods such as sugar and processed meat national public interest organisations products; (b) Reducing the amount of working at international, national, regional sugar produced for consumption to match and local level for better food and farming. recommended levels of consumption of It advocates food and agriculture policies refined sugars, which contribute to dental and practices that enhance the health and decay and dietary diseases such as welfare of people and animals, improve obesity and diabetes; and (c) recognition 5 A ‘public good’ is a product that one the working and living environment, enrich and reward of wider benefits of farm individual can consume without reducing society and culture and promote equity. related environment for public physical and its availability to another individual, and https://www.sustainweb.org/membership/ mental health and well-being. from which no one is excluded. We want to ensure a healthy and sustainably produced 2 For example see State Of nature 4 The call for crop insurance programmes food supply as a public good, where 2016, https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/our-work/ similar to those in the US or Canada is markets fail and rural vitality based on stateofnature2016/ or SNH Agroecology understandable but research consistently sustainable development. report http://www.snh.gov.uk/ shows they are expensive and lead to land-and-sea/managing-the-land/farming- growth in risky farming practices and 6 Low-intensity farming systems crofting/lupg/agroecology/http://www. negative environmental impacts. Schemes particularly valuable for wildlife and risefoundation.eu/images/files/2017/2017_ may help prevent rural jobs losses but are natural environment. See http://www. RISE_CAP_Summary.pdf unlikely to lead to additional jobs. highnaturevaluefarming.org.uk/ Briefing - Beyond 2020 - New farm policy 3 4. A focus on targeting support 6. Maintenance and enhancement 8. Trade deals shaped by people’s to ensure money goes where it is of standards and regulations needs not those of corporations and really needed and recognising larger including food safety, organic which allow countries to maintain farms gain economies of scale so standards, pesticide, environment, and enhance standards and ensure may need less support to deliver nature, employment, geographic farmers are not competing with the same outcomes. Aid could be indicators, and animal welfare. This producers using lower standards. provided to enable diversification should include a commitment to We must not weaken food standards in production and the transition fully implementing the precautionary or protection to get favourable deals towards livelihoods and employment principle and hazard based as part of a bargaining chip in trade in healthier, sustainably grown or approaches and responding to negotiations which could result in reared produce (and away from external markets e.g. changing costly food crises, contamination, current levels of, for example, sugar European regulations. Policies threats to public health and potential beet, and intensively reared industrial should ensure supply chains become for lost markets and trust. We must meat) as appropriate. Adequate funds shorter and less complex reducing use trade impact assessments to must be available for monitoring and the risk of food fraud, hygiene risks ensure