UK government asked to leverage potential of farming

The UK government has been urged to look to farming as one of the sectors that could potentially kick-start growth and rebalance the economy.

According to National Farmers' Union president Peter Kendall, rising exports of food and drink put the UK on track for a record year for the export of farm produce, while the agricultural workforce rose by 9,500 this year.

In his annual New Year message, Kendall urged the government to extend support to farming by ensuring reform of the EU farming subsidies system, encouraging efficient farming and freeing the industry to grow, look after the environment and produce more food.

There are concerns that efforts to "green" the Common Agricultural Policy fail to deliver the hoped-for benefits for the environment, and only create more red tape and regulation for farmers, he said.

In an upbeat New Year message, he said he was "incredibly optimistic" on the long-term future of farming. He pointed to exports of £5.85 billion in the first six months of 2011 - a 13 per cent increase on the previous year, helped by a favourable exchange rate.

Kendall said 2011 would be the seventh year in a row, which would see food and drink exports rise, with the UK on course to achieve record levels of exports for the year.