Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to support grower-led supply chains.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Farmers often face power imbalances within the supply chain and can feel they have little influence on commercial negotiations. Powers in the Agriculture Act have been used to introduce ‘Fair Dealings’ Regulations, applying to businesses when purchasing agricultural products from farmers. These regulations could mandate that contracts include certain information (e.g. termination clauses, duration, pricing information) and set parameters around these details. Defra will continue to work closely with all relevant industry stakeholders on the best way to achieve this.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support grower-led supply chains in (a) rural areas and (b) West Dorset constituency.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Farmers often face power imbalances within the supply chain and can feel they have little influence on commercial negotiations. Powers in the Agriculture Act have been used to introduce ‘Fair Dealings’ Regulations, applying to businesses when purchasing agricultural products from farmers. These regulations could mandate that contracts include certain information (e.g. termination clauses, duration, pricing information) and set parameters around these details. Defra will continue to work closely with all relevant industry stakeholders on the best way to achieve this.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the payment values and maximum eligible land areas will be for the Sustainable Farming Incentive options retained for 2026.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government recognises the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) must work alongside food production, not displace it. So, the department will limit how much land can be put into certain actions and review payment rates for others. These changes will make funding go further, allowing more people to benefit from agreements.
Defra is considering an agreement value cap for the new SFI offer, and this will be tested with stakeholders before we confirm further details in due course. Alongside this, the Government will set clear budgets for each application window and provide regular updates so that farmers can see when a window is approaching full subscription. The Government will confirm the budgets for each window ahead of the first application window opening in June.