July 21, 2010

Farming industry to lift UK's economy

The food and farming sector is predicted to raise the UK out of the recession, Westminster officials said.

"Absolutely central to this is the success of British food and farming. The sector has fared better than other sectors during the recession and that is because British consumers want to support what you do," DEFRA secretary Caroline Spelman MP said.

Peter Kendall, NFU president, added that he was confident farmers would help drive growth. "What I think is really important for the farming industry, at a very difficult time for the country, is actually as farmers we offer solutions. What I want the farming industry to do over the next few months is to really be up to the challenge of playing a part in how we build the recovery in the economy," he said.

DEFRA would push for Red Tractor-branded British produce to be used more widely in the public sector, said Mrs Spelman.

"You will hear from your ministerial team a lot of support to encourage the public sector to procure food produced to red tractor standard, which is the best in the world," she added.

DEFRA's farming minister, Jim Paice, said agriculture and food manufacturing were the UK's biggest employer and in his role he wanted to encourage more integration.

"My approach is to see this all as a wide, huge food supply chain - all separate but integrated. Farming isn't an industry we can push aside and say, 'that was part of British history', it has as big a role in the future as it ever did in the past," he said.