Food standards rally to take place in Westminster

Farmers from across the country will head to Westminster at the end of March to make a 'rallying call' to Government on post-Brexit food standards. 

The event, organised by the NFU, will take place on March 25 at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre, which is close to the Houses of Parliament. 

The NFU said the event would bring together farmers, consumer representatives and experts in animal welfare and the environment, in a show of unity backing the future of British farming and underlining the role farmers play in supplying the nation with safe, traceable and affordable food and protecting our countryside.

The aim will be to urge the Government to commit that future UK trade policy will not allow imports of food produced to standards that would be illegal in the UK.

NFU President Minette Batters said: “This event is about bringing together people from across British business who acknowledge and value the importance of food and farming. They are crystal clear that the Government must hold the line that they will uphold British farming’s high standards in trade deals, and crucially they must hold imports entering the country to that same standard.

“Failure to do so risks undermining British food production and our own domestic farming industry. We share the Government’s ambitions to deliver more for the environment, but in doing so, we must not offshore our food production to those parts of the world who do not share our values and standards."

NPA chief executive Zoe Davies said the association would be backing the rally. "This is a very important issue for the pig sector, which risks being seriously undermined if, at the same time as domestic standards are being ratcheted up, cheaper imports produced to lower standards are allowed into the country," she said. 

"We want to add our voice to the calls for the Government to take decisive action to prevent this happening across the farming sector."

The NPA is seeking more information about how members can support the rally.