‘Facing change, finding opportunity’ in agriculture

The CLA attended the 89th Oxford Farming Conference this month. The conference delivered on many accounts across politics, inspiration from those putting ideas into practice, and plenty of different perspectives whether personal, industry or global. The reality of farming in the current climate (in all senses) is not pretty, so the conference title ‘facing change, finding opportunity’ was well judged. The event was also delivered seamlessly under the chair of Geoff Sansome, a farmer from Worcester and ex-agriculture lead at Natural England.

Given the heightened political interest, the Defra Secretary of State (SofS) speech was much anticipated. The presentation was competent but there was nothing in it to overcome the industry concern about the impacts of the changes to inheritance tax (IHT) reliefs.

While the farming protest on the street outside was audible, the first question to Steve Reed was posed by the CLA. It challenged the SofS on how he was going to meet the growth of the sector with investment ambitions when businesses were dealing with the very real challenges from the IHT reforms. The SofS kept to government lines on IHT, but the message from the industry was clear, as was the support from the devolved administrations. Huw Iranca-Davies, Welsh Deputy First Minister, and his fellow agriculture ministers from Scotland and Northern Ireland also demanded a review of the IHT plans.

Despite the cloud of IHT, there were some important points of direction and intent in the SofS speech. The concern for CLA members is that these are just good intentions, many of which depend on other government departments, and there are as yet no clear policies to deliver.

This was billed as ‘the most forward-looking plan for farming in our country’s history’. It will cover three main strands of: sustainable and profitable food production, diversification opportunities and nature restoration.

The plans for a farming roadmap might seem like pain today for jam tomorrow, but it should provide the basis for much needed vision and stability. This will work alongside a push for fairness in the supply chain and land use framework, as well as a food strategy.

The focus on growth of the rural economy reflects the asks in the CLA programme for government and agriculture budget proposals. These include planning reform to allow updating of infrastructure, diversification, small-scale renewables, and easier grid connectivity. Change in these areas will be made easier with Defra onside to work with other departments.

Regulatory compliance was recognised as a real burden and risk for many farming businesses, so Defra has committed to making its regulation more coherent and easier to understand. This is not a promise to dismantle the guidelines of course, and there will be many pressures to increase regulation, so it will be important to work with the government to determine the best way to apply the changes needed.

The SofS reiterated the manifesto pledges on trade, committing to a new veterinary agreement with the EU, expanding global export opportunities, and protecting environmental and animal welfare standards in future trade deals.

Defra’s focus is on restoring nature alongside food production, leaning on the £5bn agriculture budget over two years to support the transition to nature friendly farming. This is a key area for farming businesses, both for payment for public goods through the Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes, and for support for productivity growth through grants, advice and other incentives. The rollout of ELMs is underway, but there is still a major gap in plans to support productivity growth.

There were two concrete announcements. Firstly, the ADOPT fund that will launch in the spring which is a new part of the Farming Innovation Programme research and development scheme. It is targeting farmer-led trials to showcase and accelerate the adoption of new practices and technology. The second announcement is the introduction of legislation to Parliament by March to unlock new precision breeding technology for crops.

As ever, the most inspiring aspect of the conference tends to be the personal stories from those who are farming, and this conference didn’t disappoint. The common theme was really about people evaluating their businesses and circumstances and taking decisions that are right for them. These changes were often driven by adversity, whether personal, business or political, and demonstrated that evolution is within the grasp of all businesses with the right mindset. It is well worth listening to these sessions when they are available from the OFC.

The value of a three-day conference is the breadth that can be covered and the time to talk to people and reflect on wider and important issues in farming. The thought-provoking sessions in the main conference dealt with industry-wide and global initiatives on genetics, decarbonising farm machinery, the challenges of the UK food system and the global risks from climate change. The partner sessions during the breaks provided a wide range of interesting topics too, including pressures on UK land use and the business potential of nature-friendly farming. But the chance to speak to people and understand different perspectives is one of the most valuable aspects.

The conference debate on ‘this house believes that there should be more grazing livestock’ was passionate, articulate, entertaining and very close (won by the proposers by seven votes). And the first ever joint dinner between the Oxford Farming Conference and Oxford Real Farming Conference on Wednesday was a showcase of the common ground and what can be learned from listening to others.

Nobody can disagree with the SofS statement that “farms deserve to be successful, profitable businesses. The prize is long-term food security, resilient farm businesses, healthy ecosystems, beautiful countryside and nutritious food on our plates”.

The farming road map provides the opportunity to set out how this will be achieved and the CLA is keen to hear from members who have views on the key areas. This process was started in November 2024 with a farming roadmap paper at the branch committees, and will continue at national committees and some focus groups. There will also be opportunities to speak directly with Defra. Please get in touch with cameron.hughes@cla.org.uk if you would like to get involved.

The CLA will also continue to champion the rural economy, working directly with Defra and other government departments on tax, planning, diversification, trade and skills.

The recordings of the Oxford Farming Conference sessions will be available online from the end of January, for those wishing to catchup.