NFU’S 10 BUILDING BLOCKS FOR GROWING SUCCESS With the government as a champion for UK horticulture, the sector is ready to meet its challenge to expand the national production of fruit, vegetables, plants and flowers. To help achieve this, the NFU has identified ten critical building blocks that will be necessary for growers to develop and grow the industry:
1. Access to labour: A minimum five-year rolling seasonal worker scheme, with suitable length visas, no wage differential from the National Living Wage or unrealistic cap on worker numbers.
2. Access to affordable and sustainable energy supplies: Urgent recognition of energy-intensive horticulture sectors within the Energy and Trade Intensive Industries (ETII) scheme, and expansion of grid infrastructure to support investment in renewables.
3. Access to crop protection: An enabling crop protection policy which ensures the UK is not disadvantaged against its global competitors, plus security of the EAMU programme beyond March 2023, previously funded by horticulture levies and run by AHDB.
4. Access to water: As the sector is vulnerable to drought and the challenges from reductions / revocations of abstraction licences, greater investment is needed in infrastructure to collect, store and distribute water both on farms and within and between regions.
5. Access to sustainable growing media: A ban on the use of peat in commercial production is not the right approach. There is need for industry/ government collaboration to move towards peat-free in an environmentally and commercially sustainable way.
6. Productivity investment: It is critical that a replacement to the EU Fruit and Veg Aid Scheme is finalised as soon as possible, which is more inclusive than the previous EU scheme, and that there are no further delays in its development.
7. Enabling import controls for plants and plant products: Minimising the barriers and costs for importing plants and plant materials - the foundations of all horticultural production - while maintaining biosecurity.
8. Fairness in the supply chain: It is critical that growers can have open discussions and fair negotiations on cost price inflation with their customers.
9. Access to environmental funding schemes: Better recognition of horticulture is required in ELMS and Countryside Stewardship that reflects the variety of growing systems across the sector.
10. An enabling planning policy: Greater consistency is needed in planning decisions to support - not restrict - horticultural businesses’ ability to grow. This includes the provision of high quality, short-term accommodation for seasonal workers.
Link to full resource:
1. Access to labour: A minimum five-year rolling seasonal worker scheme, with suitable length visas, no wage differential from the National Living Wage or unrealistic cap on worker numbers.
2. Access to affordable and sustainable energy supplies: Urgent recognition of energy-intensive horticulture sectors within the Energy and Trade Intensive Industries (ETII) scheme, and expansion of grid infrastructure to support investment in renewables.
3. Access to crop protection: An enabling crop protection policy which ensures the UK is not disadvantaged against its global competitors, plus security of the EAMU programme beyond March 2023, previously funded by horticulture levies and run by AHDB.
4. Access to water: As the sector is vulnerable to drought and the challenges from reductions / revocations of abstraction licences, greater investment is needed in infrastructure to collect, store and distribute water both on farms and within and between regions.
5. Access to sustainable growing media: A ban on the use of peat in commercial production is not the right approach. There is need for industry/ government collaboration to move towards peat-free in an environmentally and commercially sustainable way.
6. Productivity investment: It is critical that a replacement to the EU Fruit and Veg Aid Scheme is finalised as soon as possible, which is more inclusive than the previous EU scheme, and that there are no further delays in its development.
7. Enabling import controls for plants and plant products: Minimising the barriers and costs for importing plants and plant materials - the foundations of all horticultural production - while maintaining biosecurity.
8. Fairness in the supply chain: It is critical that growers can have open discussions and fair negotiations on cost price inflation with their customers.
9. Access to environmental funding schemes: Better recognition of horticulture is required in ELMS and Countryside Stewardship that reflects the variety of growing systems across the sector.
10. An enabling planning policy: Greater consistency is needed in planning decisions to support - not restrict - horticultural businesses’ ability to grow. This includes the provision of high quality, short-term accommodation for seasonal workers.
Link to full resource:
