Who are the academics ,organisations that DEFRA listen to/guided by?

[Pilatus]

I ask the above as most of the above,that DEFRA take direction from,seem to me to be anti farmer, anti self production of food for our people.
I admire @Janet Hughes Defra for coming on TFF, but I do wonder where her colleagues and associated government departments/quangos come up with the ideas that want England rewilded yet at the same time the Uk should become as self sufficient in food, so as to as save on food miles by importing as little food as possible. As per usual No joined up thinking of the long term policies
I have started this this thread as an add on to the “Save our farms thread”.
The NFU seems non existent infighting for Uk Agriculture.
Says something to me that @Janet Hughes Defra is kind enough to come on TFF yet no one from the NFU does ,make of that what you wish.

 

[delilah]

Taking your last point first, I would say that they both - Defra, NFU - have it wrong. Janet and her colleagues should read everything on here, absorb the salient bits, and regularly put posts up on their ideas and ask for comments. However i'm not convinced that anything useful has come of direct engagement with individual posters. It is a fundamentally lopsided conversation - Defra official having to be very careful about what they say v's TFFer who can say what they want - meaning that all we end up with is the minutiae of standards being discussed but nothing of substance. I said from the outset that it was unsustainable for a senior Defra official to get themselves tied in knots on here, and still believe that to be the case.
As for the NFU, they would appear to be at the other end of the engagement spectrum. They - and the AHDB - really would find their role of representation easier to fulfill if they spent some time reading stuff on here.

As for the rest of it, I still go with cock up rather than conspiracy. I don't think Defra mean ill towards UK ag with regards what ELMS currently looks like. If anything it's our fault, at two levels.
Firstly we as an industry have for decades embraced the concept of consolidation. 'Grow or go' has been worn as a badge of honour. Get rid of the dead wood and the industry will thrive. Jump into bed with the cartel, they are the future. We are now reaping the reward of that one; less farms means less sons and daughters to go off and join Defra. Less folks every year in a position of authority who have direct experience of the industry. We chose to chuck critical mass out of the window, only our fault if the repercussions hurt.
Secondly, specific to ELMS, we have quite clearly been asleep at the wheel. How the hell have we allowed it to get this far in its current form ?

Anyway, no matter, if ELMS was a football match it's only half time, plenty of time to change formation and turn it round .