Farmers: Don’t Let Our Farms Die

The rising cost of animal feed due to poor global harvests and growing competition from bio-fuels means that many farmers are being forced to sell their livestock at a loss. A Taste of Sussex, the food and drink division of Sussex Enterprise, believes that we must act now in order to prevent our local farmers from going out of business. “Centuries of farming have produced the Sussex landscape that we all know and love,” said Hilary Knight, co-ordinator of A Taste of Sussex. “The contribution of agriculture to the local economy may have decreased over time but nevertheless, farmers still play a significant role in maintaining the security of our food supplies, to the countryside, the environment and the fabric of rural life.”

Like many parts of the UK, the number of livestock bred in Sussex has been on a gentle, but steady, decline for at least the past three years. The industry has suffered several bad years in succession and looks unlikely to recover unless increased costs are passed on to the consumer. Whilst there are many things that can be done to increase efficiency, nothing can be done to reduce feed costs.

BPEX (the British Pig Executive) has recently launched a very high profile media campaign to highlight the fact that the increase required by Pig farmers to stay in business in between 7p and 17p more per pack of bacon, pork, sausages and ham. The problem facing the lamb and beef industries are similar. According to a recent You Gov survey, the British public are in general support for the price rises; 78% would be happy to pay more, while 67% prefer home grown meat over imports.

Andrew Keeble, owner of Debbie & Andrew’s, a premium sausage producer says that changes need to happen fast. “Costs are much higher for rearing in this country and at the moment there just isn’t enough money filtering down to the farmers.”

Debbie & Andrew’s is the first fairtrade sausage producer and pays 15% above the market price for pork. “We aren’t making any more money out of being fair trade, but the extra we pay is going back to farmer. Unless we all do something to preserve our British pig, it will be gone.”

Adds Ms Knight, “Our local livestock farmers give us access to traceable, sustainably farmed meat that is low in food miles. The variety of cuts of meat, sausages, pies and pâtés that you can source at farmer’s markets and in independent butchers is incredible. If these farmers go out of business, we loose not only our heritage and the guardians of our countryside but also considerably reduce our choice of products.”