NFU calls for long-term plan after weeks of flooding

Weeks of wet weather and flooding in the UK has had a huge impact on British farmers.

According to the NFU, farmers mostly across the East Midlands and North East have reported the worst rainfall in living memory, which has left farmland, crops and livestock badly affected and thousands of acres under water. The organisation demands that long-term strategic plans to mitigate future flood risk and better manage water are put into place.

NFU President Minette Batters said, “The rainfall that some parts of the country have been experiencing over the past few months underlines the vulnerability of farming businesses, the fragility of returns to farmers, their exposure to volatility and ultimately resulting in an impact on their bottom line.

“It’s why the next government and its agencies need to take water-related issues seriously. Some of our most productive and highest value agricultural land is vulnerable to flooding and deserves to be protected.

“Any future domestic agricultural policy must ensure there are measures in place for farm businesses to manage volatility, particularly in the face of increasingly unpredictable weather.

“The NFU will work with any future government to ensure it takes all the steps necessary to protect productive farmland so farmers can continue to produce a supply of safe, traceable and affordable food for the nation and protect and enhance our rural landscapes.”