Leaders of the UK’s four farming unions have urged the government to recognise food security concerns as they continue to lobby for agriculture to be included in the Energy and Trade Intensive Industry scheme (ETII).
NFU Scotland (NFUS) president, Martin Kennedy, recently met in Belfast with Ulster Farmers’ Union president, David Brown, Minette Batters, president of NFU and Aled Jones, president of NFU Cymru.
Following the closing of the previous energy support scheme last week, the unions have already written a joint letter to secretary of state Grant Shapps MP, demanding that energy relief is extended to agricultural businesses.
In a joint statement, the leaders said: “For the UK government not to extend the highest level of energy relief to sectors highly dependent on energy to rear, grow and store food is a failure of UK government to recognise the deteriorating position on food security.
“We have been crystal clear in pointing out to government and ministers that unless the ETII scheme is amended to provide support for primary agricultural production, there could be a reduction in domestic food production which may prolong the ongoing food price inflation for consumers.
“There is a cast iron case that, from April 2023, the ETII scheme should be providing the highest-level energy relief to a number of sectors within primary agricultural production alongside the relief that is being offered to food processing and manufacturing.”
The unions said that to offer relief to one without the other is self-defeating if consumer concerns over food shortages and empty shelves are to be addressed.
They added: “Many of our farm businesses are reliant on gas and electricity to produce fresh food and they will struggle to absorb the huge hikes in energy prices that they will face from April 1 onwards.
“It is within the gift of UK government to address genuine food security concerns and to review the classification for higher level support.
“Energy prices are already seriously damaging our ability to produce food and from this weekend, many of our members’ businesses will face an energy cost cliff edge.”
