Now things have settled down after the recent political turmoil, it was great to be able to welcome the new cohort of MPs to an NFU and NFU Cymru reception last week.

At the reception, which took place at the House of Lords on Thursday, July 18, new MPs were welcomed by the union and encouraged to take pictures with I’m backing Welsh farming / Rwy’n cefnogi ffermio Cymreig boards to pledge their support.

As part of the event, it was a good opportunity for myself, NFU Cymru Deputy President Abi Reader and other members of staff to raise with Welsh MPs, new and old, about our Support the Future of Welsh Food / Diogelu Dyfodol Bwyd Cymru campaign, encouraging them to get involved and hear what farmers, and the Welsh public think about Welsh farming and food production.

We were also able to raise a number of issues that we published in our manifesto before the General Election for a number of Westminster controlled policy areas. Amongst those asks is an inflation adjusted, ring-fenced and multi-annual agricultural support budget which will take us through the next election, helping give the industry the certainty it needs to plan for the future and to deal with marketplace volatility. 

Alongside this we have to see food production and food security given the priority they need and deserve to ensure we support primary production in Wales. That’s why in our manifesto we called on the next UK Government to establish minimum standards and to promote fair and functioning supply chains, as well as increasing the amount of Welsh food which goes into the public sector and to strengthen country of origin labelling across retail, hospitality and food service with clear and accurate labelling to allow informed consumer choice.

We also want to see future trade deals with third countries be more balanced with the needs and sensitivities of the agricultural sector taken into account, with agriculture no longer being a bargaining chip when it comes to making trade deals and we have emphasised this point once again in our manifesto.

We met with a number of MPs from all the main parties, and it was great to hear their enthusiasm for farming and the agricultural industry as a whole. Moving forward, the NFU Cymru team will now work to invite the new Welsh MPs out on farm over the summer, in order to further discuss the issues that are impacting farmers across Wales, including the future of the Sustainable Farming Scheme, NVZ regulations and bovine TB.