Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the actual number of dairy farmers who require support given the COVID-19 pandemic; and what steps they have taken to ensure that appropriate and prompt support is provided to those that need it most.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Dairy farmers are crucial in ensuring that food supplies remain resilient in this difficult period. While the vast majority of the UK's dairy farmers are largely unaffected some have been directly impacted by the closure of the food service sector as a result of the lockdown measures taken in response to COVID-19. Between 5 and 10 per cent of total milk production goes to the food service trade. We continue to work closely with the National Farmers Union, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and Dairy UK to ensure that those most affected are supported.
In recognition of the unprecedented challenges facing this sector on 7 May we announced a new fund to support those dairy farmers who have seen decreased demand due to the loss of the food service sector. Eligible dairy farmers in England who have lost more than 25% of their income over April and May due to coronavirus disruptions will be eligible for funding of up to £10,000 each, to cover 70% of their lost income during this qualifying period. This will enable these producers to continue to operate and sustain production capacity without impacts on animal welfare.
The AHDB, together with Dairy UK, have launched a new £1 million campaign to drive an increase in the consumption of milk. Running over 12 weeks, the campaign will highlight the role that milk plays in supporting moments of personal connection during times of crisis. Defra and the devolved administrations are jointly contributing towards the financing of this campaign.
The dairy industry can also access various Government backed loan schemes. The COVID-19 Business Interruption Loan Scheme is available to dairy farmers, milk buyers and milk processors. In addition, the new Bounce Back Loan scheme applies to businesses operating in agriculture and will ensure that the smallest businesses can access up to £50,000 loans.
We also took a number of early emergency steps to support dairy farmers and those in other sectors. These included designating employees in the food sector as key workers and temporarily relaxing the normal rules on drivers' hours, enabling the sector to keep supply chains running, including deliveries from farm gate to processors.
Public intervention for skimmed milk powder and butter also continues to be available. Industry can sell skimmed milk powder and butter into public intervention when the price they would receive on the open market falls below the intervention price. This provides a floor price for dairy products. UK processors are also eligible for the recently opened private storage aid scheme for dairy.
Furthermore, the statutory instrument (SI) temporarily relaxing some elements of competition law for the dairy industry was laid before Parliament on 1 May 2020 and applies retrospectively from 1 April 2020. This makes it easier for the dairy industry to collaborate to maximise production, processing and storage efficiency in order to avoid wastage and to ensure that as much product as possible can be processed into high quality dairy products. The AHDB and Dairy UK have offered to work with the dairy industry to support the enactment of the powers under the SI. We and the Devolved Administrations are working closely with them on this.
We will continue to engage closely with representatives from all parts of the dairy supply chain to support the sector throughout this challenging period.
Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to encourage those dairy processors and farmers who have not participated in the scheme to reduce milk supply by around five per cent to join that initiative to address over-supply.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Dairy farmers are crucial in ensuring that food supplies remain resilient in this difficult period. While the vast majority of Britain’s dairy farmers are largely unaffected, some have been impacted by the closure of the food service sector as a result of the lockdown measures taken in response to Covid-19. Between 5 and 10 per cent of total milk production goes to the food service trade. While there is no Government-backed scheme to reduce milk supply, we fully support industry efforts to voluntarily reduce milk production where necessary.
In addition to the wider steps the Government has taken to support businesses impacted by COVID-19, a statutory instrument laid before Parliament on 1 May temporarily relaxed some further elements of competition law making it easier for the dairy industry to collaborate to maximise production, processing and storage efficiency in order to avoid wastage and to ensure that as much product as possible can be processed into high quality dairy products. The SI is available at the following link.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/481/contents/made
We will continue to engage closely with representatives from all parts of the dairy supply chain to support the sector throughout this challenging period.
Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent any negative effect on the income of cereal and livestock farmers as a result of the wet weather.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Defra has been working closely with all farming sectors on the impacts of the wet weather experienced over the autumn and winter.
In recognition of the difficulties caused to farmers by flooding, Defra has made a total of £4 million available to eligible farmers through the Farming Recovery Fund. In August Defra announced up to £2 million available for farming businesses in Wainfleet and North Yorkshire that were particularly hard-hit by flooding, and in November 2019, Defra announced that it would extend the scheme to cover those impacted by the November flooding with a further £2 million. Assistance is provided to cover non-insurable items and activities such as re-cultivation, reseeding, reinstating field boundaries and removing debris from agricultural land.
During the current six year capital investment programme (from April 2015 to March 2021) the Government is investing a record £2.6 billion in over 1,000 flood defences schemes which will better protect 300,000 homes and an additional 700,000 acres (285,000 hectares) of agricultural land, helping to avoid more than £1.5 billion worth of direct economic damages to agricultural land.
In terms of the wider impact of the wet weather on farmers, Defra is continuing to observe price movements and other market information. For example, we will give close attention to the results of the Early Bird Survey, which the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board is rerunning to take account of the impact of the wet weather on winter cereal plantings.
We appreciate that the effects of the wet weather upon cash flow, yields, and other outcomes may only become apparent in the longer term, and will continue to engage closely with sectors in the coming months as to the negative impact from wet weather and to determine whether any action is needed.
Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential damage to the environment as a result of the three crop rule leading farmers to cultivate drenched farmland and thereby damage soil structures.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Farmers have been experiencing difficulties with the recent prolonged wet weather and are concerned about their ability to meet Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) rules.
Whilst we have not carried out specific assessments of the environmental impact of cultivating waterlogged farmland following the wet weather experienced so far this winter, we encourage farmers to take all the necessary and reasonable steps to protect their soils. In some cases, we understand that this may result in difficulty meeting CAP rules, including the ‘three crop rule’. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has recently updated its GOV.UK online guidance on flooding and wet weather so that farmers are clear on the rules and possible alternative options that will allow them to remain compliant – including alternatives to the three crop rule. This was put together in direct response to customers’ and stakeholders’ questions and concerns.
If they are in doubt, farmers should contact the RPA to discuss possible mitigation measures where farmers are unsure of the impact that flooding will have on their ability to comply with greening, or other CAP rules, including whether they should apply for force majeure.
We will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with stakeholders, including farmers, where cases of force majeure are put forward. We are also exploring how best to provide flexibility and support farmers affected by the recent wet weather.
Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the weather conditions experienced by farmers this planting season, what plans they have to suspend the three crop rule.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Farmers have been experiencing difficulties with the recent prolonged wet weather and are concerned about their ability to meet Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) rules.
Whilst we have not carried out specific assessments of the environmental impact of cultivating waterlogged farmland following the wet weather experienced so far this winter, we encourage farmers to take all the necessary and reasonable steps to protect their soils. In some cases, we understand that this may result in difficulty meeting CAP rules, including the ‘three crop rule’. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has recently updated its GOV.UK online guidance on flooding and wet weather so that farmers are clear on the rules and possible alternative options that will allow them to remain compliant – including alternatives to the three crop rule. This was put together in direct response to customers’ and stakeholders’ questions and concerns.
If they are in doubt, farmers should contact the RPA to discuss possible mitigation measures where farmers are unsure of the impact that flooding will have on their ability to comply with greening, or other CAP rules, including whether they should apply for force majeure.
We will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with stakeholders, including farmers, where cases of force majeure are put forward. We are also exploring how best to provide flexibility and support farmers affected by the recent wet weather.
Asked by: Lord Carrington (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to accept early Force Majeure claims as a prevention mechanism to ensure that soil structure is not damaged as a result of farmers trying to adhere to the three crop rule.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Farmers have been experiencing difficulties with the recent prolonged wet weather and are concerned about their ability to meet Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) rules.
Whilst we have not carried out specific assessments of the environmental impact of cultivating waterlogged farmland following the wet weather experienced so far this winter, we encourage farmers to take all the necessary and reasonable steps to protect their soils. In some cases, we understand that this may result in difficulty meeting CAP rules, including the ‘three crop rule’. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has recently updated its GOV.UK online guidance on flooding and wet weather so that farmers are clear on the rules and possible alternative options that will allow them to remain compliant – including alternatives to the three crop rule. This was put together in direct response to customers’ and stakeholders’ questions and concerns.
If they are in doubt, farmers should contact the RPA to discuss possible mitigation measures where farmers are unsure of the impact that flooding will have on their ability to comply with greening, or other CAP rules, including whether they should apply for force majeure.
We will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with stakeholders, including farmers, where cases of force majeure are put forward. We are also exploring how best to provide flexibility and support farmers affected by the recent wet weather.