Over the last three months a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes trying to find solutions to the current crisis the industry faces.
This has involved all the farming organisations working together. It has proved to be very slow and very difficult but no one ever pretended that to find long term solutions to the industry's problems was going to be an easy one.
Unfortunately a lot of this work has not been able to be shared with you our members due to sensitivity of the complexities involved in finding answers for both the short term and long term issues facing all sectors within the British farming industry.
"We had hoped that most people would have been patient but we understand the pressures that are put on business and family when income levels have fall to an all time low, and this has brought out some frustration amongst a minority of members," said Farmers' for Action group.
"We have plans for further open meetings in the North of England, the far South West and Wales to try and give as much information as is practical to let people know, not only where we are in this current negotiation but also to hear farmers' views and ideas of how we can progress forward."
French Direct Action
Currently, there is a lot of media coverage of the situation faced in France and the reaction of French farmers such as blocking motorways, spreading slurry, burning tyres on motorways, loosing livestock in supermarkets and sadly high jacking a number of Scottish owned lorries.
"We understand in difficult times people are driven to extreme measures but do we as the British farming industry really want to go to this level. So let us look at what the French have so far achieved by this drastic action."
1 The French government has caved in and given what? tax breaks (something that our NFU has already achieved with negotiation with the British government)
2 The French government have provided finance to allow farmers to restructure farmers' debts with their banks (do we really want to go down this road). A debt is a debt that has to be paid back in the end, prolonging the pain does nothing (what we need is money for our products that enables us to stand on our own feet and pay our own debts)
3 The French government has put pressure on French retailers to pay more money for dairy products, not to the farmer but to the dairy processor. First question a) Will that money in total get back to the primary producer, I very much doubt and b) all they have done is given a four month break as this agreement so far is planned no further than the end of the year.
Coalition
"Nobody is promising a silver bullet, this is slow and painful for all of us.
"We are leaving no stone unturned and are currently working on a number of ideas to extract money from retailers and the food service sector whilst also pressurising our government to also act. To that end we have said when the summer parliamentary recess is ended if we see no sign of response from our politicians we will take farming to the capital and to other major cities around the country.
"That is one of the ways that you all, our members, will be able to come out and show solitary."
Retailers and food service industry
"Next, retailers and food service industry have to be made to realise if they want to stack it high and sell it cheap it all comes out of their profits not our pockets," the FFA said.
"Their job first of all is to pay the true cost of production to every single farmer in the land.
"To remain loyal in the first instance to British produce, milk, lamb, beef, pork, chicken & eggs, fruit and vegetables before they even consider imports into the UK purely and simply for their profit not to the benefit of consumers.
"To that end again the coalition is trying to bring around this mindset within this sector but again, very shortly we will be expecting to call you to assist us in this goal with communication with the consumer, explaining exactly what producing great British produce entails and I am afraid to say also to jump on your tractor and support peaceful protest aimed at those who refuse to negotiate and make sure that every single farming family in this land can make a profit. They have a corporate responsibility to do this.
"We are an island and there have been times in history when food has been short, increasing imports only increases the risk to food security.
"We hope this helps everyone understand where we stand at this moment in time and we at FFA fully accept that perhaps we have not kept our members as fully informed as we should have. To that end we will improve on this very quickly so you all know the progress that is being made."
