Trade not government aid

Livestock farmers will view with dismay the Defra Secretary of State's announcement of a £12.5m aid package for England's livestock industry, resulting from the hardships caused by Foot and Mouth Disease. The aid, aimed mainly at the struggling hill farming sector, provides little help or hope for lowland beef and sheep producers, especially those hit by the on-going restrictions imposed in the wake of the Bluetongue outbreak in East Anglia.

"Derbyshire's hill livestock producers will receive a top-up on their Hill Farming Allowance payments, which will be very welcome as they rely at this time of year on the sales of store and draft animals for the majority of their income," said Richard Hezlet, NFU East Midlands' regional director. "But the £12.5 million package will not go far in the hills and will have little or no benefit for the beleaguered producers in the lowlands and especially those within the Bluetongue protection zone. What we need is trade not aid.

"Producers will be wondering why the package does not recognise the non-existent market caused about by the Bluetongue restrictions.

"Within the Bluetongue protection zone particularly, beef and sheep farmers are facing a long and financially difficult autumn and winter," continued Richard Hezlet. "What we urgently need is a way to alleviate these problems by getting more of the larger slaughterhouses licensed to take cattle and sheep from the Bluetongue zone and a way for pedigree and store sheep to move within the zone more freely.

"Without these measures, many producers will experience severe cash flow problems, not to mention mounting feed and vet bills for animals which they cannot sell.

"Whilst hoping that the disruption to livestock movements caused by the Foot and Mouth outbreak is likely to ease, the Bluetongue restrictions will continue for some years. Defra must urgently come up with practical solutions that will enable the vitally important lowland livestock sector to survive. Without these producers, the landscape and the local economy will suffer: sheep and beef production is one of the pillars of East Midlands farming, producing the highest quality, prime animals in the country. They are not just important to the food chain, but are vital for the future production of top quality breeding cattle and sheep and the future of a sustainable and profitable farming industry."