Farmers escalate UK-wide direct action with tractor blockades
Farmers have stepped up direct action across the UK this month, using tractors to blockade supermarket depots and the Port of Felixstowe in protests over inheritance tax reforms and food policy.
Farmers say recent and proposed changes to inheritance tax rules risk making it harder for family farms to be passed on to the next generation, while rising costs and low returns from retailers continue to squeeze margins.
The latest action saw farmers block vehicle access at the UK’s largest container port overnight, with tractors positioned outside the Port of Felixstowe in Suffolk from just after midnight on Friday (23 January) until around 7am.
The Port of Felixstowe handles a significant share of the UK’s container traffic, making it a high-profile target for protest despite assurances that shipping operations were unaffected.
Banners attached to tractors read “Save our farms, save our future, fight the tax” and “Back British farming”, as demonstrators voiced opposition to current government policy.
East Anglia Farmers Unite, the campaign group behind the Felixstowe action, said the protest formed part of coordinated national action.
“Farmers are out at the port of Felixstowe in alliance with other farmers across the UK blockading supermarket depos and ports in protest against cheap lower standard imports and inheritance tax,” the group said.
In a statement, a port spokesperson said the protest had been anticipated and steps were taken to limit disruption. “We were made aware of the proposed protest and worked with port users to mitigate its impact,” they said.
They added: “The protest caused no disruption to shipping operations but some minor inconvenience to landside operations. We would like to apologise to any of our customers who were affected.”
More than 15 farmers were reported to have taken part in the Felixstowe protest, which formed part of a wider series of actions by farmers across the country.
Supermarket distribution centres have been targeted as part of efforts to pressure major retailers to pay higher prices for British-produced food and reduce reliance on imported goods.
Earlier this month, tractors descended on Tesco distribution centres in Peterborough, Doncaster and Hinckley, where lorries were prevented from entering or leaving the sites.
On Thursday (22 January), farmers also blockaded Lidl distribution centres across England, including locations in Peterborough, Doncaster — close to the retailer’s UK headquarters — and Houghton Regis near Luton.
The protests have gathered pace in recent weeks, moving from early-morning depot blockades to high-profile infrastructure sites such as the Port of Felixstowe.
