Welsh farming unions press new minister on funding and TB

Welsh farming unions have urged the new Welsh government to deliver long-term funding certainty and take urgent action on bovine TB amid growing pressure on family farms across the country.

Leaders from both NFU Cymru and the Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) met newly appointed Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability Llyr Gruffydd in Cardiff Bay to outline their priorities for Welsh agriculture and press for early action on key industry concerns.

Among the major issues raised were future farm funding, reform of the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), rising bureaucracy, food security and the need for a clear strategy to tackle bovine TB.

NFU Cymru President Abi Reader said the talks had provided an important opportunity to set out the union’s vision for the future of Welsh farming and identify areas of shared ambition with the new government.

“We are grateful to Llyr Gruffydd for meeting with us so early into his tenure as Cabinet Minister,” she said.

NFU Cymru pressed the government to move away from annual agricultural funding settlements and introduce a long-term multi-year support model to give farmers greater confidence and business stability.

Ms Reader said there was a strong case for increasing the wider agriculture budget to help farming continue delivering economic, environmental and social benefits across Wales.

“We believe there’s a compelling case for an ambitious and growth-focused Welsh government to increase the wider agricultural budget,” she said.

The union also stressed the importance of refining the Sustainable Farming Scheme so it works effectively for farmers across all sectors and regions of Wales.

NFU Cymru warned that maintaining at least 70% of the scheme budget within the universal payment structure would be essential to provide stability for farming families facing growing uncertainty.

Concerns over farm regulation were also raised during the discussions, with the union calling for an independent review into the bureaucratic burden facing Welsh farms.

Ms Reader said increasingly unpredictable weather patterns had exposed major flaws in what she described as a “farming-by-calendar approach” under the Control of Agricultural Pollution regulations.

Both unions also stressed that farmers urgently needed a clear and credible strategy to tackle bovine TB.

NFU Cymru said the Welsh government must move “without delay” to develop a comprehensive eradication plan capable of finally bringing the disease under control.

The concerns were echoed by the Farmers’ Union of Wales, which also welcomed the opportunity for early engagement with the new minister.

FUW President Ian Rickman said the meeting had allowed the union to highlight several policy areas requiring urgent attention, including regulation, bovine TB and future agricultural support.

“We welcomed this early opportunity to discuss the policy areas that will receive urgent attention by the new Minister,” he said.

The FUW backed plans for a multi-year funding structure under the Sustainable Farming Scheme and said guaranteed baseline payment rates would be critical for long-term farm business planning.

The union also warned future environmental policies and support schemes must not lead to reductions in Welsh livestock numbers.

Both organisations supported the development of a wider Welsh ‘farm to fork’ food strategy aimed at strengthening local supply chains and securing the long-term future of domestic food production.

FUW Deputy President Dai Miles described the discussions as an important first step at a “critical time” for the industry.

“We look forward to working constructively with him and his team to ensure future policy delivers fairness, stability, and confidence for family farms across Wales,” he said.

With major decisions looming over funding, regulation and disease control, both unions said the new Welsh government must now move quickly to restore confidence across the Welsh farming sector.