NFU calls for fairer food trade

NATIONAL FARMERS Union president Tim Bennett has called for the government to ensure a fairer and more transparent food trade.

Speakinga at an NFU organised fringe meeting at the Labour Party conference in Brighton on Sunday (Sept 26) Mr Bennett said:

“It‘s incumbent on the government to help ensure transparency in the food chain, not only in terms of price, but also in regard of honest labelling of food.”

In general, Mr Bennett said, that the NFU had supported the main thrust of CAP reform and the idea of decoupled support.

But as agriculture from January becomes more consumer-driven, it becomes even more important that food labelling is reliable, he said.

This concerns farmers‘ ability to communicate to consumers the exact properties and qualities of their products and enabling consumers to have trust in the products the buy.

“It should be a role for politicians to make sure that consumers are not deceived by incorrect food labelling,” Mr Bennett said.

He pointed out that one of the challenges for farmers is to find ways to trade their goods profitably, and in this regard, correct information is crucial.

Mr Bennett called for fairness in the food trade market.

“Speaking as someone who buys fair trade bananas and coffee, I wonder if we should perhaps start applying the fair trade label in this country as well,” the NFU president said.