Strong pound hits farms – NFU

01 August 1997

Strong pound hits farms – NFU

FARMERS have complained to Eddie George, governor of the Bank of England,
that the strong pound is undermining UK food exports.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) said farm income is set to be lower this
year than in 1996.

Sir David Naish, NFU president, said producer prices of all agricultural
products were down 15% in June on the previous year. These were likely to fall further.

The home market, especially in beef, was hit as cheap imports made foreign goods more attractive. Beef imports from the European Union climbed 25% in April compared with the same month in 1996.