This Week in Farming: IHT, organics, and Recommended List
Drilling winter wheat © Tim Scrivener Welcome back to another edition of This Week in Farming – our regular round-up of the best Farmers Weekly content from the past seven days.
First, here are your markets (opens as PDF). The lamb trade bounced back above £7/kg at abattoirs, while beef prices remain firm.
Now on with the news…
See also: Biggest farm machinery launches of 2025 to debut at Lamma
About the author
Landscape lottery
Farmers involved with England’s Landscape Recovery scheme have been left slightly wary after it emerged that Defra could potentially pull the plug on the long-term agreements with just 12 months’ notice.
The uncertainty around the exit clause comes just days after Defra confirmed a £500m funding allocation for Landscape Recovery as part of its revised Environmental Improvement Plan, a move broadly welcomed by industry.
Inheritance tax latest
More than 30 Labour MPs abstained from a vote on limiting agricultural and business property relief from inheritance tax (IHT) during an initial debate on the Finance Bill on Tuesday 2 December.
Markus Campbell-Savours, representing the rural constituency of Penrith and Solway, was the only Labour MP willing to go a step further and actively vote against the government.
The government responded swiftly to this act of defiance by removing the Labour whip.
Despite this quiet rebellion, most Labour MPs still voted in favour of the “family farm tax” and the resolution passed by 322 votes to 182 against.
Farming groups have argued that the IHT reforms may not even be necessary to plug the government deficit, with reports emerging this week that public finances were actually not as bad as chancellor Rachel Reeves had indicated at the Budget.
Devon arable farmer, Steve Webber, whose tractor was seized at last week’s Budget day protest, has told Farmers Weekly he was humbled by public support, with more than £16,000 being raised on his behalf.
Farmers Weekly’s business editor, Suzie Horne has carried out analysis on what the IHT concession around transfers to spouses will mean for farm businesses, with input from agricultural lawyers.
Festive uplift
Beef and lamb prices received a festive uplift at Winslow Christmas Primestock Show on Monday 1 December with this year’s champion beast, a Limousin-cross heifer selling for £7,600, the equivalent to £11.17/kg liveweight.
Children were also getting into the Christmas spirit with more than 82,000 pupils across England and Wales taking part in NFU Education’s festive lessons, highlighting how British farming underpins Christmas traditions and seasonal foods.
The NFU also launched its annual #BuyMyTurkey Day campaign this week, encouraging consumers to purchase British turkeys ahead of Christmas.
Organic growth
The FW Livestock team has pulled together a six-page organic farming special in this week’s magazine, looking at how the switch to organic has improved forage for two farms, how organic pig breeder setup has helped business performance, and some advice on using natural predators to control flies.
Farmgate prices for the organic dairy sector have remained incredibly resilient, while conventional producers feel the pinch with milk processors inflicting further price cuts.
In Scotland, a new organic producer board has been set up to help guide the work of the Soil Association as the sector expands.
Arable outlook
The AHDB unveiled its Recommended Lists for cereals and oilseeds for 2026-27 this week, and the FW Arable desk has shared the latest updates for each crop.
- ‘Compromised’ winter wheat varieties join latest Recommended List
- 3 winter barleys join slimmed-down AHDB Recommended List
- 6 new winter OSR varieties added to 2026-27 Recommended List
In this week’s editorial, FW editor Andrew Meredith questioned whether the Recommended List was still fit for purpose and suggested there could be difficult times ahead for the levy-funded publication.
Meanwhile, the AHDB’s Grain Market Outlook pointed towards a larger domestic wheat crop next year.
Listen to the FW Podcast
Don’t forget to tune in to the Farmers Weekly Podcast, with hosts Johann Tasker, Louise Impey and Hugh Broom.
Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or stream for free on the FW website.