Food production and stability are absent from White Paper

GRASS growth is slow in this cold, dry April but grazing conditions are fantastic.

Cows are milking well as the dry matter in the grass is high with the weather we are having and are showing good signs of heat.

The tail paint is on and we will begin to serve the herd in the first week of May.

The barley whole crop was planted earlier in the month and is up and growing. Let’s hope rain is coming soon after this record dry April to bulk up the silage fields.

I was glad to hear Arla is increasing their milk price to their farmers, I just hope others will follow to negate the price rises in feed and fertiliser.

Economic commentators are saying inflation could be coming in the near future, I feel it’s already here.

When coronavirus restrictions were lifted, I went for a haircut; before lockdown I was paying £9, now it’s £12.

My retired neighbour was so pleased to see an increase in his pension, until he got his council tax bill which took all the increase away.

When you couple the rise in farm bills going forward, inflation is already here, and I just hope retailers and buyers understand this. Campaigning for the Senedd elections is now in full swing and the make-up of the next Welsh Parliament will be of vital importance for present and future generations of Welsh farmers, as so many game changing policies will be implemented after this election.

The most notable one is the White Paper which will set out how we as farmers will be funded on delivery outcomes in years to come.

The environment sits quite rightly at the top of this list in the White Paper, but food production and stability are confusingly absent from it.

With what has happened during this pandemic, the importance of having the security of home-produced food should be as valid as the environment to develop a truly sustainable, but also vibrant, industry to create and maintain good fulfilling jobs in our rural heartlands.

I do hope that when the next Welsh Government is sworn in that they have members who have the wisdom to develop a modern, science led, pragmatic, sound policy for Welsh agriculture which involves not only the environment, but food production and security as well.