Neil Hamilton, MS for Mid & West Wales, and Leader of UKIP Wales has welcomed news that farmers in Wales should get a better deal for their red meat in the future.
Mr Hamilton, a member of the Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs committee, was commenting after the red meat levy bodies in Wales, England and Scotland agreed a redistribution formula that should be fairer to all.
He said:
“NFU Cymru has lobbied for many years for the system to be made fairer for Welsh farmers and I am delighted to see all the countries working together on this.
“The re-distribution of the levy income will address the inequalities and create a more level playing field for farms all over Wales who have lost out in the past.
“The unprecedented Covid-19 crisis continues to affect businesses in virtually all sectors across Wales, with farmers, in particular, coming under increasing pressure.
“Many of their normal markets are no longer available to them and this massive drop in demand has impacted on many products including red meat.
“I am pleased to see this positive move forward with the new system taking into account the level of production.”
The previous system, which saw levy money collected and used in the country that the animal was slaughtered in, has seen Wales lose out as a result of a net move of livestock, out of the country to be slaughtered.
NFU Cymru believes this system was flawed, being based solely on the location of abattoirs; a decision which is completely outside the control of primary producers.
NFU Cymru Livestock Board Chairman, Wyn Evans said: “We are pleased that, after a long-drawn-out process that the UK’s red meat levy bodies, using the powers under the UK Agriculture Act, have come together and agreed a mechanism that looks to address the inequality in the current system, without adding any additional cost to producers or processors.
“Whilst in Wales there must be a focus on marketing and promoting our own PGI brands, there are areas where it is prudent to work together and share resources between all three countries in the red meat chain.
“This has been a clear steer from NFU Cymru, underlined by the current Covid-19 crisis and our recent departure from the EU, where joint campaigns have highlighted real and tangible benefits for the UK’s red meat sector.”
NFU Cymru has also welcomed news that the levy bodies will, where relevant, work together and jointly fund activities that have mutual benefit to all red meat levy payers.
