| News
Brexit demands leadership at every
level, warns CAAV
Brexit will accelerate changes that have been under way in agriculture for decades,
and the industry must look ahead and adapt quickly to make the most of potential
opportunities, say CAAV.
rexit is a prompt to
do many things we
should be doing
anyway, such as
improving
productivity and
competing for world trade,” says
Jeremy Moody, secretary and
adviser to the Central Association
of Agricultural Valuers. “This is the
biggest peacetime task since 1945
and it’s a task that’s a lot bigger
than the Government alone. If the
industry wishes to take control of
its destiny it requires effective and
practical leadership at every level –
from top organisations down to
individual farming businesses,” he
adds. “We need to analyse
situations, develop ideas, and
have direction to manage change
effectively.”
At political level, there is a real
drive for a more competitive
economy, warns Mr Moody. “There
is huge pressure for change –
more challenges from the market
and greater expectations on
farming businesses. Area
payments have held back
structural transformation for years,
so there is a lot of pent up change
out there.”
Farmers will have to decide if
they are commodity producers,
and therefore focus hard on
reducing costs of production and
improving efficiencies, says Mr
B
Moody. “If you can’t compete on
price, then everything else is an
opportunity: Adding value, niche
crops, more segmented markets.
Farmers have formidably good
collateral in land, so can raise the
investment needed to diversify. It’s
not part-time farming, it’s multi-
faceted earning.”
Historically, the CAP was not
about the support payments to
farmers that it has become, and
there is no reason why the
successor policy should simply be
income payments, adds Mr
Moody. “Policy and support can
be tailored to fulfill future needs –
it’s about how you operate the
sector. We need to be looking at
investing in marketing, innovation,
the environment, research, and
resilience.
“The CAAV is working closely
with the Government in discussing
future policy, while agricultural
valuers are ideally placed to help
farmers and owners review their
businesses for the future
challenges,” he adds.
“Our profession has always
adapted to changing economic
and legislative scenarios, whether
that’s the introduction of Farm
Business Tenancies, new tax
regimes, or renewable energy
options. There is going to be more
demand for broadly based,
practical professional advice
08 | Farming Monthly | July 2017
across the whole rural economy,
and we must be at the cutting
edge of any such developments to
ensure we can deliver that.”
Jeremy Moody
For more information visit
www.caav.org.uk
Cheese from Britain
promoted in India for
first time
A selection of premium cheeses from Britain will be
promoted in India for the first time ever in a bid to boost
dairy exports.
hoppers in Delhi
will be offered
tastings in
supermarkets over
the next two
months as part of
a series of promotional events
across the city – with the first
being held at the end of the month
in the Food Hall stores.
The tastings have been
organised by an Indian dairy
importer and supported by the
Agriculture and Horticulture
Development Board (AHDB) as
part of its new export marketing
programme which aims to
promote premium cheese around
the world.
Jean Pierre Garnier, Head of
Exports for AHDB, said: “We have
chosen Delhi as the most
appropriate city in India for this
promotion as many shoppers
there are used to international
S
products and we already have a
good market presence there.
“Obviously, we market in India
mid-price products which sell at a
premium against local cheese but
are still affordable for a large part
of the population.
“The Indian dairy market is the
world’s largest and, although India
is not yet one of our major outlets
for cheese, the objective of this
promotion is to support the long-
term development in this country
which has a huge sales potential.
The Indian consumer and retail
scene is changing fast with an
increased aspiration for imported
food products on the back of
growing incomes.
“This promotion will also help to
develop our image as a producer
of tasty, high quality and
sophisticated cheeses in the face
of fierce competition from other
European countries.”
www.farmingmonthly.co.uk