6 FARM NEWS
JUN/JUL 2018 • farmers-mart.co.uk
Rise in farming incomes as highest
ever productivity is recorded
Total farming income and productivity are on the rise, latest estimates for 2017 show.
TOTAL income from farming is the profit
from all UK farms in a calendar year,
measuring the return to all businesses
for their management, labour and capital
invested.
First estimates published today show
total income from farming rose by £1,683
million from 2016 to 2017, an increase of
41%. The £5,742 million estimated for 2017
highlights farming remains a profitable and
rewarding business for established farmers
and new entrants who are in a strong posi-
tion ahead of the UK’s exit from the EU.
The increased productivity recorded
in 2017 also shows farmers are producing
more with less, which suggests they are
using smarter more efficient methods and
embracing innovation. The volume of all
outputs increased by 3.6% compared to
2016 whilst the volume of all inputs in-
creased by just 0.7%.
‘ farmers are producing
more with less, which
suggests they are
using smarter more
efficient methods and
embracing innovation
’
A strong harvest in 2017 helped to
drive productivity higher for 2017, with a
7.3% increase in the volume of all crops
estimated. Livestock outputs for meat and
other products also rose by 1.8% from
2016. More productive farming across all
sectors is directly benefitting farmers’
bank balances as the total income from
farming per person engaged in entrepre-
neurial labour in the sector rose by 41% in
real terms to £29,794 a year.
Tesco to remove ‘best before’ dates off selected fruit and vegetable lines
where there is a safety risk if they
are eaten after that date.
‘Best Before’ labels are put on
foods by retailers as a quality indi-
cation to show that although they
are no longer at their best they are
still good to eat.
Tesco Head of Food Waste Mark
Little explains: “We know some
customers may be confused by the
difference between ‘Best Before’
and ‘Use By’ dates on food and this
can lead to perfectly edible items
being thrown away before they
need to be discarded.
“We have made this change to
fruit and vegetable packaging as
they are among the most wasted
foods.
TESCO is to remove ‘Best Before’
consumption guidance dates off
nearly 70 fruit and vegetable lines in
its latest move to help reduce food
waste.
The move is being made to help
prevent perfectly edible food from
being thrown away.
It follows a recent campaign by
the National Federation of Women’s
Institutes (NFWI) into causes of food
waste which found that less than
half of respondents understood the
meaning of ‘Best Before’ dates.
However, more than 70 per cent
of people polled by NFWI correctly
identified the meaning of ‘Use By’ la-
bels which must be put on all foods
Further restrictions on neonicotinoids agreed
Further restrictions on neonicotinoid pesticides have been approved following a vote in the European Commission.
THE UK voted in favour of
the proposals that will see a
ban on outdoor use of three
neonicotinoids - Clothi-
anidin, Imidacloprid and
Thiamethoxam.
Currently, their use
is banned for oilseed
rape, spring cereals and
sprays for winter cereals,
but they can be used to
treat sugar beet, various
horticultural crops and as
seed treatments for winter
cereals.
In November last year
the Environment Secretary
Michael Gove said “tougher
restrictions on neonicoti-
noids are justified by the
growing weight of scientific
evidence they are harmful
to bees and other pollina-
tors.”
This followed advice
from the UK government’s
advisory body on pesti-
cides which said scientific
evidence now suggests the
environmental risks posed
by neonicotinoids – par-
ticularly to our bees and
pollinators – are greater
than previously under-
stood, supporting the case
for further restrictions.
Research estimates the
value of the UK’s 1,500
species of pollinators to
crops at £400-680 million
per year due to improved
productivity.
The current restrictions
will stay in place until the
new measures comes into
force following a phasing
out period of around eight
months, giving farmers
and businesses time to
adjust.
Unless the scientific
evidence changes, the
government will maintain
these increased restrictions
post-Brexit.
The UK reserves the right
to consider emergency
authorisations. We will only
do so where there is a real
need for the products and
the risk to bees and other
pollinators is sufficiently
low.