Video: British farming ‘on its knees’ – Riverford founder

Food and farm leaders have sent an open letter to UK supermarkets urging fairer treatment for suppliers, as many farmers say they are “on their knees”.

Guy Singh-Watson, founder of Riverford Organic Farmers, is heading up the Get Fair About Farming campaign, which claims the buying practices of the six leading UK supermarkets are leaving farmers “struggling to survive”.

Watch his impassioned speech in the video below where he explains that farmers simply cannot make farming pay.

See also: Food prices: Why farmers get the smallest share and how to change it

A survey of British fruit and vegetable farmers, carried out by research firm Opinion Matters, found almost half (49%) fear they will go out of business in the next 12 months, with the behaviour of supermarkets cited as a leading factor.

The letter, sent to chief executives of Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Lidl and Aldi, claims supermarket buying practices are “all too often imbalanced, short term and wasteful”.

It states: “Farmers are denied commitment or security – with whole crops rejected at the last minute in favour of cheaper options elsewhere, or just because supermarkets change their mind.

“Good food ends up rotting in the field. Farmers are left without payment for their crops. And without a stable, reliable income, they are struggling to survive.

“If farms continue to close, the British produce that customers know and love risks disappearing from your shelves altogether.”

Almost 5,000 people have signed a petition which calls on government to amend the grocery supply code of practice to require retailers to “buy what they agreed to buy, pay what they agreed to pay, agree on fair specifications, commit to the long term and pay [farmers] on time”.

The government must also “stand up for British food and farming through robust regulation of the relationship between supermarkets and suppliers”.

The letter has been signed by more than 100 farmers, chefs and celebrities, including industry bodies Sustain and the Soil Association, chef Rick Stein, Dragon’s Den star Deborah Meaden, and TV presenters Julia Bradbury and Jimmy Doherty.