A new consensus on the future of farming has launched between farming groups and environmental organisations during the 2023 Oxford conferences. 

At an informal meeting, a group of farmers appealed to the UK’s most influential land-based charities, expressing the need for common ground in navigating the significant pressures farming faces. This coalition includes the NFFN, Pasture for Life, Rare Breeds Survival Trust, Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, CPRE, Soil Association, Sustain, RSPB, WWF-UK, National Trust, The Wildlife Trusts and Woodland Trust, among others.

This solidarity is a first step in creating a shared vision of accelerating the transition to a more resilient, sustainable and equitable food system that recognises the needs of people and the planet.

The consensus outlines an agreement on the vital role all four UK nations play in tackling the global challenge of food system change. It’s based on a shared understanding that:

• A healthy natural environment underpins food security;

• farming does not just produce food to eat but is central to the efforts to tackle the nature, climate and health crises; and

• diversity in nature, farming systems and communities, along with diversity in farm animals and crops, will support resilience and innovation in the face of climate change and economic challenges

Following initial discussions, the group invites further engagement and discussion between farmers, tenants, crofters, land workers and cross-sector bodies. This consensus hopes to give policymakers and supply chain actors the confidence to make bold decisions in transforming our food system, so it produces nutritious food for healthier people, mitigates and adapts to climate change, safeguards nature and secures prosperous rural communities and thriving farming livelihoods.