Suffolk farmers engage with shoppers at Tesco to talk about food security
27th January 2025
Suffolk farmers have marked the National Day of Unity by engaging with shoppers at a local Tesco store, raising issues important for both consumers and the farming industry.
Russel Abbott, who farms on the Shotley Peninsula, said that the outcome of the event that took place last Saturday, 25th January at Tesco, Copdock Interchange, was very positive, with the public taking interest in the food security topics.
He added: “We didn’t want to make it political because although the inheritance tax is an important issue for us. We just wanted to talk to the public about farming overall.
“We were giving away stickers mostly for children. We didn’t want to bother too many adults, so if somebody wanted to talk to us, they could approach our team.
“Our biggest concern, which we shared with the shoppers, is the imports coming to the country. We are trying to get our prices fair but also make some money.”
Mr Abbott said that those chats were “very promising”.
Unlevel playing field
Farmer Richard Wrinch from the Shotley Peninsula, who also attended the event, added that the farmers visited Tesco to engage with shoppers and “raise the profile of farming”.
“We explained to people the problems that farmers have been facing even before the inheritance tax problems came along.
“They are, among others, the unlevel playing field in terms of food production inside and outside the UK. We are producing some of the very best, cleanest food there is, which costs more to produce.
“And here is the government that goes and does trade deals with countries where production controls are not as extensive as ours. So then we’ve got meat or vegetables coming in that have got traces of antibiotics in them, growth promotants or other chemicals,” the farmer said.
Mr Wrinch added that while talking to the shoppers at Tesco, not everybody was aware of the truths of food imports.
Farmers–shoppers relationship
Tractors parked at Tesco turned out to be a great attraction for the younger shoppers.
Mr Abbott said: “Kids loved the tractors. Those little boys and girls couldn’t stop smiling when seeing such big machines. It was great to get the kids involved.
“We can’t thank Tesco enough for hosting us last Saturday.”
The organiser of local farming protests added that customers who would like to further support local farmers can send a letter or an email to Suffolk MP James Cartlidge.
Mr Abbott also said that it would be a good idea to introduce a ‘farming day’ at local stores, when farmers could drive their tractors to supermarkets and engage with shoppers.
“It’s about time we start working with those big supermarkets and hopefully build a better relationship. Some of them have recently backed us in our farm tax fight, which is very positive.
“We should be able to talk more with shoppers, explaining to them where their food comes from and how governmental policies are affecting us,” he concluded.
Suffolk go-slow protest
Suffolk farmers will take part in another tractor go-slow protest next week, on on Monday, 3rd February.
Farmers are set to meet up at Walk Farm on Felixstowe Road in Levington, Suffolk, from 8 am. The convoy will leave the site at 10 am and will head westbound down the A14 to the sugar beet factory in Bury St Edmunds.
Then the tractors will be coming round, heading back eastbound on the A14 towards Port of Felixstowe Road. The convoy will move at slow speed, 20 mph.
The organisers confirmed that farmers will drive close to the Port of Felixstowe to highlight the issue of food imports coming to the country.
READ MORE: ‘This is our last push’ – East Anglia farmers will again hit the streets
Farmers at breaking point
At the end of last week, a petition signed by more than 270,000 members of the public was handed in to 10 Downing Street by NFU president Tom Bradshaw and NFU Cymru president Aled Jones, on behalf of the four UK farming unions, urging the government to abandon plans to change the family farm tax reliefs.
After decades of tightening margins, record inflation, increased production costs, and extreme weather, many farmers and growers are at breaking point and simply will not be able to afford the increased tax bill they will now face.
Evidence from the NFU, in consultation with former Treasury and Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) economists to inform analysis of the impacts of APR reforms on commercial family farms, found that up to 75% of working farms could be affected, with some facing tax bills of £100,000s.
The OBR has just produced a new report saying that governmental changes to inheritance tax (IHT) on farms will likely leave elderly farmers horribly exposed, with no time to manage their way through the new policy.
With the likely loss of family farm businesses as a result of this tax, alongside increases in employment costs also announced in the Budget, there a real risk to UK food production.
‘Public are backing British farming’
Last Saturday, 25th January, events co-ordinated by the NFU, NFU Cymru, NFU Scotland and Ulster Farmers’ Union, took place across the UK as part of a National Day of Unity.
Farmers gathered in towns and cities to thank the British public for their support in this campaign and to underline that the farming industry will continue to fight in the face of this unjust policy until the tax is subject to proper scrutiny.
In a statement, the four presidents of the UK farming unions said: “The public in huge numbers, more than 270,000, have signed this family farm tax petition expressing their anger and frustration at the utter contempt shown by the government for the people who produce the nation’s food.
“It gives us great strength to know that the public are backing British farming at this critical moment in time.
“The industry is not taking this lying down. The government has woken a sleeping giant, as our mass lobby of MPs in Westminster and the farmer-led rally in Whitehall have demonstrated.”
The NFU representatives added that the National Day of Unity provides another opportunity to call on the government to overturn this abhorrent policy.
“Government must take action. We’re asking the chancellor to listen to farmers and meet with us to hear and fully understand our very real concerns. Rest assured, the UK farming unions will not sit quietly and let this go – we will continue fighting because this is not just about our farms, but our families, our future and your food,” they concluded.
Read more political news.
