Published 6th May 2023, 11:45 BST

The NFU has revealed the results of its latest confidence survey which has shown that, 88 per cent of farmers are saying they are being negatively affected by input costs such as energy, fuel and fertiliser and 82 per cent have also said the phasing out of current farming support payments is negatively impacting their business confidence.

This lack of confidence is impacting the horticulture, livestock and poultry sectors the greatest, according to the NFU, and has been highlighted by issues seen on supermarket shelves with shortages of some produce including eggs, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.

NFU President, Minnette Batters said the results were “shocking but not surprising” and warned that empty supermarket shelves could continue as a result.

Farmer confidence is at its lowest since the start of the pandemic, says the latest confidence survey from the NFU.

The organisation is calling on the government to be more clear on future farming support payments and policies.

Ms Batters said: “It is shocking but not surprising that our farmer confidence survey is reporting the lowest levels in three years. During this time, we have experienced a global pandemic, a war in Europe, tumultuous political change and extreme weather. If this lack of confidence and uncertainty is allowed to continue during such challenging times, it has the potential to lead to further shortages on supermarket shelves.

“We know from experience that low confidence indicates that farmers don’t have the means to invest in their food producing businesses, which could result in little to no growth in our domestic food security at a time when we need it most.

"It is also at odds with the government’s own plans for growth, and the commitments made by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last year to support British farming by setting a target for the nation’s food security, with a statutory duty to report on domestic food levels.

“As well as food security, energy security is crucial to our nation, and currently 38 per cent of British farmers are using or producing renewable energy. As an industry we have a huge ambition to increase this but confidence in the future is deterring farmers from making this important investment.

“Farmers need to know that government is supporting them through policies that build profitability and resilience into farm businesses to allow us to unlock a thriving food and farming industry.

"For this we need to see clarity on future farming support policies, including the Environmental Land Management schemes, which will help farmers plan ahead and build financial resilience into their businesses.”

Research also found that 55 per cent of farmers intend to engage in one or more ELM schemes to mitigate the phase out of BPS, which is down from 68 per cent last year.

Forty-one per cent said they would be interested in Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), 21 per cent are interested in Local Nature Recovery and 15 per cent are interested in Landscape Recovery.

NFU survey reveals farmer confidence is lowest since before COVID pandemic