Farmers in Wales have voiced their anger and frustration following a BBC Countryfile programme broadcast on Sunday 15 March entitled ‘Looe Harbour’.
FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “We have once again received many complaints from our members about the latest BBC Countryfile programme, which adopted an unbalanced approach in reporting on the current Red Tractor Assurance Scheme. This has led to both anger and disappointment amongst the farming community.”
The criticism is just the latest in a long line of complaints about unbalanced BBC reporting, including by the Countryfile programme, and many farmers have reported that they have long since stopped watching the programme due to its ‘inherent bias against farming’.
“This most recent episode of Countryfile marks a continuation by the BBC to vilify and denigrate domestic food producers,” said Mr Roberts.
“The BBC must recognise its duty to be balanced and fair, and I believe that in this case Countryfile has once again failed in this context. Programmes which undermine the majority by highlighting the very few in order to deliberately push an anti-farming agenda are simply not acceptable. It’s hardly surprising that the overwhelming majority of farmers believe the BBC has an underlying anti-farming agenda.”
In light of the current imbalance displayed on Countryfile, the FUW has written to the BBC seeking an apology and an assurance that further programmes and online content will be more balanced in the future.