The Farmers’ Union of Wales has welcomed plans to double the retailer levy available to the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) to 2 million pounds.

The levy available to the GCA is used to fund investigations into retailers which may have conducted breaches of the Groceries Supply Chain Code of Practice.

However, unspent levy must be returned and this increase in the amount of levy available therefore allows the Adjudicator to have a ‘float’ to fund potential investigations into bad or unfair practices.

“The initial levy pot available to the adjudicator was £800,000 and this cost was split between the 5 major retailers,” said FUW Senior Policy Officer Dr Hazel Wright..

“This significant increase should aid the adjudicator in funding investigations and is a positive step forward in identifying unfair practices, improving transparency and fostering accountability in the supply chain.”

The Groceries Code applies to those supermarkets with a turnover of greater than 1 billion pounds and the FUW has repeatedly called for this threshold to be lowered in order to cover more retailers.

Dr Wright added that the Groceries Code still does not cover indirect suppliers to supermarkets or the voluntary dairy code.  Whilst this move to increase the levy collected must be welcomed, there remains more work to be done in order to improve the position of farmers in the supply chain.

The Adjudicator cannot launch any investigation into a retailer without information from suppliers and the FUW would therefore encourage relevant members to fill in the supplier survey which was launched last month on the Adjudicator’s website.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales will be holding a series of EU debates ahead of the upcoming  referendum.

The Union is committed to providing as much information as possible to its members in order for them to make a fully informed decision in June, and is therefore staging a further five debates over the coming weeks.

“If you want to know more about the arguments then you need to be at these debates,” said FUW Managing Director Alan Davies.

“We know that there’s a lot of noise about the EU and the referendum and a lot of that noise is ill informed. That is why we are holding a series of debates around the country to help inform members of the benefits of staying in the EU.”

The debates will take place on Monday, May 23 at Monmouthshire Livestock Auction, Raglan , Wednesday, May 25 at Welshpool Livestock Market, Wednesday, June 1 at Glynllifon College, Caernarfon , Monday, June 6 at Rhug Estate, Corwen, and Tuesday, June 7 at the FUW RWAS pavilion, Buith Wells.

All the events are commencing at 7pm.

“It’s well recognized that we’ve been a long-standing supporter of ongoing membership of the EU, and whilst we don’t anticipate that changing, we should always seek to widen our understanding whenever possible,” said FUW President Glyn Roberts.

The debate is open to members and other parties interested in agriculture and the protection of the rural economy of Wales.

[caption id="attachment_6357" align="alignleft" width="225"] Darren Williams is the Union’s representative on the new Agricultural Advisory Panel for Wales.[/caption]

Farmers’ Union of Wales Younger Voice for Farming Committee Chairman Darren Williams is the Union’s representative on the new Agricultural Advisory Panel for Wales.

A tenant farmer at Talwen Fawr, near Brecon, Mr Williams is also chairman of the FUW’s Brecon and Radnor county branch.

The panel’s core functions are to draft the Agricultural Wages Orders to set the minimum rates of agricultural pay in Wales as well as terms and conditions of agricultural employment, to promote careers in agriculture,  to advise the Welsh Ministers on agricultural matters and to promote skills development and training opportunities in the sector.

The panel must meet at least three times a year but is able to meet as regularly as is necessary to ensure it achieves its wide ranging remit.

Its membership includes independent members and industry representatives of both employers and employees.

The membership includes one chairperson, one independent agricultural member, one independent education member, one FUW representative, one NFU representative and two UNITE representatives.

Welsh ministers appoint the independent chair and four independent members through a public appointment process while the industry representatives are selected by their respective organisations.

Members serve a term of four years and can serve no more than two terms.

Speaking about his appointment Darren Williams said: “I am delighted to represent the FUW on this panel. It will no doubt be an enormous challenge given the current economic climate and challenges facing agriculture.

“However, by working together with the panel I hope we will be able to advise Welsh Ministers well, attract more people to the industry by promoting careers in the sector and highlight the benefits of skill development and training opportunities.”

The Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) has emphasised the importance of appointing a dedicated minister with responsibilities for farming and rural affairs.

“Agriculture and rural affairs are key to our economy, and central to addressing and dealing with the major challenges of our generation,” said FUW President Glyn Roberts.

“With issues such as climate change and water management dominating agendas such as those listed in the Well-being of Future Generations Act, we need a dedicated minister to fight for the interests of our rural communities – communities for which agriculture is a cornerstone,” he added.

Mr Roberts said the call tied in with the FUW’s vision of a Rural Powerhouse for Wales which recognises the central role agriculture and rural areas must play in addressing the challenges of the future, while ensuring the focus does not just fall on the M4 and A55 corridors.

“This can only be done by having a full minister who sits on the Welsh Government cabinet and has responsibilities for agriculture and rural affairs.

“The FUW looks forward to working closely with the incoming Government in order to ensure priorities are met for rural Wales and Wales as a whole,” he added.

Under the previous Welsh administration the agricultural portfolio was moved between ministers and deputy ministers a number of times following Welsh cabinet reshuffles.

[caption id="attachment_6348" align="alignleft" width="263"] FUW Milk and Dairy Produce Committee Chairman Rhydian Owen[/caption]

The introduction of the Dairy Code of Practise in 2012 has done little to positively affect the farm gate prices received by producers and is largely ineffectual in the midst of market surpluses and a lack of alternative options.

This was the conclusion of the recently published Farmers’ Union of Wales report on the dairy sector.

In addition the report highlighted that the Code can do nothing to better the prospects of producers who have been served notice.

Therefore the Union continues to reiterate that smaller producers and those in remote areas are being left vulnerable during periods of oversupply.

“The industry could see even more falls in producer numbers as processors ‘cherry-pick’ producers in a bid to reduce operational costs,” warns FUW Milk and Dairy Produce Committee Chairman Rhydian Owen.

For producers wishing to take up the option, the FUW has been a long-standing supporter of the inclusion of market-related pricing formulas within dairy contracts.

“Supporters of the formula believe it could form the foundation for prices which, while continuing to vary between contracts, nevertheless represent the true value of milk.

“This would reflect a supply and demand dynamic that UK milk prices have failed to recognise over the last decade,” added Mr Owen.

Other types of contracts, such a futures, may be of benefit to some producers; although this will depend on the individual business and the degree to which some or all of the milk is included, according to the FUW dairy report.

Mr Owen further stated that whilst the industry needs different types of contracts to cope with embedded marketplace volatility, there must also be a concurrent effort to increase transparency and proper policing in the UK supply chain.

Contracts which include mechanisms such as A and B pricing must also work for the producer when demand outstrips supply and should not be used primarily to reduce incomes in periods of oversupply.

“Proper policing should help to ensure that contracts remain fair and do not exploit primary producers. The FUW has repeatedly called for an expansion of the Groceries Adjudicator’s power to cover all dairy producers and not just the small minority on retailer aligned contracts.

“At present, retailer aligned contracts only account for about four percent of the milk produced in Wales and, as such, the majority of dairy producers are not covered by the remit of the Adjudicator.

“We would like to see a system whereby the dairy code is properly policed so that we can tell straightaway if the purchasers are cherry-picking and if they are not playing fair,” added Mr Owen.

[caption id="attachment_6345" align="alignleft" width="143"] FUW Senior Policy Officer Dr Hazel Wright launches the Union's dairy report[/caption]

A report on the current state of the Welsh dairy sector has been launched by the Farmers’ Union of Wales in order to identify the main issues affecting the sector and those mechanisms which might mitigate some current problems.

The FUW’s Milk and Dairy Produce Committee Chairman, Rhydian Owen, said: “ The Welsh dairy industry continues to reel under months of continuing low prices and poor profitability and almost half of dairy farmers in Britain have stated an intention to quit the sector.

“The FUW is extremely concerned that any sign of a price recovery may still be some way into the future due to a continuing global supply and demand imbalance.

“We have now sent a synopsis of the main issues contributing to the current dairy sector crisis to local MPs, MEPs and will be distributing this information further to the newly elected Welsh Assembly members.”

The report highlights that a year after milk quotas have been abolished, and in the absence of any observable or predicted changes to current global supply and demand dynamics, it is imperative that the milk market is managed in a manner which stabilises prices.

“The market has to be managed in a way that ensures a fair standard of living, protects producers from the effects of unfair practises and strengthens their position in the supply chain.

“Furthermore, the on-going Russian trade embargo, coupled with reduced demand in China and a weak economic environment will likely delay price rises beyond any potential downturn in production,” added Mr Owen.

The report further concludes that measures which enhance the sustainability and viability of the Welsh dairy sector will therefore be essential to ensure future competitiveness and innovation.

FUW Senior Policy Officer Dr Hazel Wright said: “The FUW Policy Department continues to work with the Union’s Milk and Dairy Produce Committee to fight for the prosperity of Welsh dairy farmers.

”In order to preserve the future of Welsh and British dairy farmers, it will be crucial to ensure that resilience does not merely focus on producing milk at lower prices, but instead recognises the need to intervene in a way which mitigates the wealth of issues which remain out of the control of the primary producer.”

FUW report into the post-quota dairy sector April 2016