One of the main issues facing farm organisations as they lobby for future support from the British government, is the relatively small contribution of farming to the overall UK economy. The statistic often quoted is Gross Value Added (GVA), which is a measure of the value of goods and services produced in each part of the economy.

In 2016, the GVA of farming was only 0.5% of the total for the UK. It means farming is pretty insignificant when compared with the likes of real estate, construction, financial services, etc. In NI, the industry is more important, but it still only accounts for 1.4% of GVA.

The reality is that the food industry could import all its raw materials and still maintain most of its economic contribution

Of course it can be argued that farming underpins food processing, and across the UK the wider food chain accounts for 6.4% of GVA, employing 13.4% of people.

However, the reality is that the food industry could import all its raw materials and still maintain most of its economic contribution. Farming has a major battle on its hands to secure support payments from the British government in a post-Brexit world.

But as explored on the opposite page, taking away or significantly reducing direct payments will have a negative impact, particularly in the grazing livestock and arable sectors.

As an industry we need to be careful what we wish for

Despite that, many farmers would be glad to see the back of area payments, and no doubt it would be a much preferable scenario if we were able to receive enough from the market to make these payments unnecessary.

But as an industry we need to be careful what we wish for. Given the global nature of modern trade, the direction of travel is towards a levelling of prices around the world.

There is a premium to be had for a local product in a local market, but that premium is limited.

Most major food-producing countries protect farm incomes in some form. The pressure must be kept on the UK government to do the same.

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