Shropshire Star

Step up to the plate and seek opportunities around the world

The Three Counties Farming Con-ference has grown in stature into what is claimed to be the country's best evening agricultural conference, and the 2014 event entitled Future. Farming. Finances, chaired by local beef farmer Paul Westaway, was no exception.

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As always the organisers had attracted a galaxy of top-line speakers and it was a full house with an audience of round 400, many from the younger generations.

Opening speaker Allan Wilkinson, HSBC's head of agriculture commented on the Food Price Indices and pointed out how price volatility had become an issue effecting global markets and issued a stark warning 'volatility – farming has got to get used to it', and said it will be a challenge but will bring opportunities as the global demand for food increases But he warned it will also bring risks.

Putting the UK into perspective he said our population comes near the bottom of the world rankings and produces only one per centof the world's grain.

"But the home market is most important," he said. "The UK must step up to the plate and seek opportunities around the world."

China as an up-and-coming new power, with a rapidly increasing proportion of the population becoming 'middle class' wanting to eat western style diets, will increase the demand for meat and dairy products. Denmark is already sending two containers of pig meat to China every day.

But Allan said China was not the only country where there is economic growth. Other countries in Asia, India, parts of Africa and the Middle East and some countries in South America are becoming more affluent which will open up new markets and increase the pressure on world food production. He warned that the increasing global demand for soya could have a knock-on impact on the price of UK animal feed.

Turning to the UK economy, the banker said it will continue to improve, but the strengthening pound against other currencies could well create problems, including having an impact on CAP payments.

He stressed the importance of CAP payments as there are some years when farm incomes do not exceed the CAP support and said CAP support was crucial to the livestock sectors.

On the CAP he said: "With 28 states trying to make a decision, that's what you get."

In 1957 the CAP budget for the then 12 countries of the EU was 31 billion euros, which rose to 40 billlion by 1999 for EU's 15 countries which increased to 45 billion for the period of 2000 to 2004 and increased to 57 billkio n for 2005 to 2012 when the EU had expanded to 25 countries, but said in 2015 it will be the first time the budget will have been reduced and will drop to 53 billion euros for the current 28 countries in the EU.

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