This Back British Farming Day I want to celebrate the British farmers and growers who work through rain and shine to produce the delicious ingredients that underpin the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, food and drink.
The day is an opportunity to champion all that British farmers and growers do for the nation and people have ranked the job farmers do as second only to nurses – including producing food for our three meals a day, caring for the countryside, delivering renewable energy and providing jobs for rural communities. It’s quite simple, without our farmers, there’s little to no food on our plates.
We’re a proud farming county, with more than 70% of its land area used for agriculture, Northamptonshire’s farmers represent a healthy cross section of farming sectors.
There are more than 1,700 farms over 186,000 hectares generating £164 million to the economy, with over 4,000 people directly employed on farms.
County farmers also manage around 7,000 hectares of farm woodland and help to maintain over 1,900 miles of public rights of way.
I am keen to always reiterate my support for farmers, having attended the NFU’s Back British Farming Day parliamentary reception or during my general election campaign.
I want to say a huge thank you to the farmers and growers in the Daventry Constituency for their continued hard work to deliver the UK’s food security and the treasured role that they play in the social fabric of the countryside. I am always just an email away or phone call from my constituency and parliamentary office to assist you however possible.
