Leading faces in the food industry including DEFRA secretary of state Hilary Benn and Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy have cracked the top 10 in a list of top 100 most powerful people in the countryside.
Benn (fifth) and Sir Terry (ninth) were joined by Peter Kendall (sixth), head of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) in the list, headed by the Queen.
The list, complied by Country Life, said of Benn: “He might be vegetarian, but he’s hailed as the best DEFRA minister yet and has impressed with a more practical line this year: ‘I want British agriculture to produce as much food as possible, no ifs, no buts.’"
Kendall was said to have a “measured, authoritative” tone, which commands respect, while it said of Sir Terry that it is “within his grasp to ease the financial pressure on British farming through supporting local produce, but aggressive promotions, together with those of his competitors, mean farmers are feeling the pinch”.
Other notable inclusions were the government’s chief scientific adviser John Beddington (19), Tim Lovett, chairman of the British Beekeepers’ Association (25) and Sir Donald Curry, agricultural strategist and chairman of NFU Mutual (29).
Model Katie ‘Jordan’ Price bottomed-out the list at 100 as an ambassador for equestrian sports.
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