Sir Stuart Hampson of John Lewis Partnership told the Royal Show that British farming should be at the top of the public agenda.

Chairman of the JLP, which includes Waitrose, and president of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, Sir Stuart opened the show with a powerful message on the future of British farming.

He said shoppers should be confident of British produce’s quality, freshness and taste, rather than feel obligated to buy it, and to achieve this, we should be confident the environmental and husbandry standards of British farmers are the best in the world.

Hampson also referred to an independent study outlining a vision for the future of farming in the UK, which argued that differentiating products is key to safeguarding a sustainable, viable and flourishing agricultural sector, Farmers Weekly reported.

Addressing the crowd, Sir Stuart said: “It is not a matter of indifference whether British farming fails or succeeds. It is something of vital importance to all of us,”

“Three quarters of the land in this county is occupied by farming interests and therefore the future landscape of our grandchildren will depend on whether or not we have a thriving agriculture sector in the UK.”

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