The NFU has said it is disappointed with the zero use target on peat in commercial horticulture by 2030 outlined in the government’s white paper on the natural environment.

Its chief horticultural adviser Hayley Campbell-Gibbons said: “The evidence-based arguments put forward by the NFU and growers have been totally ignored. We are all for aspirational targets to work towards, but the government has just not listened.”

However, Campbell-Gibbons welcomed the formation of a task force to help it face the challenge.