Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a "great new deal with the EU " today ( Oct 17th ) which the food and farming industry have broadly welcomed. The deal has to be approved by Parliament and there are accusations that it is very similar to Theresa May’s agreement.

NFU President Minette Batters said: “The NFU is pleased to see that the UK and EU negotiators have come to an agreement on the terms of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, which might pave the way for an orderly Brexit and the avoidance of leaving without a deal.

“However, we must remember that if this deal is agreed by UK and EU Parliaments in the coming days, it only determines how the UK withdraws from the EU and does not determine the long-term future of the UK’s and EU’s relationship. 

“It is vital that government has a long-term aspiration to ensure that British farming standards are not undercut by an ambition to open up British markets to food which would be illegal to produce here and that there is free and frictionless trade with the EU in the long term. 

“We have had precious little reassurances on these issues so far and we look to government to be clear about its ambitions for British farming, which provides affordable, safe, home-grown food produced to some of the highest standards in the world.”

President of the CLA Tim Breitmeyer said:

“News of a deal will be warmly welcomed by farmers and rural businesses, many of whom were fearing the consequences of a No Deal scenario. The proposed deal finally provides us with some certainty, that could in turn help unlock much needed investment to get the rural economy moving again.

“Opposition MPs, many of whom have argued against a hard Brexit, should think very carefully before voting this deal down. One gets the sense that it’s this deal or No Deal”.

Ian Wright, chief executive of the FDF, added that: “The UK’s food and drink manufacturers will hope that this means, definitively, that a no-deal exit on cannot happen.

“Our focus now switches to whether this deal can command the support of the UK Parliament, and what the detail of the deal means for our members.

“Their objectives are securing frictionless trade and regulatory alignment with the EU, our largest market. They also must have access to the workers our industry needs.”