Paice: 1 in 4 farmers living in poverty
2nd December 2009
25 per cent of farm households in England were in poverty at the last count, according to official figures obtained by the Conservatives.
Commenting on the findings, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Jim Paice MP said:
“There is no more important industry than the production of food but these figures show how tough life is for many farmers.
“Despite welcome increases in incomes large numbers of farm businesses are barely breaking even as the costs and regulatory burdens imposed by Government increase. In recent years thousands of farmers have quit the industry, weakening our supply base and leaving us more reliant on imports of food we could produce ourselves.
“Our agricultural industry is a national asset but too often under the current Government farmers have been undervalued and undermined.”