Farming and Food Partnership Board
The Farming and Food Partnership Board is a joint government and industry group bringing together key senior leaders and experts. The group includes representation from farming, food, retail and out of home markets to develop the strategic direction for growing our farming sector.
Role of the board
The new board is part of the government’s response to Baroness Minette Batters’ independent Farming Profitability Review. The review highlighted the need for closer collaboration between farming, industry and government, and greater clarity and certainty for farm businesses looking to grow and invest.
With growing geopolitical pressures, climate challenges and tight margins for farmers and growers, food production matters as much now as it has at any point since the Second World War. That means government has a clear role to work alongside industry and not leave our national food security to the market alone.
The board will explore how to increase homegrown food and drink sales to strengthen domestic food security, and the potential of new and existing export markets, to drive a more productive, profitable, and resilient food system.
The board’s mission is to:
- increase farming profitability
- improve productivity
- strengthen the contribution of domestically produced food to national security
The new board will complement the work of the Food Strategy Advisory Board (FSAB), who have been advising on the food strategy, including growth, as part of their broader work to kickstart systems change across the entire food chain. The partnership board will have a sharper focus centred on strengthening domestic productivity, farm business profitability and food security.
Membership
We have invited 7 initial members to attend the first meeting, as follows:
- Tom Bradshaw, National Farmers’ Union (NFU) President
- Robert Sheasby, Chief Executive of the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC)
- Sarah Bradbury, Chief Executive of the Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD)
- Kate Nicholls, Chief Executive of UK Hospitality (UKH)
- Emily Norton, Chair of the Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB)
- Andrew Opie, Director of Food & Sustainability at the British Retail Consortium (BRC)
- Karen Betts, Chief Executive of the Food & Drink Federation (FDF)
At the first meeting the initial members discussed the board’s mission, purpose, ways of working and the scope of sector growth plans. Their views will be used to refine the wider membership, supporting structures and forward work plan for the board.
Secretariat:
Terms of reference
To be confirmed.
Joint statement
Following the first meeting, all members of the board signed the following joint statement to confirm the agreed mission and purpose of the board:
Sector growth plans
Sector groups will be responsible for producing evidence-based sector growth plans. These plans will identify bespoke actions that will deliver growth for each sector.
The board will oversee the work of these groups and the development of sector growth plans for all farming sectors.
In line with the approach of the board, sector growth plans will adopt a ‘market-centred’ approach, considering opportunities for farms to sell into a range of food and non-food markets, both domestically and internationally.
The board has invited the Horticulture Expert Growers Group to work with the UK Fruit and Vegetable Coalition, and the Environmental Horticulture Group to immediately begin work on the first sector growth plan for the horticultural sector.
Work on additional sectors, including poultry, will follow swiftly as soon as possible.
Minutes
- Farming and Food Partnership Board summary meeting minutes – 25 March 2026 - to be confirmed.