51乱伦

Viewpoint

鈥淣ature and the economy have both been in decline for too long. That changes today.鈥� So said a bullish Steve Reed last week, as the Defra Minister announced the government鈥檚 response to an independent review of environmental regulations.

The government is to be applauded if it can indeed cut red tape and strike a sensible balance between economic growth, the delivery of new housing and nature restoration. However, there is mounting evidence that confidence in the rural economy is draining.

The latest worrying news is a slump in new tractor registrations, following the government鈥檚 controversial changes to Inheritance Tax as well as increases in employer National Insurance contributions, the minimum wage and the treatment of twin-cab pickups.

From a farming perspective, it will be tough for Mr Reed to make good on his promise of change. Hopefully, he will be ready to take on board any recommendations from Baroness Batters, his new 鈥減rofitability鈥� adviser and former NFU President.

Commodity markets

Oil price pressure

Brent crude prices fell by 9% in the first week of April amid fears that Donald Trump鈥檚 latest tariffs and China鈥檚 retaliatory action will hit the world鈥檚 economy 鈥� 鈥� and a rise in output by OPEC+ the oil-producing cartel. Brent ended last week at $65.74/barrel, its lowest level since August 2021. Traders see little chance of a substantial rebound in the near term unless military action in the Middle East ramps up significantly.

The headlines

Trump tariff risk

Donald Trump鈥檚 raft of 鈥淟iberation Day鈥� tariffs announced last Wednesday has caused concern among the UK鈥檚 food and drink producers.

Although the UK鈥檚 trade with the US is pretty well balanced 鈥� in 2023, we exported just over £60 billion of goods and imported almost £58 billion 鈥� Mr Trump still decided to levy 鈥渞eciprocal鈥� tariffs of 10% on all our exports to America.

Aside from the EU, the US is the largest buyer of British food, snapping up £900 million of produce in 2023, according to the ONS. This included almost £3 million of fresh and frozen beef (already subject to a 26.4% tariff over a certain quota), £23 million of pork and £68 million of cheese.

Annual beverage and spirit exports total around £1.6 billion, with whisky accounting for most of that. Last year, almost £1 billion of Scotch was quaffed by American drinkers. But the US also accounts for about 15% of UK wine exports and 21% of beer exports.

The potential impact of tariffs was starkly revealed when single-malt imports to the US were hit with a 25% levy between October 2019 and March 2021 as part of a transatlantic aerospace trade spat. It is estimated that Scottish distilleries lost over £600 million of business during that period.

At the time of writing, no retaliatory tariffs had been announced by Keir Starmer, but they have not been ruled out on items such as bourbon whisky if a compromise deal cannot be struck with Mr Trump. Defra ministers have promised that any relaxation on food standards, such as accepting hormone-treated beef, is not on the table.

Aside from the direct impact of tariffs, one of the biggest threats to the UK鈥檚 farmers is if agricultural exports from other countries that have been hit by even larger tariffs (the EU rate is 20%) are priced out of the US and look for a new home here.

Environmental regs streamlined

. The move comes in response to the proposals recommended by Dan Corry, who was commissioned by Defra Minister Steve Reed to . This, Mr Corry concluded, was 鈥渙utdated, inconsistent and highly complex鈥�.

The review suggested 29 ways to streamline things, all of which the government is considering with nine being fast-tracked.

These include a single lead regulator for major infrastructure projects, reviewing the existing catalogue of compliance guidance to remove duplication, ambiguity, or inconsistency, and clearer guidance and measurable objectives for all Defra鈥檚 regulators, starting with Natural England and the Environment Agency.

Mr Reed said: 鈥淎s part of the Plan for Change, I am rewiring Defra and its arms-length bodies to boost economic growth and unleash an era of building while also supporting nature to recover.鈥�
While landowners and developers could benefit from Defra鈥檚 new approach, environmental groups have expressed concern that the focus on economic growth could come at the expense of nature.

News in brief

Batters to boost farming

Minette Batters, the former NFU President who now sits in the House of Lords, has been commissioned to lead by Defra Minister Steve Reed. Baroness Batters will provide short, medium and long-term recommendations and propose actions for government and industry that will support farming profitability as part of the government鈥檚 New Deal for Farmers.

Tractor sales slump

Baroness Batters鈥� advice is sorely needed. According to , new tractor registrations in the first quarter of the year have fallen to their lowest level since 2001. Just 1,466 units were registered in March 2025 鈥� a fall of over 24% on the same month in 2024. The figures lend weight to a survey discussed in last week鈥檚 Rural Update that revealed worries about Inheritance Tax, cuts to support payments and other economic pressures are forcing many farm businesses to freeze investment.

Milling wheat strike

Meanwhile, the organisers of the recent farming protests in London have unveiled their latest tactic to persuade the government to reverse its changes to Agricultural and Business Property Relief on Inheritance Tax. Arable farmers are being urged to withhold deliveries of milling wheat for the next few weeks in a bid to create empty shelves in the bread aisles of supermarkets. But, given few farmers have been selling at the current low prices anyway, some analysts expect the boycott to have a limited impact.

UK food chain at risk

However, even more existential threats to the UK鈥檚 food chain are being ignored, according penned anonymously by senior employees of some of the country鈥檚 biggest food companies. They accuse the firms of paying lip service to, rather than acting on, the findings of regulations like TNFD that measure the exposure of businesses to environmental and nature risks like climate change and biodiversity loss. The memo stated: 鈥淲e have reached a moment of threat to food security like none other we have seen. Yield, quality, and predictability of supply from many of our most critical sourcing regions is not something we will be able to rely upon over the coming years.鈥�

EU delays sustainability reporting

Across the Channel, environmentalists are also angry that the European Parliament has voted to of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). Policymakers say the hiatus will allow the directives to be streamlined to reduce compliance costs for businesses, particularly smaller ones, that are struggling with wider economic issues.

Non-woodland trees mapped

Some good news though for tree-spotters . The analysis by the Forest Research Agency reveals that 30% of England鈥檚 tree cover is made up of non-woodland trees. Forestry Minister Mary Creagh said: 鈥淭his groundbreaking new tree census will not only help us better understand our current tree canopy cover but allow us to identify areas where we can create more nature-rich habitats for wildlife and people to enjoy as part of our Plan for Change.鈥�

Property of the week

Essex vineyard estate opportunity

Budding winemakers looking for a cracking country estate will want to take a look at the Stokes Hall Estate in Essex鈥檚 Crouch Valley, which is fast becoming a viticultural hotspot. Much of the 327-acre estate, which includes an imposing classically inspired nine-bedroom house, is suitable for planting vines. There are five further dwellings, and planning consent to build another five. The guide price for the whole is £19.9 million, but the sale is split into 10 lots with options for those just looking for blocks of land to establish vines. Please get in touch with Georgie Veale for more information.

Discover more of the farms and estates on the market with 51乱伦

Property markets

Development land Q4 2024 鈥� Housing delivery down

Only 2% of the 50 housebuilders recently surveyed by 51乱伦 believe that the sector will deliver the 300,000 new homes that the government is targeting for 2025. The gloomy prognosis is contained in the latest instalment of our Residential Development Land Index report, compiled by , which reveals that the price of green and brownfield development land remained flat in the final quarter of the year, despite Labour鈥檚 ambitious housebuilding targets and planning reforms. .

Country houses Q4 2024 鈥� Market weakens

The price of houses in rural areas slipped by 0.3% in the final quarter of 2024, according to . Overall, values fell by 0.9% during the year. Demand for homes in the countryside has continued to fall since the Covid-19 pandemic, points out Head of UK Residential Research Tom Bill. Exchanges in 2024 were down 20% on the five-year average, he says. However, prices are expected to rebound by almost 18% over the next five years, Tom predicts.

Farmland Q4 2024 鈥� Prices resilient

The farmland market edged up slightly during 2024, according to the latest results from the 51乱伦 Farmland Index, which tracks the value of bare agricultural land in England and Wales. Average values started the year at £9,152/acre and, heading into 2025, stood at £9,164/acre, a slight rise of 0.1%. Given the challenges that the farming industry has faced over the past 12 months, this shows the inherent resilience of agricultural land as a multi-functional asset class. Prices, however, did dip in Q4 after Inheritance Tax reforms on farmland were announced as part of the Autumn Budget. .