By Gary Ford, head of strategy and producer engagement, BFREPA
It is a wonderful time of the year and the early Spring weather, albeit perhaps on the dry side, has been kind and certainly very sunny. Indeed, not unlike the lockdown May that we ‘enjoyed’ in 2020 during the very uncertain Covid times.
Whilst Covid is, in some respects, a distant, scarcely believable memory, 2025 also has a feeling of some uncertainty. Not on anything like the scale of five years ago but at a time when farm margins are good – and long may that continue – all doesn’t necessarily feel well with the world or at least as well as perhaps it could be.
On a political level we have the uncertainty that President Trump is causing in terms of trade tariffs and what that might mean for GB if the tariffs were removed as part of any trade deal. I was corresponding with relatives in Australia recently who feel that Trump had an effect in terms of their general election result, so his reach is certainly far and wide. More locally we have had the local election results where Reform has done very well at the expense of the two traditional parties. Whatever your view of Reform this dramatic result has unsettled many.
Away from politics we have changes in our own sector that are causing uncertainty and indeed some confusion and unsettling of producers. Perhaps ‘leading’ on these emotions are the new RSPCA 2025 standards. Whilst, in many respects, significant progress has been made over the past eighteen months compared to the original standards published in November 2023, to some free-range egg producers the changes have not gone far enough and indeed there are some producers who believe that now is the time to part company. At this moment in time, it is difficult to see the involvement of the RSPCA changing in our sector whether that be as a result of contracts in place and/or the current lack of an alternative welfare scheme.
On a brighter note, our confidence survey, which ran throughout the first quarter of 2025 and captured the views of over 200 producers, demonstrates that short and medium term confidence in our sector is positive. The average score for producer’s confidence over the next twelve months was 6.6/10 and for the next three years 5.6/10. Any score over 5.0 is in positive outlook territory which is no surprise given where we are with the current market.
Whether it be getting through the difficult Covid times or confidence in free-range egg production, despite politics and changes in our sector, there are reasons to be positive during these uncertain times.