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The National Sheep Association (NSA) has called for a root and branch review of Red Tractor following the announcement of the assurance body's last week.

The association said the industry had been ‘sideswiped' and that it was deeply concerned none of the detail of the new environmental bolt-on which requires farmers to adopt five environment standards had been agreed with members.

Following an extraordinary meeting of the NSA English Committee earlier this week, the association has demanded a root and branch review of the assurance scheme and its governance.

NSA chief executive Phil Stocker said the NSA continued to support the concept of farm assurance as an ‘open gate declaration of good practice'. But he continued: "We have long been frustrated that the scheme is losing its way and has become less relevant to sheep farmers with little acceptance of the unique nature of our sector.

"Most of the nation's sheep farms are not big businesses with layers of management, but are family farms and single operators, many with little land of their own, and our sector still offers a valuable first step on the farming ladder for young new entrants. Becoming Red Tractor Assured presents a huge hurdle for many sheep farms, and for most of the sector's routes to market it adds no value."

See also: Red Tractor crossed the 'red line on environmental module introduction

NSA said it believed the Greener Farms Commitment takes Red Tractor into the realm of setting environmental policy in isolation rather than getting behind the key environmental and sustainable farming schemes being introduced by Defra.

Following the meeting of the NSA English Committee on Monday, chair Kevin Harrison added: "It is quite telling that those responsible for the governance of the assurance scheme felt the need to work on this behind closed doors without even consulting their boards or technical advisory committees."
 
NSA Chief Executive Phil Stocker continued: "Anyone who has had any contact with NSA will recognise that we are pro-environment, but the recent announcement of the Greener Farm Commitment, developed with no practical input from ourselves or the farming sector, is flawed and simply a step too far. We do not accept this will remain a voluntary scheme and additionality like this comes with a cost that needs to be supported via market premiums or by full alignment with Defra's Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and Countryside Stewardship schemes.

"We are frustrated by the fact there has been no consideration for the hundreds of sheep farmers who operate as graziers on other people's land and have no influence on wider land management decisions, or direct access to SFI and similar schemes, yet do a great job within the boundaries of their authority. We are not prepared to put at risk the social and cultural makeup of our industry in this drive for more industrialisation, supposed professionalisation, and red tape."

See also: Red Tractor defends 'greenwashing' slur

Earlier this week, the NFU passed a highlighting members' concerns around the detail of Red Tractor's new green module. The union was forced to act following the proposal of a resolution from the Midlands (Transitional) Region which called for an independent review of Red Tractor governance and a pause to further ‘bolt-ons'.

According to the NFU, while members still recognised and ‘embraced' the increasing role of sustainability in farm assurance, some felt more ‘granular, technical and practical elements of the GFC' should have been consulted on more widely before the module was unveiled.

NFU deputy president Tom Bradshaw said: "Red Tractor has been a positive thing for our members and, indeed, is an organisation we helped establish for that very reason... We all accept the roll-out of the GFC has not been as any of us would have wished, but the issue is about procedures, not principles. We can and should work together to address those issues, get past this and move on for the benefit of farmers, growers, the wider supply chain and, crucially, consumers."

Feedback

A spokesperson for Red Tractor said: "NFU Council have raised the importance of involving farmers in the continued development of Red Tractor's environment module. We agree about how important this is, and that there are benefits for farmers, growers, and the wider supply chain, from a common industry approach.

"Work to this point included trials with 25 farms last year, for example. As the main Red Tractor board agreed last month, our existing Technical Advisory Committees and Sector Boards are meeting over coming weeks to provide their feedback on technical and practical considerations.

"But we recognise there is always more we can do to listen to farmers' feedback and understand their point of view. The new Development Advisory Panel (DAP) is being created and will meet for the first time next month and will have a critical role to ensure that the Greener Farms Commitment (GFC) takes full account of the first-hand experience of farmers."