Farming Today

23/05/26 Farming Today This Week: red diesel, Gulf trade deal, Climate Change Committee report, regen tenancies, flowers.

The cost of growing our food is still higher than before the conflict in the Middle East. To counteract some of that, the government's laid out a "Great British Savings" bonanza aimed at making life a little less expensive for everyone. There'll be cuts to tariffs on more than 100 food imports sold in supermarkets and fuel duty on red diesel will be reduced by a third. We visit a strawberry grower in Kent to find out how they're coping with rising costs. A new trade deal has been announced with a group of six states in the Gulf, including Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. It'll remove export tariffs and open the door to market expansion. We speak to the International Chamber of Commerce and the NFU for their reaction. The Climate Change Committee has published a new report about the consequences of a 2% rise in global temperatures and what the UK needs to do about it. We ask what it means for farmers. A fifth of the Duchy of Cornwall's property, owned by the Prince of Wales, could be sold in the next 10 years to help invest £500m into tackling housing and nature crises. The Duchy has a large number of tenant farmers and is introducing a new tenancy agreement, which concentrates on regenerative farming. All week we're celebrating British flowers. We visit a commercial grower in Norfolk which grows 35 million tulips every year and supplies most of the UK’s leading supermarkets. It's invested five million pounds in new technology so it can stay competitive and compete with imported blooms. We also visit a flower grower who is trying to connect local producers and florists. Presenter = Anna Hill Producer = Rebecca Rooney

22/05/2026 Gulf trade deal, tax cut on red diesel, cuts to tariffs on food imports, flowers, farmers going out of business

We ask what the latest government cost of living measures mean for farmers. How a Fenland farmer must decide whether to keep on his struggling family farm. We've been talking flowers all week: the cut flower market in the UK is worth around £2.2 billion but the bulk of flowers sold in supermarkets and florists don’t come from British farms. The BBC Food & Farming Awards are back and this year we’re teaming up again with the Archers for the ‘Archers and Farming Today Farming for the Future Award’. We’re looking for those people or organisations who are models for how farming can be more resilient and sustainable. You can nominate by going to bbc.co.uk/foodawards - entries close at midday on the 15th of June. Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

21/05/26 Drought report, impact of Middle East war on berry growers, farm flower garden.

'The taps could run dry' - that's the warning from a new report by the House of Lords Select Committee on Environment and Climate Change. The report, in response to last year's drought, says water supplies need to be better managed to overcome the contrary challenges of drought and flooding, which it says are both a consequence of climate change. Farmers have just had some respite from hikes in fuel prices with a government announcement that a cut on the duty on red diesel will last until the end of 2026. Despite that, the cost of growing our food is still higher than before the conflict in the Middle East. British Apples and Pears which represents top fruit growers, says producing Gala apples has risen by 4.5% since the start of March. We visit a big strawberry grower in Kent to discuss the challenges. All week we're celebrating British flower growing - from intensive tulip production to farm-grown bouquets. One way you can be extremely nosy about how other people are growing their flowers is to join in with the National Garden Scheme and visit gardens locally in July. We visit a farmer who opens her garden on the edge of Exmoor - it's full of old farming equipment and brings back memories for farmers who visit. Presenter = Anna Hill Producer = Rebecca Rooney

20/05/26 Climate Change Committee report, EU alignment, flower grower hub.

The Climate Change Committee has published a new report about the consequences of a 2% rise in global temperatures and what the UK needs to do about it. The CCC, which reports to UK government on adapting to climate change, says that by 2050, 92% of homes are likely to overheat, peak river flows will be up to 45% higher, and water supply shortfalls could exceed five billion litres per day. It points out that the cost of doing nothing is far greater than acting now, and it proposes investment of around £11 billion a year, split evenly between public and private funding. We ask what it means for farmers. The prospect of closer ties with the European Union continues to make political headlines, and farmers are watching closely as the government works towards EU re-alignment and a new sanitary and phytosanitary or SPS agreement which should ease trade in food and agricultural goods between the UK and the EU. The House of Lords European Affairs Committee has been hearing what an SPS agreement could mean for farmers, the meat industry and ports. All week we're celebrating British flowers - locally grown flowers account for a tiny fraction of the UK market even though we spend some 2.2 billion pounds on cut flowers. We visit a flower grower who is trying to change that, connecting local producers and florists and promoting home-grown flowers via the South Yorkshire Flower Hub. Presenter = Anna Hill Producer = Rebecca Rooney

19/05/26 Pollution from moorland burning, Duchy of Cornwall regen tenancies, tulips.

Researchers at Leeds University say a new study shows deliberate burning of moorland for grouse shooting leads to an additional half a million people, on average, being exposed to unsafe levels of particulate pollution - that's on top of the pollution cause by wildfires. The study was co-authored by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, which is calling for a licensing scheme for controlled burning to be brought in for England. In Scotland a plan to bring in licensing was temporarily put on hold by the Scottish Government in the aftermath of extensive wildfires last summer. Moorland managers argue that wildfires cause more pollution than controlled burning - and that controlled burning reduces the risk of wildfires. A fifth of the Duchy of Cornwall's property, owned by the Prince of Wales, could be sold in the next 10 years to help invest £500m into tackling housing and nature crises. The Duchy has a large number of tenant farmers and is introducing a new tenancy agreement, which concentrates on regenerative farming. We find out what's different about this type of tenancy. All week we're celebrating British flowers and today we visit a commercial grower in Norfolk which grows 35 million tulips every year and supplies most of the UK’s leading supermarkets. It's invested five million pounds in new technology so it can stay competitive and compete with imported blooms. Presenter = Anna Hill Producer = Rebecca Rooney