Agri MEP Alyn Smith has today welcomed the European Parliament’s bold adoption of a report that will dramatically reduce the impact of Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs) on farmers. 

Alyn Smith MEP has challenged the European Commission to take on the rise of fictional farms as a brand tool, joining SNP Councillor Gail Ross in the fight to support farmers against supermarket chicanery. 

Alyn Smith MEP has slammed the decision to create a new forum – the Agricultural Markets Task Force – to discuss supply chain issues as the latest in a long line of delays that farmers cannot afford.

Supermarket giant Tesco has been found guilty of breaching the Groceries Supply Code by intentionally delaying payments to suppliers, according to the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA). 

Alyn Smith MEP has thrown his support behind Scotland’s first Dairy Producer Organisation, hailing it as a vital first step in saving Scotland’s dairy industry.

In a move backed by MEPs and the NFU alike, the European Parliament voted today to adopt the McGuinness report on Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs) in the food supply chain.

Scotland’s farmers gained significant support yesterday as Alyn Smith MEP won strong backing from Agriculture MEPs for tough legislative action against Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs).

Supermarket giant Tesco has delivered a stinging blow to Scotland’s farmers by selling imported lamb beneath a banner proclaiming support for Scottish sheep farmers.  

Supermarkets indulging in Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs) who breathed a sigh of relief at last month’s feeble Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) report had better not get too comfortable, says MEP Alyn Smith. 

This week saw the release of the official figures on the impact of the Russian imports ban, and they make for grim reading. The sharpest drops in EU value are fruit, vegetables, and dairy products; cheese is down 19.4%, with butter faring slightly better at 9.5%.

It’s another blow to dairy farmers, as if the need for last month’s special hearing on prospects for the dairy sector didn’t already show that shady practices and difficult market conditions aren’t confined to Scotland. 

Published in the Caithness Courier 11 February 2015