The Scottish government currently provides about £660m in support for farmers in a system that was originally meant to keep food prices down.
About 67,000 people work in agriculture in Scotland, according to the Scottish Agricultural Census.
Andrew Connon, the president of National Farmers’ Union (NFU) Scotland, farms sheep, cattle and barley near Ellon in Aberdeenshire.
“We can deliver so much, way more than just quality food,” he states.
“We can contribute to biodiversity, nature and climate modify mitigation if we’ve received a fully functioning, sustainable and profitable sector.”
The farming union wants the next government to commit to an increased budobtain for agriculture.
It also wants a promise to ringfence money across multiple years, as happened when farm support came from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy. It could sometimes guarantee funding up to eight years in advance.
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