Farming Delivers for Wales

Throughout the centuries, Wales has been dependent on its agricultural industry. Today, farming is no less important as it is clear that a healthy, vibrant rural economy; a thriving tourism sector; a profitable agri-food sector; and our culture and heritage are all completely dependent on a profitable and sustainable farming industry.

So what does farming deliver to our economy, environment and way of life in Wales?

Agriculture directly contributes £217 million to the Welsh economy GVA (Gross Value Added) and is a primary source of product for the Welsh Food and Drinks sector worth £2.8bn. Whilst farming directly employs 4.4% of the Welsh working population, a further 17% are involved in the Food and Drinks Sector.

The total land surface of Wales is nearly 2.1million hectares, of which over 80% is devoted to agriculture and with Welsh farmers caring for the majority of the total land area in Wales they are best placed to lead on environment management and conservation’s efforts using their inherent farming knowledge.

With almost half of  farmers in Wales speaking Welsh, it is little wonder that Welsh is the day to day language of much of rural Wales, and its future is also irrefutably linked to the viability of Welsh agriculture.

Farming truly does deliver and it is vital that Welsh farmers achieve a profitable core business in order to continue to deliver.