BRITAIN must not relax its food and animal welfare standards, warns a top county vet.

Hereford-based Belmont Farm and Equine Vets have seen at first hand the uncertainty in the local farming sector because of Brexit and trade talks.

“People cannot plan, they cannot make those big decisions,” said director Nick Gibbon.

“It’s holding back progress a little bit while everyone waits to see what will happen.

“British farmers have some of the most stringent welfare standards and guidelines to farm within.

“If we undermine that we are doing a disservice to the animals.

“We have food products to be really proud of compared with some other systems in the world. We should preserve it.

“We have a thriving rural community very much tied into our mixed agriculture. In this part of the world we are blessed with a multitude of farming systems of all shapes and sizes producing many types of food the year round. We should keep what we have got.”

Belmont Farm and Equine Vets have been doing their bit to promote the high quality of local farming by nominating some of their clients in the Three Counties Farmer annual awards.

And they are supporting local farming by backing the awards, which raise awareness of best practice and outstanding work in the industry across Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.

  • Time is running out to enter or nominate someone you think deserves special recognition – the closing date if this Friday.

It’s easy to do, just go to https://www.herefordtimes.com/awards/tcf/ and fill in the online form.

The awards have attracted record entries this year but titles are still up for grabs, so don’t delay with your nomination.