Speeding towards the end of the year, and with the county office closing this week on Friday for the Christmas break (we’re open again from January 2, 2020), I thought it a good time to reflect on some of the things we have been busy with this year.

2019 has certainly kept us on our toes again. Brexit, processors and marts closing all over the country, farm safety, rural crime, political game-playing, NVZs, bovine TB, mental health and many other farming matters meant we had to be alert and ready to defend the industry at all times.

Throughout the year we have regularly met with Welsh and UK Government, including First Minister Mark Drakeford, our Cabinet Secretary Lesley Griffiths, as well as DEFRA Minister Michael Gove and many other key decision-makers.

Our officials and staff have been working tirelessly to keep on top of proposed changes to farming policy in Wales, scrutinising legislation and doing their best to ensure that thriving, sustainable family farms are a thing of the future and not the past.

Farming Matters remained firmly on the agenda for us in 2019 and we used every opportunity to highlight the disastrous impacts a no-deal Brexit would have on farming in Wales and why farming matters to more than just farmers.

We were clear when we met politicians - not only do farms produce food but they are also the cornerstone of our rural economies. Family farms are at the heart of our rural economy, caring for our landscape, and of course our culture.

You, our members, make innumerable other contributions to the well-being of Wales and the UK and central to such benefits is the production of food and the improvement in domestic food security.

Over the last 12 months, we have also made it clear that a multi-annual financial framework needs to be agreed which ensures Welsh agriculture continues to receive sufficient levels of funding.

Sadly, the failure of UK governments to make progress on developing and agreeing on frameworks which protect Welsh and other producers against distortion within the UK’s home market, remains an issue we will continue to tackle next year.

With this in mind, please rest assured that in the coming year the FUW will continue to be at the forefront of the fight to protect the interests of Wales’ farming families and rural communities.

On a final note before our offices close for the Christmas break - I would like to thank our staff and officials for their continued effort and hard work throughout the year and each and every one of our members, who through their membership and support, contribute to a stronger, more successful voice for Wales’ agricultural industry.

Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous 2020 to you all.