Red Tractor’s response to the Farm Assurance Review

The UK Farm Assurance Review is an independent initiative sponsored by the NFU, NFU Scotland, UFU and AHDB. It aims to assess and modernise the UK’s farm assurance schemes to ensure they remain relevant and effective in a post-Brexit and increasingly food-conscious world. The Commissioners of the review have published a detailed report, including nine strategic and 56 detailed recommendations for action by numerous organisations.

While the Review makes recommendations for all farm assurance schemes and the organisations that work with them, Red Tractor is the UK’s largest farm assurance scheme and was therefore considered throughout the report. Red Tractor engaged fully and transparently with the Commissioners to help inform their recommendations.

We’re prioritising work to deliver recommendations where there is particular need for improvement, or where Red Tractor can deliver the most impact. For example, we’ve begun work to improve our communications with farmers, streamline our standards, improve audit efficiency and embrace new technology, all of which should reduce the audit burden for farmers. We are also doubling down on our efforts to increase engagement with farmers as part of our leadership culture. All the priority areas are highlighted in the detailed response.

Dr David Llewellyn one of the original commissioners of the Farm Assurance Review was appointed by AHDB and the farming unions to oversee progress on an ongoing basis. Red Tractor submitted updates to Dr Llewellyn direct as well as reporting to its Board, which includes representatives from across the farming sectors, and sharing public updates via our website. Dr Llewellyn’s final monitoring report is expected to be published in Spring 2026, and Red Tractor remains committed to continuing this work beyond that point.

The Red Tractor Sector Board meetings which took place during February 2025 underlined the range of views, requirements and experiences across different industry sectors. These have all been considered in our response to the Farm Assurance Review. All six Sector Boards have since developed and published individual sector strategies, setting out tailored priorities for standards and operational improvements, while recognising the needs of mixed enterprise farms.

We encourage farmers to share their views through Red Tractor’s post assessment surveys – every farm business for which we have an email address will receive an invitation to participate in this immediately after an assessment. All stakeholders can also reach out to their representatives on the Red Tractor Sector Boards. Red Tractor has also launched a new Farmer Sentiment Survey and holds a regular programme of farmer events throughout the year. We also welcome any feedback by email to memberhelp@redtractor.org.uk.

Around 30% of all our Board members are farmers and growers. Through the Sector Boards, they have participated in developing Red Tractor’s response to the Review and will continue to have a pivotal role going forwards as we collaborate and consult on everything we do. Farmers and growers who are members of our Board of Directors, Sector Boards and Technical Advisory Committees are identified on our website.

A new farmer-first communications strategy has been developed and is being delivered, including face-to-face events, improved digital communications and newsletters, and the appointment of specialist agricultural communications partners. Red Tractor staff and Directors have attended more than 50 farmer-facing events since April 2025, speaking directly with over 1,000 stakeholders and members.