Consultation on changes to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) Order 2008

Overview

1. Overview 

1.1 This consultation seeks views on proposals for legislative reforms to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board Order 2008 and applies to the whole of the United Kingdom where levy is collected by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). The UK government and the governments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have joint responsibility for the AHDB Order, and we have worked jointly to produce this consultation. The proposed changes will establish the legislative foundations for a reformed AHDB and sit alongside improvements already underway to the structure and governance of AHDB to deliver a more efficient and focused organisation giving value for money and greater accountability to levy payers in the future.

1.2 The consultation proposals take forward the recommendations set out in the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations’ response to the Request for Views on the future of the AHDB[1] and responds to the outcome of the recent ballots in the horticulture and potato sectors across Great Britain. The proposals and consultation questions are set out below for your views and a draft of the amended AHDB Order can be viewed at Annex 2 (attached seperately) so that you can see how we may implement these changes in legislation subject to the outcome of this consultation.

1.3 It is also important to note that the AHDB will not be offering services to industries in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland where industries are already served by other levy bodies, for example, in the red meat sectors, unless specific collaborative work has been agreed between the levy bodies as being beneficial to all.

Who will be affected by these proposals?

1.4 This consultation is directed at farmers, growers, processors, and others in the supply chain across the UK who pay a statutory levy specifically to the AHDB for services in six sectors which include: Cereals and Oilseeds (across the UK), Beef, Sheep and Pigs (in England), and Dairy, Horticulture and Potatoes (in Great Britain). It sets out proposals to respond to the outcome of the recent ballots in the horticulture and potato sectors across Great Britain and other reforms to the AHDB. The consultation is also aimed at research bodies that may work with the AHDB, agriculture and horticulture trade bodies and any other organisations that have an interest in the work that the AHDB delivers.

How to respond

1.5 The consultation period will commence on the 17th November 2021 and will be open for responses for a period of seven weeks. The consultation period will close at midnight on 10th January 2022.  We have asked you several specific questions throughout this document. If you have any other views on the subject of this consultation, which have not been addressed, you are welcome to provide us with these views in your response. You can respond using the online survey at the link under 'Give us your views' below. You can also download English and Welsh language versions of the consultation documents and survey questions below (see ‘Related’ below). If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please e-mail ViewsonAHDB@defra.gov.uk to request the format you need. It will help us if you let us know what assistive technology you use.

Alternatively, email responses can be emailed to us at: ViewsonAHDB@defra.gov.uk

or posted to the address below.

Consultation Coordinator

Defra

Foss House

Kings Pool

Unit 4 Foss House

1-2 Peasholme Green

York YO1 7PX

Mae copi Cymraeg o'r ymgynghoriad a chwestiynau'r arolwg ar gael isod yn yr adran o dan y pennawd 'Related content'. 

What happens next

1.6 The closing date for this consultation is midnight on 10^th January 2022. Responses received by this date will be analysed and considered by Ministers in the UK Government and Devolved Administrations in any future policy and legislative changes. A summary analysis of responses to the consultation including a breakdown of responses from stakeholders in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland will be published on the UK Government and Devolved Administrations websites (available in English and Welsh) within 12 weeks of the closure of this consultation.