The government must commit to introducing a food standards commission once the UK leaves the EU, the NFU will say today.
Speaking to the Oxford Farming Conference, the union's president Minette Batters will say the commission would scrutinise trade deals and safeguard UK farming.
It would also make recommendations on the future food trade policy to ensure that British farming’s high production standards would not be undermined.
The government would also be mandated to act on these recommendations.
Mrs Batters will say: “This year will be the greatest reset for our food and farming system since the 1940s and the decisions made will be felt for decades to come.
“We must once again recognise that there is nothing more important to our economy, our health and our environment than the very food we eat.
“It is crucial that the government introduces a food standards commission that can scrutinise future trade deals and ensure we do not allow imports of food that would be illegal for our farmers to produce here.”
The NFU president will call for the commission to be backed in legislation by the forthcoming agriculture bill - which is expected to be put to parliament this month.
In other matters, Mrs Batters is expected to urge the Defra Secretary Theresa Villiers to use the bill to provide financial stability for farmers and improve the functionality of the supply chain.
She will also call for the government to source all its public procurement to British standards.
