An open letter has been published by Red Tractor regarding industry response to the Greener Farms Commitment (GFC).

The letter, which was written by Red Tractor chair Christine Tacon, addressed concerns linked to data sharing, GFC funding and the ownership of Red Tractor. It was shared on both the Red Tractor website and Red Tractor social media.

In the letter, Tacon wrote: “Involving farmers in the continued development of the GFC is absolutely essential. We had to have an approved framework for a common industry approach before that work could accelerate in a meaningful way.

“Following the Red Tractor Board’s agreement on that common approach last month, we announced a six month timetable to do more work with farmers and growers, to refine the content of the GFC and consider how it will be practically applied in different sectors.

“Last week saw our Technical Advisory Committees discuss the GFC across every sector as part of that work. The process is already giving us a huge amount of valuable feedback. Strong views are being shared on the approach and those conversations continue.”

Tacon said: “We will continue to answer questions as quickly and openly as we can. For example, quite rightly farmers are concerned about protecting their data. Red Tractor has a clear policy on data sharing – the farmer controls their own data and, as with current systems, nothing is shared without the farmers express permission, which they can withdraw at any time.

“I am also aware that much of the concern is about how farmers are recompensed for the overall cost of participating in the GFC. Clearly this is a fundamental question.

“Ultimately though, the final price paid by the market has to be the result of a commercial negotiation between farmers or growers and their customers.

“The GFC is very different from Red Tractor’s core standards – it’s a commitment, a journey for farmers to become more environmentally focused. It is not pass or fail standards. Farmers upload their plans and actions, as opposed to being physically audited, and the GFC will recognise other programmes and national schemes to prevent duplication. We clearly need to do a better job of explaining what’s intended and how this is different. We will work hard to achieve this.”