Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs written question – answered at on 5 August 2024.
Anna Sabine
Liberal Democrat, Frome and East Somerset
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) apple farmers and (b) cider makers whose crops have been affected by ermine moths in Somerset.
Daniel Zeichner
The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Dessert and culinary apples play an important role in local economies, with the sector worth a combined £188 million in 2023.
The Government is committed to championing British farming and, in partnership with the sector, we are considering a number of ways to achieve our ambitious, measurable and long-term goals for the sector, including development of new crop varieties that are more resistant to pests such as ermine moths.
Yes3 people think so
No3 people think not
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