DEFRA Contractual Fairness Consultation Response

28 Jun 2024

Between December 2023 and February 2024, Defra, in collaboration with the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive, conducted a public consultation exploring contractual relationships in the UK fresh produce sector.

A summary of the responses can be found here:

Summary of responses and government response - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The UK government will commence work developing draft regulations for fresh produce contracts, using the regulation making power in section 29 of the Agriculture Act 2020. To do this, we will work with industry as we develop these regulations.

These regulations will propose that written agreements are used between all producers and their buyers. Defra will work closely with industry to explore the details and provisions that should be mandatory or prohibited as part of these agreements.