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Looking at the Conservative’s manifesto, their policy focuses on “creating a more effective system of environmental stewardship” to protect the countryside whilst promoting the sustainable production of food.

They have committed to reducing on-farm inspections, abolishing the Agricultural Wages Board and reforming the Common Agricultural Policy.

Perhaps more controversially, Cameron’s party has also suggested a more proactive means of badger control in areas with high levels of bovine TB, perhaps pointing to a badger cull in the future.

But we must not forget that the Lib-Dems also feature in our new government and so their policies will form part of the new government’s plans. Promisingly, their manifesto promises to protect the natural environment while ensuring that farmers get a fairer deal.

Like the Tories, the Lib-Dems are committed to reforming the Common Agricultural Policy but they also have a focus on supporting hill farmers and providing funding for anaerobic digesters.

Unlikely the Tories, they are committed to increasing rights of access in the countryside.

Of course at this stage it is too early to tell how the new coalition government will agree it’s countryside policies, only time will tell…

A bold proposal for sure but is this kind of intensive development good for the industry or will it simply draw negative attention that will ultimately harm the reputation of the whole sector?

Undoubtedly Nocton Dairies are not proposing anything wrong. There are plenty of herds where milking cows are continuously housed and there are many in the industry that would advocate this as a high welfare system because cows can be closely monitored and cared for. But this kind of approach does not necessarily chime well with consumers, who like to think of dairy farming as a pastoral enterprise with cows happily grazing. Already, emotive media coverage has spoken of ‘large scale factory farming’ in the same breath as ‘Nocton Dairies’.

But in fact their proposals are commercially sound and cow welfare should be exemplary, particularly when a full time vet will be on site – something that not many dairy units can lay claim to. The proposed development also has the potential to be a flagship for the dairy industry, something that other dairy farmers can learn from and be proud to be associated with.

Ultimately, one thing is for certain – this kind of enterprise will have a high profile and will attract attention towards dairy farming in a more direct way than we have perhaps ever seen before. The development therefore carries a huge reputational responsibility unlike that ever seen before on a UK farm. If Nocton Dairies is a successful business, with good welfare and performance standards then it will represent the very best of our dairy industry. But, should things go wrong, the problems will be hugely visible and this could have implications for every single farmer in the country. The public’s ignorance about farming may also be a threat and Nocton will have to be open and communicative to the public to garner support.

It will be interesting to see these exciting proposals develop in the coming months – for it is perhaps the first farming enterprise in this country where every farmer has a vested interest in it being successful.

The report, entitled ‘Food 2030’ was launched by Defra Secretary, Hilary Benn MP, at the Oxford Farming Conference on January 5, and has been widely welcomed by the farming industry. It focuses on securing food supplies to meet growing demand whilst protecting and enhancing the environment.

The document paints a picture of an industry where consumers have a choice of healthy sustainable UK-produced food and where UK farmers are profitable, competitive and resilient. The report also envisages an agricultural industry that makes a significant contribution to rural communities whilst being a global leader in food sustainability.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Food 2030 also focuses on carbon, aiming for the UK to have a low carbon food system with waste being reused, recycled or used for energy generation.

Undoubtedly this document paints a positive picture for the food industry moving forward. But, as always, the devil is in the detail – it will be interesting to see how this new vision translates into policy in the coming years.

Of the individual farm types, specialist pig farms, grazing livestock farms and dairy farms all saw modest increases in income, whilst cereal farms, poultry farms and horticultural units saw a small decline in income.

The review will look to see what benefits could be gained by connecting sites within designated areas and outside them through re-wilding initiatives – allowing farmland to return to its wild state which could include reintroductions of species such as lynx and elk.

But the proposal looks certain to be controversial. The Country Land and Business Association has already branded the proposals ‘misconceived and ill thought out’ and it will be interesting to see how Defra balances its food security agenda with its wildlife and countryside plans…