SAOS Update
Summer 2026
All Talk but no Action - Bridging the Gap
WO R K I N G T O G E T H E R T O SHA P E T H E F U T U R E O F FA R M I N G A N D F O O D
Raising awareness of these barriers and advancing proactive solutions is now a priority for SAOS and is driving our expanded advocacy work. In recent months, policy proposals have been shared with the Scottish Government and meetings held with officials. Similarly, at a UK level, we met recently with Alistair Carmichael MP, the Chair of the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs Committee. SAOS Chief Executive, Tim Bailey
There is no lack of enthusiasm from governments, regulators, NGOs and trade bodies for endorsing cooperation. Everyone seems to agree that co-operation is something food and farming needs to embrace, and there are multiple key strategic drivers to tap into: exploiting new markets, tackling climate and nature emergencies, adopting innovation and increasing agriculture’s bargaining power in the supply chain, just for starters. However progress actually building on these good intentions is glacially slow. There is now explicit acknowledgement of co-operation within the Agricultural and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024, but the associated Rural Support Plan is underwhelming in backing this up.
So what is holding back the advent of more co-operation? At present, there are real barriers to co-operation which either need to be removed, or a means provided to scramble over them! •
Discriminatory: co-ops are ineligible for certain schemes and programmes.
•
Inaccessible: co-ops are often prevented from participation due to anomalies in how the rules or criteria have been drafted.
No doubt this is usually caused by lack of awareness or naivety, and through inconsistent application across Government departments - so more ‘cock-up’ than ‘conspiracy’. But these hurdles have a stifling impact on real progress.
Direct co-op exclusion: one area in which co-ops could accelarate progress is the adoption of new The UK Government has set a target to double the size of the co-operative technology - this can be achieved economy, and established a Mutuals cost effectively by pooling investment across the membership. Yet right and Co-operatives Business Council, across the UK, our member cobut has yet to respond to the Council’s detailed recommendations ops have been unable to access capital funding support. In Scotland, and proposals. the high-profile Future Farming Talking up co-operation is the easy Investment Scheme (FFIS) was bit. But just because it’s a good available to farming businesses who idea doesn’t mean it will happen by were department-registered, and osmosis. There are many barriers and, the funding levels were determined if these aren’t acknowledged and by land area. Co-ops can fulfil the addressed, then little progress will be former, but not the latter. Similarly, made.
in England, the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund sets rules and funding caps per farm business, thus excluding co-ops. Ironically, these scheme rules have resulted in poor value for public money. Criteria anomalies: Earlier this year the Small Producers Pilot Fund (SPPF) in Scotland initially provided more optimism by explicitly supporting collaborative initiatives and, by extension, funding support for co-ops. Yet the SPPF underpinning criteria were based on the ‘small producer’ definition - i.e. limited business turnover and employee numbers, thereby rendering even our smaller and island co-ops ineligible to apply. Policy inconsistency: Scotland’s Marine Fund, and the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme in the rest of the UK, actively promote applications for funding to support co-operative activities and partnerships within our fishing sectors. This is great news, both signalling and funding within a programme to support co-operation. Guess what - nothing equivalent exists for agriculture! In Scotland, we welcome the Government’s ongoing support for the Fruit and Vegetable Aid scheme, this is a real positive, but it is a very specific and isolated example. (However, in England, DEFRA removed funding for even this!) The reality is that, for all the positive noises about co-operation being a key ingredient for success and survival for our farming and food industry, it’s all talk but no action. Co-operation cannot happen on just goodwill. It has enormous, untapped potential, but it needs to be promoted, nurtured, incentivised and funded. The future of our farming and food industry depends on it.
Save the date for the 2027 SAOS Conference! We’re back at Crieff Hydro on Thursday, 21st January