Mr Reed said: "Food production will always be the primary purpose of the farming sector, but for all farm businesses, tenants, upland and others, to stay viable in an increasingly uncertain world and to make sure they can keep producing the food we all need, they must be able to profit from other activities"

Mr Reed was questioned how he will protect tenant farmers, who are threatened by eviction from their holdings, due to landlords being concerned about the Inheritance Tax bill they will face

Mr Reed said: "12,000 farms and producer businesses went bust under the last government. This is already happening. It is nothing to do with IHT. It is because the sector is not profitable

Speaking at Oxford Farming Conference, Defra Secretary Steve Reed said: "I am sorry that some of the action we have to take shocked you in turn, but stable finances are the foundation of the economic growth"

A NFU survey of 545 livestock farmers in the South East found if there were further closures to local abattoirs, 49% of respondents said they would either have to reduce their stocking levels, stop keeping livestock or cease trading

NFU president Tom Bradshaw said the Government fails to recognise that the farming industry is in a ‘cash flow crisis' right now, with the ‘lowest farmer and grower confidence ever recorded'

The Soil Association said if the Defra Secretary wants to achieve 'long-term food security, profitability and sustainability for our farming sector', then simply monitoring for British food in public institutions 'will not be enough'

CAAV secretary and adviser Jeremy Moody said: "Our calculations point to the first decade of the proposed policy ending with 89,500 farming taxpayers liable for Inheritance Tax on their farm assets"

Tenant Farmers Association said they have only been allowed one ‘short' meeting with the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, with the Chancellor herself ‘no where to be seen'