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Fears about the impact of the UK’s Free Trade Deal with Australia are 'overblown', according to the chair of the Trade and Agriculture Commission. Farming Unions have warned that the agreement could see food produced to lower standards than allowed here, being imported - and undercutting British farmers. But the TAC concludes that in most cases those sorts of Australian products are unlikely to be imported - and that there are safeguards in the deal to maintain animal welfare and environmental standards.

The proportion of Scottish estates sold behind closed doors, doubled last year - according to a new report released by the Scottish Land Commission. It showed there was also a marked shift in who’s buying the land, with nearly half all estates purchased in Scotland in 2021, sold to corporate bodies, investment funds or charitable trusts – motivated by the potential for carbon offsetting and developing large-scale environmental improvement.

This week, applications opened for the Government's new Lump Sum Exit Scheme - supposed to help farmers in England who want to retire or leave the industry. Meanwhile a pilot New Entrant Support Scheme is also due to start this year. We look at how easy it is to get in and out of farming.

Presented by Charlotte Smith
Produced for Â鶹ԼÅÄ Audio Bristol by Heather Simons