Farmers' Markets (Hansard, 25 November 2002)

§ Lord Whitty

The Government very much welcome the development of farmers markets and the benefits they bring and recognise the important role the National Association of Farmers' Markets (NAFM) plays in publicising markets and assuring standards. The Countryside Agency has supported NAFM with funding of £110,000, which covered administrative and staffing start-up costs. We will continue to support NA FM where we can, but further core funding would fall foul of state aid rules which require such funding to be time-limited and degressive.

The Countryside Agency is funding a business plan review for NAFM and is working closely with the organisation to put together a future funding strategy. There are also project funds available under the England Rural Development Programme (ERDP) and the Agricultural Development Scheme (ADS). Both schemes are competitive and therefore offer no guarantee that a NAFM application would be successful, but they do offer the chance of continuing financial support, which would be compatible with state aid rules.