The President of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), Tom Bradshaw has described the lack of any commitments to future farm funding in the Labour party manifesto as “deeply disappointing”.

The failure of Labour to mention farm funding is in contrast to the Lib Dem and Conservative manifestos which both set out plans to increase the UK agriculture budget by £1bn annually (compared to around £3bn at present).

The NFU leader also took aim at Labour for describing the badger cull in England as “ineffective”, maintaining the language used was “incredibly unhelpful”.

“It disregards the latest science showing a 56% decline in this awful disease,” Bradshaw added.

Despite those concerns, the NFU welcomed various commitments made across the three manifestos, especially Labour plans to promote high standards in food imports and the Conservative promise for a legally binding target to enhance food security.

All three parties have also said they will increase the amount of locally produced food used in public sector contracts.