More than four in 10 farmers say they still don’t have fast and reliable broadband or strong enough mobile phone signals to be able to run their businesses properly.
A survey of 430 farmers by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) highlights how farmers are getting left behind as the gap widens between rural and urban connectivity.
NFU Deputy President Stuart Roberts said: “For too long, those living and working in the countryside have been dealt a poor hand when it comes to digital connectivity; waiting for improvements which never seem to arrive.”
He added that modern farming families relied on fast and reliable internet access, especially at such a critical time when much is changing.
“We have consistently highlighted poor mobile signals in rural areas, which put farmers at risk and prohibit the adoption of new technologies which have much to offer the sector and how we produce our food,” Mr Roberts said.
Recently the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) highlighted that people living in rural areas “risk being left even further behind” if the Government does not improve rural connectivity.
“We will continue to campaign for investment in the country’s digital infrastructure so that farm businesses can meet their potential, not only as food producers and custodians of the countryside, but in helping to tackle climate change and deliver on our net zero ambitions,” he concluded.
LSL News.