An intervention by the NFU has resulted in silage wrap being exempted from a proposed £200-a-tonne environmental levy, with the Union believing most of the additional cost would have been passed on to farm users.
Over Christmas 2021, HMRC issued guidance that listed silage wrap as “packaging” for the first time, thus making it subject to the Plastic Packaging Levy. Treasury officials confirmed the change in early January.
In briefings to MPs, and in a meeting between NFU president Minette Batters and Treasury minister Helen Whatley, the NFU challenged the HMRC decision. It said the primary role of silage wrap was to ensure silage fermentation, which exempted it from the packaging levy, and also argued that the function of silage wrap made the use of more recycled or biodegradable wraps impractical. Eventually, in a letter of response to the NFU, the Treasury said: “Following further careful analysis, HMRC has confirmed that silage film falls under an exemption. Representations made by you and others have demonstrated that (it) is a highly specialised product, the primary purpose of which is to enable fermentation.”
NFU deputy president Stuart Roberts had also called for a rethink, noting that coffee pods and boil-in-the-bag rice packets were exempt from the tax, despite often proving far harder to recycle and with clear alternatives being available. Mr Roberts added: “The NFU would like government to support improvements to domestic recycling of more contaminated plastic feedstocks such as silage wrap. This could improve the circular waste economy and minimise costs for recycling plastics used on farms.
“In the longer term, we are also calling for further support to develop affordable, technically suitable silage films produced with more recycled content, or from bio-based alternatives.”