In a rare convergence of causes, two disparate protests illuminated the cracks in Britain's food and farming system this past weekend.
On Saturday, farmers demonstrated across the UK, spotlighted by broadcasters as they railed against inheritance tax reforms they claim will devastate family farms. A day earlier, in a quieter but no less impassioned scene outside the Home Office, migrant fruit and vegetable pickers, largely from Latin America, protested what they describe as exploitation by employers.
These actions, originating from seemingly opposite ends of the political spectrum, shared a surprising common ground. The migrant workers’ protest, backed by the Landworkers’ Alliance and Unite, rang with union banners and loudhailers. Meanwhile, a convoy of tractors set off from a farm near Heathrow, joined by Tory MPs and led by an avuncular figure in a tweed cap and red trousers, driving past Windsor Castle to Maidenhead.
The unifying thread? Both groups contend they are bearing the cost of Britain’s cheap food policies.
Outside the Home Office, Julia Quecaño Casimiro stood resolute. Through a translator, she detailed the mistreatment she and her fellow seasonal workers faced on UK farms, where they were “treated like animals.” Their grievances will be heard in employment tribunals this week, accusing Haygrove—a prominent berry grower—of unlawful wage deductions, unfair dismissals, discrimination, and harassment. Haygrove, which employs over 1,000 seasonal workers and relies on a visa scheme introduced post-Brexit, disputes these claims.
Catherine McAndrew of the Landworkers’ Alliance echoed the frustrations. “They were promised decent wages and conditions, an opportunity that could change their lives, and they found nothing of the sort,” she lamented. “They were denied work, bullied by their supervisors, and given the worst fields, because they were a different race.”
The systemic exploitation is exacerbated by supermarkets driving down prices, McAndrew explained. A study revealed that from a £2.30 punnet of strawberries, the farm retains just 50p, with workers receiving a meagre 18p after deductions. “A lot of the retailers take the lion’s share, so the workers and the farm are left to compete,” she noted.
On the other side of the debate, farmers fear the government’s proposed inheritance tax extension. Currently, farms could be passed down tax-free, but from April 2026, those inheriting farms valued over £1m will face a 20% tax. Supermarkets, including Tesco, Lidl, and Aldi, have rallied behind the farmers in their plea to scrap these changes.
William Westacott, running his family’s 500-acre farm, warns that the tax could cripple genuine farmers while failing to deter wealthy land investors. Similarly, William Emmett, whose family farmed what is now Heathrow airport, pointed out the irony of rising land values due to investor interest.
Colin Rayner, organiser of the tractor convoy, acknowledged the darker side of farm labour. “I’ve seen gangmasters with sticks, and they beat them,” he admitted, underscoring the brutal reality some seasonal workers face.
As these protests reveal, the issues plaguing Britain’s agriculture are interconnected. Alex Heffron, a PhD researcher, captured the sentiment: “The inheritance tax is a flawed policy that doesn’t really make sense. It makes it harder to positively reform the food and farming system. It’s too broad and it’s not actually going after the absentee landowners or tax dodgers.”
In a fractured landscape, perhaps these unlikely allies—farmers and migrant workers—can find strength in solidarity, pushing for a system that values both their livelihoods and their labour.
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