Prime Minister Theresa May has announced further ministerial appointments following last week’s General Election, including the reappointment of George Eustice as Minister of State at Defra.

George Eustice

George Eustice.

Eustice’s previous responsibilities included food and farming, the Common Agricultural Policy, apprenticeships, exports and bovine tuberculosis policy, fisheries, better regulation, as well as science and innovation.Eustice was appointed Minister of State at Defra in 2015. He was elected to Parliament at the 2010 General Election as the Conservative MP for Camborne and Redruth. He also served on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee from 2010.Eustice comes from a farming background, as his family still run a fruit farm, restaurant and farm shop in Cornwall, where they also have a herd of South Devon cattle and the country’s oldest herd of the rare breed of pig, British Lop.The family has also shown a keen interest in educating children about farming and have opened their farm to 3,000 schoolchildren a year.

Norman Bagley.

AIMS head of policy Norman Bagley.

Head of Policy at the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (AIMS), Norman Bagley, told Meat Management about the reappointment: "The abattoir and processing industry depends on a critical mass of livestock in order to prosper."Concerns have been voiced across industry at George Eustice's previous adherence to less intensive and costly farming systems."We shall be seeking assurance that mainline production will not be strangled by misguided and unrealistic policy making."

This story was originally published on a previous version of the Meat Management website and so there may be some missing images and formatting issues.