In light of the resignation of Red Tractor Chair Christine Tacon, the owners of Red Tractor have appointed current Vice-Chair Alistair Mackintosh as interim chair.
Mackintosh will start in post on 1 July 2024, the agreed date Christine will step down. He will continue in post until at least January 2025 by which time the interim findings of the independent review into farm assurance should be known.
Red Tractor is a not for profit company and its owners represent the supply chain that Red Tractor provides assurance for. There are six owners – Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), The National Farmers Union (NFU), NFU Scotland, The Ulster Farmers Union (UFU), Dairy UK, the British Retail Consortium (BRC). There is also one observer, the Food and Drink Federation.
Red Tractor said, “We would like to thank Christine for her work as Chair of Red Tractor. Her diligence and strong leadership has helped steer the organisation through an extremely challenging period for food and farming.
“As the longstanding Vice-Chair of Red Tractor, we believe that Alistair can build on the strong foundations left by Christine, provide stability for the organisation and face into the concerns of Red Tractor members.
“We will begin the process of recruiting a new permanent chair of Red Tractor this Autumn.”
New interim chair Alistair Macintosh said, “I’m honoured to be asked to act as interim chair. Christine has made a huge contribution to Red Tractor and I look forward to continuing her work.
“As a farmer, I’ve seen the huge benefits that Red Tractor has delivered since its establishment in 2000. I’m totally committed to rebuilding farmers’ trust in Red Tractor, fully engaging with the review into farm assurance and working to demonstrate the value that Red Tractor brings to farmers like myself.”