A panel of experts drawn from across the rural community have spoken of the challenges facing the community at the first LEP/Yorkshire Bank Leaders' Lunch event hosted at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston on Tuesday.

They also discussed issues such as migrant workers, diversification and the future of the industry at the debate, which was beamed live across the internet.

Robin Cropper, a West Lancashire potato farmer and representative of the National Farmers' Union (NFU), warned there was a "massive" burden being placed on the agricultural community by increased regulation.

He said: "There is a huge added cost with this red tape which adds extra time and effort which ultimately comes off the bottom line."

William Slinger, a director at Connect Plus, the Ribble Valley firm behind Bowland Fresh milk range now stocked in Booths and Asda supermarkets, said he believed that increasing food prices was not the issue for farmers.

He said: "It is about securing more of what people are paying for their food from the supermarkets, a bigger slice of the pie, that is the key to succeeding.

"We have found that people want an identifiable product which tells them where it's come from.

"If you give them that you're on the right road."

Also on the panel were Thomas Wilson, from TWS which supplies vegetables to Aldi supermarkets, Honeywell Meats owner Anthony Gornall, Geoff Tomlinson from law firm Napthens Rural and Jonathan Cross of rural accountants Towers and Gornall.