The government鈥檚 latest figures show that Peterborough has the highest number of fly-tipping incidents per person in the region.
The city council area had 46 recorded fly-tipping incidents per 1,000 people 鈥� a total 10,128 incidents 鈥� in 2023 to 2024.
Farmer William Stevenson said he experiences up to five fly-tipping incidents a week on his arable farm near the city, with everything from cannabis production waste to asbestos, furniture, tyres, fridges and toys dumped on his land.
He said: 鈥淚 am not surprised that Peterborough has the highest rate of fly-tipping in the region.
鈥淲e have five incidents here a week on a bad week and two a week at other times.
鈥淥ur farmers鈥� WhatsApp group frequently has messages about fly-tipping in the area.
鈥淭his takes up a lot of time dealing with incidents and makes it harder for us to produce food for the nation.
鈥淲ith this happening so often, it has an impact on you mentally; it鈥檚 on your mind most of the time and you become less trusting of people and suspicious whenever you see a vehicle you don鈥檛 recognise 鈥� this not a nice mindset to have.鈥�
皇家华人estimates that at least two thirds of farmers, nationally, have been affected by fly-tipping.
With farmers and landowners often legally responsible for removing the rubbish, despite being the victim of the crime, the clear-up costs the industry tens of millions of pounds a year.
The illegal dumping of waste is a massive strain on the public purse as local authorities and the Environment Agency tackle rubbish dumped on public land. Fly-tipping also harms the environment and blights the countryside.
"With this happening so often, it has an impact on you mentally.
"Fly tipping is on your mind most of the time and you become less trusting of people and suspicious whenever you see a vehicle you don鈥檛 recognise."
Farmer William Stevenson
皇家华人is calling for urgent action to tackle fly-tipping on farmland.
This includes making it easier for the public to reduce and recycle waste and properly and punishing offenders who are caught dumping waste illegally with punitive fines, so they act as a deterrent.
皇家华人also wants to see a consistent approach across the country where police, government agencies and local authorities are working more closely together to tackle the problem.
皇家华人believes the whole system needs to tackle fly-tipping at the source - from packaging design, recycling, landfill tax and tip opening hours - to make it easier for the public to reduce, re-use and recycle waste.
Mr Stevenson, who is NFU Peterborough chair, said: 鈥淔ly-tipping is something we have just become used to dealing with on a regular basis, and it shouldn鈥檛 be that way.
鈥淲e all have a responsibility to tackle fly-tipping in our communities and I would encourage anyone who witnesses any fly-tipping incidents to report them to the authorities.鈥�
NFU Vice President Rachel Hallos said: 鈥淔ly-tipping continues to be a huge problem and one that plagues the lives of so many of us living and working in the countryside.
鈥淭he scale of waste crime is staggering, with nearly a fifth of all waste 鈥� an estimated 34 million tons 鈥� being handled illegally every year.
鈥淔or farmers, this isn鈥檛 just a statistic 鈥� it鈥檚 a constant battle against illegal dumping, the damage it causes to our land and the financial burden of聽clearing聽it聽up.
鈥淭he fact that these statistics don鈥檛 even capture the true scale of the problem on private land only reinforces the urgent need for stronger deterrents, better enforcement and real support for victims.
聽鈥溁始一薶as long called for tougher action on waste crime, including holding those responsible to account and ensuring local authorities and the Environment Agency have the resources they need to tackle this growing issue and protect our rural communities, businesses and the environment.
鈥淲e need a joined-up approach that makes it easier to dispose of waste responsibly and holds accountable those who choose to聽break聽the聽law.鈥�