The Soil Association has released this response to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Soil Association Head of Farming Policy Gareth Morgan said: “The latest IPCC report emphasises clearly and emphatically that climate change, driven unequivocally by human action, is having ‘irreversible’ and ‘unprecedented’ impacts on people, cities, countries, animals and plants worldwide right now. Nowhere is this more evident than in our food system which faces risks throughout its entire supply chain and must be transformed to make it resilient in the face of a changing climate. To do this we urgently need to support farmers to make a wholesale transition to nature-friendly, agroecological farming, with fairness and transparency at its core. Studies show that, alongside a shift to healthy and sustainable diets, this type of farming can sustainably feed our population, enhance nature, and bring down farming emissions.
“British farmers must be at the centre of this transition and adequate support for them to work in harmony with nature, with farmer-led research into sustainable solutions, is essential. This must include funding and training to help farmers to plant trees in agroforestry systems – combining trees with crops and farm animals – so we can restore nature while producing good quality food.”