The Soil Association is raising serious concerns following the news that the government might backpedal on plans to overhaul farm subsidies to benefit nature and climate.
The organisation calls for renewed commitment to the Environmental Land Management Schemes – full statement below.
Soil Association Head of Farming Policy Gareth Morgan said:
“We are shocked to hear reports that the government may ditch plans to pay farmers to protect nature and climate – this would be a catastrophic mistake by the new Prime Minister. Tackling the climate emergency and mass declines in wildlife populations is vital for our long term food security, so to abandon plans to transform the way we support English farmers at such a crucial time would be an outrage.
“A handbrake turn on the progress made on the biggest opportunity to fix our broken farming support system in the last 50 years would not only betray nature and climate, it would also betray all those farmers who have invested so much already in tests and trials for the new Environmental Land Management Schemes.
“We know most farmers care deeply about the environment and it is vital that they’re rewarded to protect it – especially in the face of trade deals that threaten to undercut British farmers with imports of food ordered to lower environmental and animal welfare standards. Government must proceed with the most evidence-based solution – a rapid shift to agroecological, nature-friendly farming.”