A PANEL event, organised by the Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN), was held to discuss climate action in UK agriculture and what is needed to drive change.
Organised as part of the Oxford Real Farming Conference, the panel featured a range of speakers, including farmer Helen Keys from Mallon Farm, based in County Tyrone.
Ms Keys, who is a member of the NFFN’s Northern Ireland farmer steering group, has said farming policy in the Province needs to get behind farming systems that can restore biodiversity and mitigate global warming.
“We can see the steps being taken elsewhere in the UK to reform farming from one funded on size alone to one where environmental improvement is built into payment schemes. It’s time for Northern Ireland to commit the same value to public money for public goods and give farmers a greater sense of direction for the future,” said Ms Keys.
“What farmers do with their land dramatically impacts everyone – from water pollution to soil health. Farmland is one of our greatest tools in addressing the climate crisis and Northern Ireland has a lot more to do in mobilising farming to be a hero of the climate change narrative.
“Is the recently announced scheme, Farming With Nature, enough? Voluntary environmental stewardship schemes, both in NI and across the UK, have been ongoing for decades at the same time as we’ve seen extreme declines in biodiversity. Schemes will need to go well beyond anything that’s been delivered before, instead of making slight changes to the status quo.”
She added: “Environmental protection needs to be at the heart of everything we do, it’s not a sideliner or optional extra.”
She said productivity and farming in harmony with nature aren’t mutually exclusive, and without legislation or targets in place farmers are left to maintain systems which have impacted the environment.
“The big challenge is to maintain production whilst we make the necessary changes, but we must find a more balanced system or we risk losing the healthy ecosystems that we rely on to farm. All farmers need to act now on climate change and we’re all in this together,” said Ms Keys.
She added: “We can all take steps to prepare for a future in which the needs of nature and climate will be a key consideration in how we run our businesses.”
Martin Lines, who is chairman of the NFFN, said farms that start taking action to address climate change and biodiversity loss will improve their resilience and make their business more profitable in the future.
He said: “As farmers we have to ask ourselves whether or not our farm system could continue profitably without BPS. If not, it’s time to make changes, and more often than not those are the same changes needed to make your business more climate and nature-friendly.”
A new report published by the NFFN advises farmers on how to start and continue the journey of farming for climate with recommendations on incremental changes across the whole farm landscape, from creating habitats and implementing sustainable stocking rates to reducing tillage and protecting water courses.
A new report published by the NFFN advises farmers on how to start and continue the journey of farming for climate with recommendations on incremental changes across the whole farm landscape, from creating habitats and implementing sustainable stocking rates to reducing tillage and protecting water courses.
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