'We're on it', say farmers challenged to cut their carbon emissions

The "Land of Plenty" report by conservation charity WWF says UK agriculture "can and must" reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 35pc by 2030, and by 51pc by 2050, compared to 2018 levels, in order to meet climate targets.

It also calls for government policies to cut the industry's overseas carbon footprint, particularly relating to soy feed and fertiliser imports, by 57pc by 2050.

Farms are responsible for an estimated 12pc of UK greenhouse gas emissions, with more than half of agriculture's contribution being methane from cattle and sheep.

But East Anglian farmers said the industry is aware of its responsibilities - and well placed to play a key role in the nation's net-zero ambitions.

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) has published an online "Net Zero Pledge Map", which highlights many Norfolk farmers' efforts to reduce emissions.

They include precision farming to improve the efficiency of nitrogen-based fertilisers, and livestock feed additives and animal health initiative to reduce methane emissions from cattle and sheep.

NFU East Anglia regional director Gary Ford said: “Agriculture has a unique role to play in tackling climate change as both a source and a sink of greenhouse gas emissions, which is why we are working towards an industry-wide target to become net zero by 2040.

“Our farmers in Norfolk are really well placed to deliver the necessary environmental and climate benefits, while maintaining domestic food production, including the production of nutritious meat and dairy.

“For example, livestock farming is vital to the Broads as, alongside food production, grazing land supports a huge array of birds, insects and plants, including raptors, breeding waders and waterfowl.

“It’s also important to remember that emissions from home-grown beef and dairy are less than half the global average.

“If we reduced sustainable production here, it would only export our carbon footprint to countries which don’t meet our own high environmental standards and risk seeing food imports produced to standards that would be illegal here.”

The WWF report says moving towards "regenerative farming" practices has a major part to play, alongside shifts in consumer's diets.

Many livestock farmers acknowledge the need for a reduction in meat consumption, but are urging people to choose pasture-fed British beef over imports of intensively-produced meat fed on soya crops linked with deforestation in South America.

The regenerative revolution is gaining traction in Norfolk, where examples include Old Hall Farm at Woodton, near Bungay, which has transformed from an intensive pig farm into a grass-fed dairy herd, grazing on lush, densely-vegetated pastures.

Here, livestock is used to recycle nutrients within a soil-nurturing system which removes the need for artificial fertilisers and stores carbon in grassland.

For Norfolk and Suffolk's major pig and poultry sectors, feed from imported soya represents a large proportion of the carbon footprint.

In recent months, pork producer Pilgrim’s UK, which is supplied by pig farms across East Anglia, committed to using certified, zero-deforestation sustainable soya to feed its animals by 2025.

And Cranswick Country Foods, which processes pork and poultry at its plants in Watton and Eye, claims its move to 100pc deforestation-free soya would allow it to make a 21pc reduction in carbon emissions.

Mark Gorton is a director of Traditional Norfolk Poultry, based in Shropham near Attleborough, and also a member of the NFU poultry board.

He said his free range chickens have a high 70pc proportion of cereals in their diets, but he said it might not always be easy for poultry firms to replace imported soya with more sustainable home-grown crops.

"A standard broiler chicken will be more reliant on soya," he said. "The whole industry is very conscious of this, and we are looking at alternative sources of home-grown protein.

"The obvious ones are peas, beans and rapeseed, but there is also some very interesting work around producing proteins from insects, to see if that's a viable way to reduce reliance on soya.

"It is very early days and there is a long way to go but it is a step in the right direction."

Rebecca Mayhew with her Jersey cows at Old Hall Farm in Woodton near Bungay (Image: Old Hall Farm)

A dairy farmer's view: Rebecca Mayhew at Old Hall Farm

"While the report had some very sensible suggestions such as drastically reducing the amount of artificial inputs used to grow crops (for animals and humans), and cutting food waste across all sectors as well as in the home, perpetuating the fallacy that diet changes alone will save the world is nothing short of ludicrous.

"Let’s face it – open cast mining/air travel is more damaging to the planet than my cattle but the headlines don’t reflect that.

"Weaponising food by placing blame at the plate of the individual and not large-scale industry is a literal smoke screen for the petroleum and chemical companies to hide behind.

"As a farmer of purely pasture-fed cattle for meat and milk it is disappointing to be tarred with the same brush as these big polluters.

"Considerable improvements can be made in conventional agriculture (for plants, meat and milk) – it’s not the 'what', it’s the 'how'.

"Plant-based alternatives are at least as damaging as conventional meat and dairy, with less nutritional benefit, and no ecosystem benefits whatsoever.

"If you really want to help save the world, eat locally and seasonally, find out how your food is grown (and demand better), cut food waste, and cut global travel.

"Grazing animals can help save the planet, if they are managed in a restorative way."

Analysis

Growing concerns over climate change have prompted a distinct change in the messages from the farming community in recent years.

And while environmental arguments have become increasingly focused on the carbon footprint of livestock, it has also changed the tone of the discussion on meat in our diets.

The notion of going vegan to save the planet, which may once have been dismissed completely, has now become a much more nuanced discussion.

Farmers now engage on these topics very attentively, keen to draw distinctions between grass-fed British production and the lower standards in other parts of the world.

This is partly being driven by the concerns of their consumers, but also by a huge change in government policy.

The post-Brexit switch from EU subsidies to environmental payments means that the drive for agriculture to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions is now a financial imperative, as well as an environmental ambition.