Farming Archives - Action on Climate Emergency (ACE)

Government ignores scientific advice on pesticide

Barry White

The recent decision by the government to ignore advice scientific and allow farmers to continue using a bee-harming pesticide on sugar beet crops has been criticised by ecologists. The neonicotinoid pesticide treatment, known as thiamethoxam, was banned in the EU in 2018 due to the damage it causes to bees, pollinators and aquatic life if it ends up in rivers. The pesticide was previously approved for use on sugar beet due to a high incidence of yellows virus, which can destroy crops. Around 63 per cent of the UK’s sugar is produced domestically, and the government says this could be at risk if a significant amount of the crop is infected.

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Urgent need to tackle methane emissions

Barry White

Methane emissions are driving the warming of the planet faster than carbon dioxide https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-00312-2. To track and measure these emissions, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) launched the International Methane Emissions Observatory in October 2021. It catalogues discharges from the fossil fuel sector, together with waste and agricultural releases. These gases are responsible for more than 25 per cent of the global warming.

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The food price squeeze – what is to be done?

Barry White

A food charity which campaigns for a sustainable food system which delivers health and well-being for all has recently produced a 4 point plan for the cost of living crisis. With inflation running at 9.4% (consumer price index for June) and the rate is expected to rise past 13 % in the coming months, The Food Foundation’s (https://foodfoundation.org.uk/ ) plan is very timely.

It points out that food and non-alcoholic drinks prices rose by 6.7% between April 2021 and April 2022, while household food insecurity rates between October 2021 and April 2022 were 60% higher than during the first six months of the Covid pandemic.

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Action on food security and hedgerows

Cat Rowland CPRE Digital Engagement Officer

Research on food security by the CPRE, the countryside charity, finds that almost 14,500 hectares of England’s best agricultural land been lost to development since 2010 -that’s enough land to grow 250,000 tonnes of vegetables a year! They are calling on the government to introduce a land use strategy that protects prime farmland and safeguards food security. You can see more at: watch our video.

More at: https://www.cpre.org.uk/news/we-call-for-land-strategy-and-new-planning-rules-to-guard-food-security/

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