that lock farmers into failed habits .” Thirdly , the EU must start enforcing environmental laws . Agriculture has the worst track record of any industry in respecting environmental legislation – yet it is also the most subsidised sector . Taxpayers are paying polluters to damage the environment . To Brunner and 258,708-plus EU citizens , this makes no sense .
If the new CAP delivers BirdLife ’ s demands , Brunner is confident that Europe ’ s farmland birds will resurge . “ We have seen across multiple landscapes that environmentally sensitive farming works wonders . At Hope Farm in the UK , the RSPB ( BirdLife Partner ) has doubled numbers of farmland birds . On Portuguese farms running agri-environment schemes , Great Bustard Otis tarda populations have also doubled .” Similar stories resound from Ireland to Italy . But what about the world overall ? Surely the food gap is too huge to close without obliterating biodiversity ? Brunner does not doubt that the challenge is mighty . But nor does he despair . Although there is no silver bullet , a menu of solutions exists . We must , he believes , swallow some bitter pills (“ We have to accept that we cannot extend a European or North American diet to 10 billion people ”) and take thorny decisions that address both production and consumption .
On the latter , Brunner identifies three fundamental changes : grow more food , waste less food , eat different food . “ We could free up land for food by switching off subsidies for biofuel crops ” says Brunner . “ We waste a third of food , so let ’ s avoid buying produce we don ’ t eat and let ’ s repurpose what ’ s left for animal feed or composting .” The WRI agrees , calculating that halving food waste by 2050 would reduce the food gap by 20 %. As for diet , Brunner argues : “ rather than shifting food choices by legislating
– which would be culturally insensitive – let ’ s make it easier to consume foodstuffs other than meat and dairy .” The WRI again concurs , reckoning that if wealthy countries consumed less animal-based food , the world could feed 10 billion people without further agricultural expansion .
Smarter production , Brunner says , involves generating food in ways that return biodiversity to the land . To illustrate , he contrasts two approaches in the sugar industry : “ In Australia , there are sterile plantations with no wildlife that generate toxic run-off that traumatises the Great Barrier Reef . In Brazil , some pioneering organic plantations are generating great yields while harbouring wildlife including Jaguar [ Panthera onca ].” Allinson praises initiatives rewarding farmers with a market premium for biodiversity-friendly products . He cites BirdLife Cambodia Programme ’ s scheme that helps farmers grow organic rice , hilst benefiting five Critically Endangered birds including Giant Ibis Thaumatibis gigantea [ see page 27 ].
You and I may not be producers , but we are consumers . If we put our money where our mouth is , we have a say in what transpires . We can make more wildlife-friendly food choices and persuade others to do the same . Our purchasing power can place market pressure on the food-supply chain . And we can tell our democratic representatives what they must do to get our vote . Over time , good individual intentions can multiply and evolve into good government policies – those that Brunner says “ shun perverse subsidies , invest public funds in public goods such as wildlife , and enforce environmental legislation ”. Agriculture may shroud birds ’ present in gloom , but this absolutely need not spell their doom .
4 Aerial view of a harvest field , Poland Photo Mariusz Szczygiel
0 Giant Ibis Thaumatibis gigantea Photo J C Eames
rather than shifting food choices by legislating , let ’ s make it easier to consume foodstuffs other than meat and dairy
ARIEL BRUNNER Senior head of policy , birdlife europe jul-sep 2018 • birdlife 23