The Farmers Mart Aug-Sep 2019 - Issue 64 | Page 34
34 LIVESTOCK
AUG/SEP 2019 • farmers-mart.co.uk
New Report Recognises
Positive Role of
Livestock in Climate
Change Mitigation
The Sustainable Food Trust welcomes a new report,
released by the UN Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC), which recognises the
importance of diverse farming systems, including
sustainably managed pasture and livestock,
as a key means of mitigating climate change.
CONTRARY to some of today’s head-
lines that are calling for a shift to
exclusively plant-based diets, the con-
clusions of the report actually find that
balanced diets should include ani-
mal-sourced food produced in resilient,
sustainable and low-greenhouse gas
emission systems, and that these present
major opportunities for climate adap-
tation and mitigation while generating
significant co-benefits in terms of human
health.
While agriculture is one of the greatest
contributors to climate change, this
also means it has the greatest mitigation
potential. Soil degradation in particular
can not only be halted but be reversed
through a return to mixed farming
systems which include pasture and
nitrogen-fixing forage legumes grazed by
ruminant animals.
We therefore believe that calls for a
shift to mainly plant-based diets are mis-
guided and can do more harm than good.
It is crucial that in transitioning towards
more sustainable farming systems we
must consider the sustainability of all
foods, not only of livestock products.
Patrick Holden, Chief Executive of the
Sustainable Food Trust, said, “We think
many of the headlines about this report
are not accurate and we instead need a
much more nuanced public discussion
about which foods, both livestock and
plant-based, are part of the solution and
which are part of the problem.
It’s all very well for those recommending
a switch to eating more plant-based foods,
but if those diets include foods like palm
oil, genetically modified soy, almond milk
or avocados, for example, all of which are
from production systems that are causing
damage to the environment, they will do
nothing to tackle climate change.”
As the report highlights, diverse, locally
appropriate mixed farming, which
counters the damage done by years of
continuous arable cropping reliant on
chemical inputs, will have a transforma-
tive effect on the environment, climate
and public health.
www.ipcc.ch/report/srccl
AHDB INVESTS
IN PRACTICAL
SUPPORT FOR
GROWERS FACING
CHEMISTRY LOSS
AHDB’s Strategic Potato Farm network is carrying out
a variety of trials to ensure growers have effective
alternatives for banned chemicals such as diquat and CIPC.
THE trials currently being
undertaken on the network
of five farms – based in
Perthshire, West Suffolk,
Shropshire, Somerset and
North Lincolnshire – are
supported by research
funded by AHDB, ensuring
the results are both robust
and commercially viable.
Senior Knowledge
Exchange Manager Claire
Hodge explains: “We are
very aware of the chal-
lenges that the continual
loss of chemistry poses.
The industry has lost both
diquat for burndown, and
CIPC for storage, in quick
succession, and this trend is
likely to continue.
“Our strategic farms
are ideally placed to help
growers find alternatives
as they can trial different
practices in a commercial
environment and make
sure the results are swiftly
shared with growers.”
In terms of the loss of
diquat, which is a real
concern for producers
across the country, several
strategic farms are looking
at potential alternatives.
There are currently
replicated trials on both
alternative chemical and
mechanical methods which
are being run in conjunc-
tion with similar work at
the James Hutton Institute.
These aim to highlight
which methods will be most
cost-effective for growers in
the future.
Two strategic farms –
West and North – are trying
to find to solutions to the
loss of CIPC for potato
storage. Both sites are
trialling different varieties
to see which are less prone
to sprouting while still being
commercially viable, and
they are also testing the
effectiveness of maleic
hydrazide as an alternative
chemical treatment.
Other on farm research
includes trap crops (other
crops planted nearby
which are more attrac-
tive to pests), the use of
air sprayers (which use
less water and should
allow a more precise and
effective application of
fungicide) and chemical
alternatives to the herbi-
cide linuron.
All the current work is
supported by a range of
AHDB-funded research
activities including our
SCEPTREPlus project which
aims to identify sustainable
plant protection products,
Blightwatch and our PhD
studentships.