Beef and sheep farmers in Wales respond to Climate Change Committee report

This morning, the Climate Change Committee has released their latest report, which assesses the progress Britain is making towards its decarbonisation targets. The committee, chaired by Lord Deben, believes that while the government has been right to set ambitious climate goals, they are not yet doing enough to reach Net Zero. The report is critical of plans to fire up coal power stations, though it does praise efforts to expand the production of renewable energy.

Climate and environmental concerns are central in the food sector, and concerns about the affordability and sustainable supply of food are currently higher than ever. The CCC report highlights the lack of clear policy on how to tackle emissions from farming. Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC)/Meat Promotion Wales, the public sector body which represents the interests of beef and sheep farmers and red meat producers in Wales, believes that some of the solutions to the issues around emissions from agriculture can already be found working on Welsh farms.  

Owen Roberts, Communications Manager at HCC, has responded to the CCC report as follows:

“The issue of climate change is undoubtedly an urgent one that needs to be tackled, as set out in the Climate Change Committee’s latest report. It is vital that all sectors play their part, including agriculture.

“Decarbonising agriculture should be a key ambition, as the report sets out. But it is important to distinguish between different types of farming. Regenerative approaches to farming, like the Welsh Way, should be seen as solutions to the climate challenge. These use non-intensive methods, are suited to the landscape and climate of this country and utilise land that’s unsuitable for other types of farming.

“Research shows that lamb and beef production in Wales is already much lower in terms of emissions than most other countries, and projects are underway to reduce the climate impact even further. At a time when farmers are facing skyrocketing costs, pressure to protect our food security and the threat of policies that support the import of food produced to lower environmental and welfare standards, we should be encouraging the work they are doing to contribute to our environmental targets and meet the urgent challenge set out in the CCC’s report.”

For further comment, spokespeople from HCC are available for interview. Please do let me know if you would be interested in this, or if you have any other questions.