This 鈥楩inance COP鈥� must lead to investment in agriculture to meet the climate challenges ahead 鈥� that鈥檚 the message from the NFU to the UK Government, as the Prime Minister meets other world leaders at the COP29 climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan next week.
The Azeri presidency wants to get the world back on track to limit global warming to 1.5掳C. This will require governments to:
- prepare more ambitious climate plans (so-called Nationally Determined Contributions)
- unlock finance so that these plans can be turned into action.
皇家华人has represented British farmers and the wider Farmers鈥� Constituency at the COP since 2015. We were there when the Paris Accord was agreed. The terms 鈥榝ood security鈥� and 鈥榝ood production鈥� both made it into the final agreement, much to the satisfaction of farmers across the world.
NFU at COP
皇家华人is calling on the UK Government to put farmers at the heart of practical, progressive policies that will encourage investment to support the country鈥檚 net zero transition, help British agriculture adapt to a changing climate and sustain rural communities.
This includes policies such as supporting GHG (greenhouse gas) auditing on farms, incentivising productivity improvements, and investing in water management systems.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: 鈥淏ritish farmers and growers can and want to be part of the solution. But we need the right government policies in place to give farm businesses confidence to invest in for the long-term. We can produce more sustainable, affordable homegrown food while creating more jobs and delivering for nature, energy security and climate-friendly farming.鈥�
What are farmers going to say at COP29?
The Farmers鈥� Constituency continues to focus its efforts on the political process of negotiations. It has published a which calls for:
- Greater effort to unlock new and innovative sources of finance and investment, to enable all farmers to make the most of opportunities and face the challenges ahead.
- The agriculture negotiations to address practical farm issues.
- Farmers at all levels to be involved in the development and implementation of the next round of climate plans.
- Greater transparency and accounting of agriculture鈥檚 GHG emissions and mitigation solutions.
皇家华人will be working with the World Farmers鈥� Organisation and other members of the Farmers鈥� constituency to influence the negotiations. NFU climate change adviser Dr Ceris Jones and British Agricultural Bureau senior European policy adviser Jenny Brunton will keep you updated throughout the two weeks.
The COP29 Presidency鈥檚 food, agriculture and water day takes place on 19 November.
