The government has made some reassuring commitments including that 鈥榯he primary purpose of farming will always be to produce food to feed the nation鈥� and that this new Land Use Framework 鈥榠s not intended to be used to bind decision makers or prescribe land uses in specific places鈥�.
However, a particular worry about the framework is the requirement for 9% of the UAA (Utilised Agricultural Area) to be used for 鈥榚nvironmental and climate benefits鈥� rather than agriculture.
It is likely that uplands farmers will turn out to be the sacrificial lambs being used to fulfil that objective, and it feels as though we have a target on our backs.
Land sparing vs. land sharing
Uplands farming is a marginal business, and we understand that, but those marginal businesses deliver a lot of good for the environment.
鈥�I am concerned that the discussion seems to be around land sparing versus land sharing, which means nature and farming are being forced into separate silos.鈥�
NFU Uplands South Group chair Mat Cole
They produce a thriving natural environment alongside, not in spite of, a farming system 鈥� we don鈥檛 want to stop being food producers, turning grass into protein.
I am concerned that the discussion seems to be around land sparing versus land sharing, which means nature and farming are being forced into separate silos. But the uplands has been a farmed landscape for centuries, and has so much to offer with unique landscapes, hedgerows, trees and woodlands.
Make your voice heard
We are already used to farming around nature, and of course livestock plays a valuable role in upland landscapes. Uplands farms are also at the centre of a network of social and business connections.
If farmers are not doing well, other businesses and jobs that depend upon them will also suffer.
When it comes to how land should be used, government and stakeholders alike all have ideas about what should happen 鈥� which is fine, but it is vital farmers to make sure our voices are heard and the powers that be know how much public good is being delivered through farming systems.
