Reading NFU president Peter Kendall's speech this week it is hard not to feel deflated.
He called for ministers to switch agricultural policy away from biodiversity, and concentrate more on productivity. This comes at a time when Defra has clearly set out its stall to try to understand how to increase productivity whilst enhancing the environment. It is only when all sides are open about the challenges we face that we have a hope of coming up with answers.
It is worth remembering that the NFU and RSPB are partners in the Campaign for the Farmed Environment which encourages farmers to put in place wildlife measures on their land. Peter's latest comments threaten to undermine this approach.
I am genuinely saddened by the speech. I thought that we were all signed up to the Government approach led by Agriculture Minister, Jim Paice. My worry is that this could undermine all the hard work being done by farmers, the Government and conservationists to help our threatened farmland wildlife.
Like Peter, I celebrate the environmental progress that is being made, for example the improvement in the quality of many rivers and the work by passionate farmers who have helped bring some of the most threatened farmland species back from the brink.
But as he well knows there is a continuing decline in farmland birds across the UK – and overall numbers have plummeted by 50 per cent since 1970. We have also seen worrying falls in the numbers of butterflies, wild flowers and other species from our farmed countryside.
Yes more research and development into productivity is needed in the industry – but not at the expense of agri environment schemes which deliver so much.
What the Government, the RSPB and many farmers out there want to see is a healthy and productive countryside that supports our native wildlife. These comments are an unhelpful distraction from all our efforts.
Biodiversity and food production are not mutually exclusive. Our work at Hope Farm has demonstrated this. We have maintained a commercially viable farm whilst tripling the numbers of farmland birds.
We have taken steps to reassure all those who have worked so hard get the Campaign for the Farmed Environment off the ground, and all those farmers who are doing what they can to create a space for nature on their land that their efforts are valued.
I hope that Peter does the same.
Hi Martin,sad to see someone so one sided but lets look at the positives,lots of farmers are ignoring what he says and are already in agri environment schemes also lots of farmers are not NFU members.Think you need to just think that he has very little influence as even what is say beneficial for arable farmers such as improved grain prices that is the opposite to what livestock farmers would like.He therefore carry's very little influence on farming community and think you need to look to the big influence that E U politicians exert on farminng community with the policy all coming from them.