Australia beef deal farms will be size of UK national parks

AN AREA the size of all the UK’S national parks combined will be converted into cattle farms as Australian companies gear up to supply Britain following a trade deal, the WWF has warned.

The charity said cattle producers will expand their exports to the UK by tenfold because of the deal, which gives Australia tariff-free access for 35,000 tonnes of beef – rising to 170,000 tonnes in 10 years’ time.

It warned the increase will involve converting 10,000 of acres of “virgin” land to cattle farms, much of which could be deforested – contributing to more carbon in the atmosphere.

The area to be converted to beef farms is roughly equivalent to the size of all the UK’S national parks combined.

The Australian Agricultural Company – the country’s largest beef exporter – said last year that it plans to increase production for the UK market by tenfold. This would mean 15,000 tonnes of beef is sent to the UK each year. British cattle farmers have warned that giving Australia greater tariff-free access will undercut UK producers.

In December, when the trade deal was signed, it was described by the National Farmers’ Union as “damaging” and “one-sided”. The WWF and Green Alliance, an environmental campaign group, said ministers should give greater emphasis to environmental considerations when striking trade deals in the future.

Despite the Government’s assurances that the Australia deal would not have a serious effect on emissions, the impact assessment used by civil servants does not factor in changes in land use. Cattle grazing is the leading cause of deforestation in Australia, with around 70pc nationally ascribed to grazing. Australian cattle farms also have a much lower density of animals, with around five per square kilometre, compared to the 100 per square kilometre density that is customary in the UK.

A government spokesman said: “The independent Trade & Agriculture Commission’s recent report concluded that Australia has been reforesting rather than deforesting overall, and the commission’s overall conclusions would not support the WWF’S concerns.”