Such drastic action a sign of government in panic

Autumn has started well with the UK much warmer than usual at this time of year. It has been predominantly dry in September and it could be one of the warmest ever although in West Sussex we have had a poorer time of it than other parts of the country. The light has changed and we have misty patches at night and daylight hours are diminishing at quite a pace. Cooler, darker nights are coming and to make things worse we will turn the hour back next month.

A global glyphosate shortage has affected supply this autumn due to transport and logistic problems, pushing up prices on farm. Weather events and shortage of raw materials plus the Covid effect has affected China, the largest producer of the chemical, but the high demand means production is being ramped up. There will be a lag before the new supplies are available though and arable farmers need to plan ahead this autumn and factor in the shortage.

How we feed ourselves is now the big debate; accelerated by potential shortages and how our food is produced. As the energy crisis hits farms, and there is talk of Christmas being cancelled, ministers have relaxed rules including import controls on all food from the EU, scrapping trailer and caravan tests and taking the reversing part of the HGV test out! Apart from the health and safety aspects of all this, a government which takes such drastic action is not doing so in a considerate manner; it is doing so in panic.

With an acute shortage of labour and HGV drivers, crops are not being picked and deliveries are badly affected. Add to this the potential shortage of fertiliser as major plants shut down as the price of gas goes through the roof, with the added shortage of C02 (a by-product) affecting fresh produce and meat, we do indeed have some challenges. We do not feed ourselves in this country and it took 30 years to get from where we were after the Second World War to almost 80 per cent self-sufficiency in the 1980s. That has now fallen back again over the past 35 years as we import more and more food. It is therefore no surprise when global pandemics and big decisions such as leaving the EU cause real problems which leave the UK vulnerable.

It is hard for the average consumer who is surrounded in the big retail stores with a bewildering array of choices and foods from all over the globe to appreciate the delicacy and ‘just in time’ nature of all of that. Those who want to drive agriculture back to the 1950s and our own government who are reluctant to support farmers are living dangerously, as they have been led into complacency since the agricultural revolution delivered low prices and huge choice.

Professor Tim Lang at City University London points out to those who criticise agriculture daily, that every element must be considered as for example we import 89 per cent of our fruit, much of it from water-stressed areas such as Spain. We have exported much of our production in the last 30 years and with it the welfare of animals, the environmental footprint while our next big plan is to plant trees and re-wild.

For instance on animal welfare, when we many years ago unilaterally banned sow stalls and tethering in this country, three million pigs’ worth of meat came into the UK from tethered pigs. It’s the same in other sectors; where we lose production we import from lower welfare standard countries most of the time.

Those who want us to eat less meat forget that 65 per cent of our farmland will not grow crops and what better use of that grassland than produce milk, beef and lamb? It makes no sense to embark on schemes which will cut production, especially as the big guns are out to put a stop to intensive farming (as they see it), which produces most of our food and certainly the cheapest. We have heard politicians talk of cheaper food post-Brexit; where will that come from and what are the production methods? Do we really believe that we are not going to repeat the mistakes of the past? History tells us that governments rarely learn from history and when dealing with agriculture that is the same; we operate in cycles and panic sets in at some point every time. Mind you, we now have a futile symbolic gesture as there are plans for the return of pounds and ounces again, although many people will not remember or have any knowledge of them; madness or desperation?

At last a group of vets are making their voices heard on pet welfare. The focus has been on farm animal welfare for decades, but little attention to pet welfare which many vets admit privately is far worse. Professor Sarah Wolfensohn OBE at Surrey University’s veterinary school is leading a group of vets who have decided to speak out. EthicsFirst is a group of veterinary professionals and academics concerned about over-diagnosis, over-treatment and unproven interventions; when euthanasia is often a far kinder option. Professor Wolfensohn believes we treat pets as mini humans and that we should in fact think of their needs and natural behaviour. There is also concern as to how well the animal owners are informed and the pressure to operate driven by most people having private pet insurance these days (a subject in itself ). A dog or cat has no capacity to understand that the pain and suffering may be giving them another year or two of life and of course technology and science make these things possible.

It’s a very difficult area as no one wants to lose a family pet and everyone wants to do the right thing, which in most cases is believed to be prolonging life where possible. However, a good death is often far preferable to many procedures and recovery, but a very difficult decision to make and many farmers are also caught up in the ethical dilemma of what to do with a companion animal; it takes real courage to do the right thing.

Caroline Lucas has once again shown to me that she is not fit to be an MP as she says that protestors’ blockading the M25 last week was a ‘reasonable’ response given the ‘extreme’ situation of the climate crisis. It is high time that those who disrupt others and cause real problems are dealt with accordingly. We are a tolerant society, but there is a line which should not be crossed and criminal behaviour should be treated as just that.

Another lady, Liz Truss, is now in the Foreign Office following Boris’ reshuffle last week. I see danger ahead as she reminds me of another rightwing formidable lady in the past and there are back-benchers who are desperate for someone to rally around. I believe she now poses a greater risk to the Prime Minister than the Chancellor. You read it here first.

A vegan lady appearing on The Great British

Bake Off has been criticised for admitting she enjoys horse riding in her spare time. That goes to show that however daft you might be, others are even more deranged! Picture: Getty Images