Welsh farms becoming more eco-friendly
NEW research shows Welsh farmers are taking action on the environment.
The latest Farm Forward Barometer – part of an ongoing research programme commissioned by McDonald’s UK and conducted by the National Farm Research Unit – found 62% of Welsh farmers plan to make further green investments in 2019. Current priorities when it comes to raising environmental standards are improving soil management (82%), preserving the countryside (82%) and better water management (68%)
Asked why the environment is such a focus, farmers across the UK are driven mainly by a sense of personal responsibility, with more than half (53%) saying they believe improving environmental standards is the right thing to do. In comparison, a third of UK farmers (31%) say they are responding to increased customer demand for sustainably sourced products and only 7% say that government moves to link subsidies to environmental improvements are among the main reasons they think change is important.
Andrew Francis, farm manager at Elveden Farm Estate, potato supplier to McDonald’s UK, said: “I strongly believe we should grow food responsibly and consider how to make environmental improvements. For example, we take action to preserve habitats for rare species by managing field corners and headlands to enhance habitat, and monitor inputs like fertiliser to produce our crop as efficiently as possible. As an industry, we need to take a crosssector approach to evaluate our impact and address concerns together.”
The research also highlights the challenges farmers face when it comes to driving environmental standards – 79% cite high production costs, 68% say it is difficult to find viable alternative farming methods and 60% say they struggle to raise funds to make improvements. A further 40% say they cannot get access to the right skills, advice and expertise.
Technology could be part of the solution. For example, 94% of farmers say they are keeping tabs on soil-testing equipment like moisture and organic matter sensors to help with soil health, while 87% are interested in satellite technology and 78% in self-driving tractors which can help to apply nutrients and harvest fields more accurately.
McDonald’s UK agriculture manager Pete Garbutt said: “This research shows the huge strides farmers are making to protect the world around us. They believe that good food can also be sustainable and are committed to making this a reality.
“We want to use our scale for good, to minimise our impact on the environment and help the farmers who supply us to do the same. We’ve done this over many years, from working with the beef industry to reduce carbon emissions, to planting trees across the farms that supply our free-range eggs.
“The findings of this research bring to light a number of environmental challenges, which we will work on with our suppliers and experts to consider how we can help farmers tackle these critical issues.”