Blaming farmers is missing the point

WHILE I would normally hesitate before questioning someone of the standing of Professor Bruce Webb, I do think he is being a little harsh in his reply to Anton Coaker.

Mr Coaker may occasionally come across as a bit of an old curmudgeon in his columns, but he is a farmer on Dartmoor, which is a tough life at the best of times, and I have no doubt that this constant bleating in the media from the ‘Save the Planet’ brigade about eating less meat and dairy products, as well as telling them to get rid of their animals because they break wind, is a further attack on their livelihood, which is already in danger from other sources, and is criticism that he and farmers around the UK do not need.

I often wonder whether this obsession with damming cattle and other animals for upsetting the climate is a combined part of a ‘campaign’ by those who do not eat meat or dairy products to turn everyone into vegetarians.

If we really stop and think about the causes of climate change and consider the pollution given out by all other means, cows and other animals really come a very long way down the list. China has said that it will not consider cutting down its coal-fired power stations, yet here in the UK we are being told almost on a daily basis that we must eat less meat, use electric cars, and get rid of all our nuclear, gas and coal-fired power in order to save the planet. But this month, with a shortage of gas and a lack of wind power, we had to fire up our last remaining coalfired power stations in order to keep the lights on.

I don’t think that anyone doubts the need to reduce emissions, but blaming farming and rushing in to abolish coal, nuclear and gas power, all of which keeps the country going, before producing viable and sustainable alternatives, is simply asking for trouble in the future.

Paul Mercer Tavistock, Devon