Producers condemn Blue Peter’s ‘eat less meat’ challenge
RED meat producers have joined farmers in condemning the BBC’s Blue Peter show for urging children to eat less meat as part of a climate change challenge.
In a video which went viral, TV farmer Gareth Wyn Jones slammed the programme for making “sweeping statements” about meat consumption.
Blue Peter is offering green badges – similar to its famous blue ones – to young viewers who adopt environmentally friendly practices during the two-week challenge.
One of the ways to earn a badge is to choose a vegetarian option for a meal.
The BBC said it was made clear on the show that Blue Peter viewers are not being asked to give up meat. It pointed out that tonight’s programme will feature Welsh farmers exploring sustainable production techniques.
But Mr Jones, from Llanfairfechan, said more balance was needed in a debate that could heavily influence impressionable young minds.
His stance was backed by the three UK meat levy boards, AHDB, QMS and Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC).
In a joint statement they lambasted the Green Badge campaign, which encourages children to take the “Supersize Plants Pledge” and replace red meat dishes with “climate friendly” plant-based alternatives.
The three levy bodies took issue with some of the claims made by the show, such as “reducing the amount of meat you eat, especially beef and lamb, is known to be even better for the climate than reducing the amount you travel in a car”. This, they said, was “incorrect, misleading and based on widely debunked data”.
As livestock farming contributes just 6% of the UK’s CO2 emissions – according to the Centre for International Environmental Law – simple actions like walking, cycling and using public transport can have a much greater impact.
Gwyn Howells, HCC’s chief executive, said: “This unbalanced reporting risks compromising the integrity of the red meat produced in the UK to the consumers of the future.
“As a public service broadcaster, the BBC has a responsibility to provide an impartial argument. This is all the more important when communicating to children.”
Mr Jones said he was “disappointed as a farmer and as a father” in the Blue Peter scheme, which placed cuts in meat eating alongside switching off lights in its list of green solutions.
“In this country we have got grass and grass can be produced very easily on marginal lands that you can’t grow crops,” fumed the father of three.
“This land will produce some of the top-quality proteins – beef and lamb – and it is produced in a sustainable, regenerative, and very environmentally friendly way.
“Why aren’t we telling our children this? My kids know it. Why is Blue Peter and CBBC with a massive platform with millions of young minds listening not taking the opportunity to give them a balanced argument, show them the facts, give them the opportunity to make that decision?
“These children aren’t stupid – give them an educated choice, not just one sweeping statement that doesn’t work.”
The BBC said Blue Peter viewers were not being asked to give up meat entirely, nor was it compulsory for attaining a green badge.
“That will be made clear both on the show and on our website, which has been updated to reflect that buying seasonal food or local grass-fed meat can also make a difference to climate change,” said a spokesman.
“There are also other options to choose from to earn a green badge such as switching off lights or using reusable water bottles.”