Farming’s challenges: Climate change and the environment

BE open and resilient to change, but most importantly be persistent. That was just one of many messages that young farmers in the north west told a sell-out audience at the annual Great North Meet conference on Tuesday.

The morning's topical agenda was dominated by presentations from Reaseheath College and Cumbria Young Farmers' Club, who discussed the potential problems and challenges within farming and the wider rural industry in the region.

Climate change was deemed one of the biggest challenges facing farmers, alongside more environmental legislation, including the proposed amendments to the Nitrate Directives.

With rising food prices, subsidies and growing pressures on land for development, Tim Farron, MP for Westmorland, also warned of the pressure facing existing farming communities.

"We face serious challenges and there is no point pretending otherwise. We have an imperfect market and that is what we must tackle.

"I worry greatly that the burden on farmers to produce alongside excessive regulation runs the risk of killing the goose that lays the golden egg.

"The region is losing farming communities and this means we are losing skills. If we lose our young people we loose our life blood and it's more important than ever to explain to the people of Britain why farming matters."