Farming’s environmental benefits must be recognised - NFU

Agriculture is playing a key role in shaping and maintaining the state of the country's natural environment and the successes achieved so far should be celebrated, the NFU said today.

Responding to Natural England's State of the Natural Environment 2008 report, NFU President Peter Kendall said the document recognised the important role already played by farmers and showed there were challenges ahead that agriculture was more than ready to help meet.

Mr Kendall said: "I'm surprised that Natural England has chosen to emphasise the negative which has led to the media portraying the countryside and wildlife as in crisis. It is increasingly frustrating that the benefits of the work being done across all forms of farming are not being recognised by Natural England and this is creating barriers to the progress that we want to see in stewardship schemes.

"This report, which looks at the changing nature of countryside over the last 50 years, recognises that our farms are more productive, our wildlife is better protected, and that 80 per cent of the landscape is in a stable or improving condition. It also shows this countryside is far more accessible for the public to enjoy than it has ever been.

"Central to these successes has been the partnership formed between farmers and conservation groups and nowhere is this more evident than in the fact that half of England's farmland is entered into conservation agreements with Natural England.

"But there are still significant challenges ahead on which all sides – agriculture, conservation and Government – need to work together. One of the biggest is how we as farmers produce more food while meeting our environmental responsibilities.

"But we also need to look at how we protect our most productive land while managing sea level change; how 300,000 new homes can be accommodated without worsening flooding and damaging water capture; and how we as a country develop secure renewable energy across the countryside."