Farming’s environmental record on the up says president

Farming and growing’s environmental performance is on the up and environmental groups, NGOs and the Government need to publicly acknowledge the industry’s recent achievements. That will be the message from Peter Kendall, NFU president, when he addresses the audience at the first joint conference between the NFU and the RSPB tomorrow (Tuesday, July 18 2006).

In his speech he will say: “In recent years, it has become fashionable to play down the importance of farming, especially the industry’s core business of food production.

“It has also been fashionable to highlight farming’s negative impact on the environment. I am not denying that there have been tensions between the needs of wildlife and farming practises but with changing priorities the industry is evolving and we’re becoming better at putting the environment higher up the agenda. As the Countryside Agency’s New Agricultural landscape report has just concluded, after 33 years of study, the countryside is in better heart than it has been since the war.

“And as an industry we plan to continue that trend. It is clear to me that farming in the future will be very different to that of the past. We will be more skilled technically, better informed about our environmental footprint and better able to combine our business choices with environmental outcomes.

“But we’re up for the challenge. We’re doing really well and recognition, encouragement and partnership will only make things better.”

Mr Kendall will speak to delegates attending the ‘Celebrations and Challenges: a new future for farming’ conference which will be held at the Royal Geographic Society in London tomorrow (July 18, 2006).

Other speakers will include Lord Rooker, Minister for Sustainable Farming and Food, Graham Wynne, Chief Executive of the RSPB and Brendan Bailey from HM Treasury. The event will be chaired by Sir Don Curry CBE, chairman of the sustainable farming and food implementation group.