Transition Farmers to Sustainability
{Transition Farmers to Sustainability – Earth and Leaf editorial}
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Transition Farmers to Sustainability
We must help our farmers transition to a sustainable future
The Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) will be one of the biggest changes impacting Welsh agriculture in generations. Scheme design and an adequate multi-annual budget will be fundamental to its success.
But just as important will be the advice and guidance farmers receive on transitioning from the current payment system, based on the amount of land they have, to one that pays them to manage land sustainably and the environmental benefits this provides society.
Since the mid twentieth century, following threats to food security, Welsh farming has been encouraged to intensify and produce more food, which it has done very successfully. In our lifetimes farmers have been paid for the number of sheep and cattle they kept, and generous grants were available for converting semi-natural habitats, such as traditional flower-rich meadows, to improved agricultural grasslands.
This system led to higher payment to farmers who improved their land and kept high levels of stock. The same system also served to devalue important wildlife habitats like ponds, trees, woodland and scrub as it considered them un-grazeable and therefore not worthy of payment.
The result was inevitable. Farmers are businesspeople and need to make a living from their land. The payment system supporting them provided no real option, prioritising production over nature.
Almost half our farmland birds, mammals, amphibians, insects and invertebrates have disappeared, along with more than 90% of enclosed flower-rich grasslands because of this poorly thought-out farming policy, which failed to adequately protect nature.
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The Sustainable Farming Scheme is only available in Wales