Food futures - strategies for resilient food and farming

Soil Assocation publishes a new report - Food Futures - strategies for resilient food and farming

Our current food systems are precarious and vulnerable to external ‘shocks’. A combination of one or more external factors, such as extreme weather conditions, global conflict or trade disputes could easily disrupt the continuity of food supplies unless we make fundamental changes to the way we farm, process, distribute and eat our food over the next 20 years. That’s the stark message behind this new report from the Soil Association which outlines what it believes should be a blueprint for a more sustainable approach to food and farming

Strategies for a food secure future
A clear vision for food and farming: business-as-usual is unrealistic; a stategic food plan is needed across all levels of UK governments and wide ranging partnership is required to form a solution.

Climate change: higher mandatory targets required for agriculture to cut emissions; make the minimisation of soil carbon losses a condition of subsidy and incentivise carbon storage.

Energy use and resource-use efficiency: increase R&D funding for sustainable farming practices; farmers advisory programme for reducing oil, gas and phosphate-derived inputs and declare the British Isles a GM-free zone.

Healthy and sustainable diets: link healthy diets with a sustainable food system; support our 'Food for Life' catering standards and establish studies on the benefits of healthier food.

Build resilience through re-localising staple food production: planning policy to help increase self-sufficiency and reduce food miles; regional and local authorities need strategies on food security and UK and EU barriers to localisation need removing.

Re-skilling: training and apprenticeship programmes in sustainable agriculture; Local Authority provision for community 'growing belts' and allotments and give every school child experience of food growing and production through the Food for Life Partnership.

International trade and development: work with the WTO and international governments on food secure trade policy and encourage international implementation of the principles in the 2008 IAASTD report on food security and climate change.

Download the full report here

Meat under fire

Two reports have emerged this week encouraging us to eat less meat as a way of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and thereby mitigating the effects of climate change.

First came Lord Stern, the climate change guru economist urging us to reduce the amount of meat in our diets.

Then in a paper published by a respected US thinktank, the Worldwatch Institute, two World Bank environmental advisers claim that instead of 18 per cent of global emissions being caused by meat, the true figure is 51 per cent.

A consensus is perhaps beginning to build - elsewhere for example Simon Fairlie writing in The Land magazine has concluded that Britain can feed itself as long as we reduce substantially the amount of meat in our diet.

Environmental arguments backing health arguments.

However meat production will never completely disappear - I work on Dartmoor, and the uplands of the country along with thousands of miles of marginal land along our coasts are only suitable for grazing animals. So farming in these areas will inevitably be livestock based thereby conserving ecological habitats, much loved landscapes and the cultural way of life of those who farm these areas.

In other parts of the country a switch to a more vegetable / cereal based diet should improve our health and also reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Expect a huge row of vested interests to erupt over the coming months.

Future of food

George Alagiah has just presented this brilliant BBC2 documentary called the Future of Food. It integrates all the issues from global population, peak oil, peak soil, peak, local food everything through to sustainability, virtual water, farming methods, food production etc etc. It is a must watch programme.

It is available on the BBC iPlayer

Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3

Try and find the time to watch it

Bee keepers - Feeding bees - beware

The following is from an email from the Wiltshire Bee keepers Association

SILVER SPOON BEET SUGAR compared to SILVER SPOON CANE SUGAR

It is reported that neonicotinoid pesticides are being widely used in the spraying of English sugar beet crops. If you plan to feed sugar syrup to your bees this autumn then you might want to check that the sugar you are using is cane sugar and not beet sugar, at least until such time as this latest pesticide concern has been further investigated.

Neonicotinoids have been widely blamed for killing huge numbers of bees and may well be a significant contributory factor to CCD, if not the cause.

Part 2
Several people have asked me for more information about neonicotinoidpesticides and how to avoid them. Google will reveal extensive informationon this topic, and to save you some time, I have compiled some of the moreuseful-looking material into a library at http://www.biobees.com/library/?dir=pesticides_GM_threats - feel free todownload anything from here.

A number of people have asked if they should use organically grown sugar. As a supporter of organic farming, I would love to say an unequivocal 'yes', but apart from the considerable extra cost, I have yet to see any really'white' organic sugar - it always seems to have a slightly brown tinge,which may indicate the presence of residues that may cause digestiveproblems to the bees. I don't know the answer to this one, but whenconsidering feed, we have to remember that we are trying to mimic nectar,which essentially comprises sucrose, glucose and fructose in variedproportions, plus a sprinkling of trace minerals. Refined, white cane sugarmay be as close as we can get at reasonable cost.

Finally, consider this warning from a German beekeeper, in a statement tothe Apimondia gathering in Freiburg. (Clothianidin is another neonicotinoid,closely related to Imidacloprid):"In Germany clothianidin is used since 2004. It is used as seed protectionfor sugar beets and corn. As well as for fumigation of barns and stables. Itaccrues as decomposition product of other pesticides.Already in some regions the concentration in the soil is that high, thatbee-keeping is not possible any more in such regions. It's alarming thatbutter-flies, hoverflies, chrysopids and many other beneficial insects areeliminated or respectively almost eliminated."Read the full text here: http://www.biobees.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1711

There is a growing movement to have the neonicotinoids banned in the UK, asis the case in several other European countries. They are extremelydangerous to bees and all other insects, and thus the birds and otheranimals that rely on insects for food. I urge you to take this threatseriously: only by acting in unison can we counteract the massive financialvested interests behind the promotion of these poisons.

Food's carbon footprint

There is an excellent article in the current issue of New Scientist on the carbon footprint of food - Dinner's Dirty Secret.

Using research mainly from the States the report reveals that greenhouse gas emissions from food account for twice that from travel (8.1 tonnes pa compared to 4.4 tonnes pa per average US household).

Switching to a vegetarian diet from meat would save 1.5 tonnes of CO2 pa per person.

On average consuming organic food compared to conventional food produces only 77% of the greenhouse gases.

When it comes to the debate over whether it is better to eat wild or farmed fish the debate is more complex. However the world's fishing fleet uses 1.2% of global oil consumption (along with over fishing) and the emissions from this are equivalent to the Netherlands annual emissions. However farmed fish requires fish meal is is energy intensive to produce and can cause pollution.

Finally the report addresses whether local food is really green. Their conclusion is controversial - local food only reduces CO2 emissions by4%. However if wider factors are taken into account e.g. the need to prepare for an oil free world (peak oil / transition movement debates) then local food will be a major advantage.

So putting all this together, means that by changing our diets (particularly in the West) we can substantially reduce our carbon footprint. If we assume that the average family is 2.2 people - then by converting to being an 'organic vegetarian' who buys locally the 8.1 tonnes per average family can be cut to 2.6 tonnes - an overall reduction of 68%.

Food for thought!

Can Britain feed itself?

Excellent article from Land Magazine on this very topic - press here for a download.

This article is an update of paper written by Kenneth Melamby in 1975. It was published in the Land which is an excellent magazine.

A positive upbeat article - life under peak oil and climate change will be very different but we are not necessarily doomed!

Also see the Ecologist about how to feed ourselves organically

Don't let the GM lot fool you.

Organic milk and carbon emissions

A litre of 'ordinary' milk takes over three times as much energy to produce than a litre of organic milk. Much of this extra energy is used in the production of fertiliser. So next time you're at the shops, opt for organic.

Thanks Friends of the Earth Tip of the Day

Food crisis

New government chief scientist Prof John Beddington is suggesting that food shortages will become an issue before the full impacts of climate change bite.

As the world population rises from 6 to 9 billion will the world be able to feed itself? How do biofuels fit into into this?

Watch out for Prof John Beddington - he is on the case! ...... I hope ....

Lets see if the biofuels policy changes ..... - it surely must

One Planet Agriculture

The Soil Association organised a conference last year entitled One Planet Agriculture. It highlighted modern agriculture's total dependence on oil - from plot to plate.

The speakers make the link between peak oil and agriculture and stress thye need for far reaching the speedy change. Although little discussed in the media this has got to be the biggest topic of our times - how will we feed ourselves and how will we have to live when the oil runs out.

Frightening yes but if we successfully make the transition then our lives will be more sustainable, more closely linked to the earth and there is no reason why we shouldn't be happier.

The change is a big ask though ......

Four articles summarising the issues can be downloaded here

More chickens - Jamie

Surely things are going to change? Jamie Oliver's programme on Channel Four 'Jamie's Fowl Dinners' spelt it out and backed the excellent Hugh Fernley-Whittingstall's programmex from earlier in the week.

OK price is an issue but ..... most of us can afford to take account of animal welfare. See JO's website for full details

Chicken Out - Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Channel 4's 3 part series on the way chicken is produced in this country was some of the best TV I have seen for years. Hugh F-W is a brave man and a great programme maker.

I will never eat a 'standard' chicken again.

Press the River Cottage logo to sign up to Hugh's campaign

Free range chickens also of course take a lot less energy to produce and therefore have a lower carbon footprint.