Category Archives: Agriculture
UK Government Thinktank suggests lack of agricultural research is a major cause of food scarcity
Factors including drought, soil erosion, salinity and climate change all contribute to food scarcity, but a report by the UK government’s Foresight thinktank (The Future of Food and Farming: Challenges and choices for global sustainability) suggests another important cause may … Continue reading
Public want farmers to be custodians of the landscape for future generations
Four out of five adults believe that farmers have a responsibility to look after the landscape and wildlife for future generations, according to a new survey commissioned by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE). Fewer than a fifth of … Continue reading
Germany leads objection to specific biodiversity goals in the CAP.
A call for specific biodiversity goals to be integrated into the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was abandoned at the insistence of Germany during a meeting of environment ministers in Brussels today (19 December). In its proposal for a biodiversity strategy … Continue reading
Greening the Common Agricultural Policy
Professor Charles Godfray, immediate past President of the BES, is to give evidence to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee on Wednesday 14th December as part of the Committee’s inquiry into ‘Greening the Common Agricultural Policy‘. Professor Godfray … Continue reading
Intensive farming methods affect birds and plants in Europe
Intensive farming methods have simplified landscapes across Europe, leading to a loss of biodiversity. A recent study has investigated the effects of intensive farming on plants, beetles and birds in Western European regions and found that plants and birds are … Continue reading
The European Commission proposes a new partnership between Europe and its farmers
On 12th October, the European Commission has presented a draft reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the period after 2013. This draft aims to strengthen the competitiveness, sustainability and permanence of agriculture throughout the EU in order to … Continue reading
‘Social capital’ reaps benefits for sustainable agriculture
Professor Jules Pretty gave a fascinating and wide-ranging insight into the sustainable intensification of agriculture on Tuesday afternoon at the BES Annual Meeting; this year’s BES Lecture. Prof. Pretty suggested that there was an ‘emerging consensus’ around the necessity of … Continue reading
Do Farmland Corridors Help or Hinder Pollinators?
A study conducted by academics from Oxford University and Earthwatch UK has challenged the long standing assumption that farmland facilitates the movement of pollinating insects between habitat fragments. The findings of the paper show that farmland corridors intended to help … Continue reading
EU Budget Announcement: Implications for Ecology and Biodiversity
Last week the European Commission announced their plans for the new EU budget. The new budget, known as the Multi Annual Financial Framework (MFF) sets how much will be spent over the years 2014 to 2020, and how this money … Continue reading
Anticipating England’s Biodiversity Strategy
England’s Biodiversity Strategy is due to be released this month, outlining how England will meet its international environmental commitments. It is expected to detail future plans for the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and the Common Agricultural Policy … Continue reading