One of the big issues for all of us engaged with the UK’s agricultural environment Is what happens post-Brexit. This week, at a meeting in Brussels, we had a few clues. The meeting was a seminar intended to show off the work of the White Rose Universities In food and agriculture to the good people in and around the European Commission. I gave a talk describing the background to the White Rose Sustainable Agriculture Consortium, followed by Jonathan Leake giving some of our new results and their implications for farming, and Thorunn Helgason talking about the future of our research, with a focus on the potential value of new technologies for gene sequencing. The great news was that people came, especially Phil Hogan, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, who gave the keynote talk. There were plenty of others, too. Their presence made it clear that they still have an interest in what the U.K. Is up to, and an expectation that we will still be involved in research and policy discussions. I found this most heartening.
And the challenges facing agriculture policy in both the EU and UK are considerable in the coming years. There will be less money around, so spending must be better targeted. This isn't just about promoting increase in food production or environmental quality; in the EU the talk includes promoting a circular economy approach, and encouraging young people to go into farming. More money will need to be found from somewhere to keep farmers in business if farm gate prices stay so low. Our work is starting to suggest at least one way it might happen; we are starting to get results that good management can increase soil quality and carbon, making crop production more resilient to extremes of rain or drought but also reducing the risk of flooding downstream, and capturing carbon from the atmosphere. If we can get those who benefit from these changes to help pay for them, who knows, we might get somewhere.
And the challenges facing agriculture policy in both the EU and UK are considerable in the coming years. There will be less money around, so spending must be better targeted. This isn't just about promoting increase in food production or environmental quality; in the EU the talk includes promoting a circular economy approach, and encouraging young people to go into farming. More money will need to be found from somewhere to keep farmers in business if farm gate prices stay so low. Our work is starting to suggest at least one way it might happen; we are starting to get results that good management can increase soil quality and carbon, making crop production more resilient to extremes of rain or drought but also reducing the risk of flooding downstream, and capturing carbon from the atmosphere. If we can get those who benefit from these changes to help pay for them, who knows, we might get somewhere.
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