Northern Ireland farmers are determined to be proactive and learn from the experiences of their counterparts in the likes of Ireland and the Netherlands when it comes to climate and emission targets, the president of the Ulster Famers’ Union (UFU) has said.
David Brown said the UFU is very conscious of how some countries have “imposed” climate change targets on farmers who were “not at the table with policy makers”.
“Our approach is that we must be part of the solution; we know as farmers that everyone has a role to play in the climate change challenge but if we don’t openly try to find solutions then the imposition of regulations could bring something that could be more much worse for farmers in Northern Ireland,” Brown said.
The Northern Ireland Assembly passed its first ever Climate Change Legislation in March 2022.
Climate Change Act
The Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 “sets out the legal framework for tackling climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions for decades to come in Northern Ireland”.
It stipulated a target for net-zero emissions by 2050 but an amendment set a specific target of a 46% reduction for agricultural methane emissions by 2050.
According to Brown, the UFU has closely observed how unworkable climate targets can potentially pose a threat to the agri-food industry and as result, he said it is vital that farmers in Northern Ireland are “climate ready”.
“Farmers have to be part of the solution that’s the bottom line. We have had a nitrates vulnerable zone in Northern Ireland for 15 plus years.
“We recognise that farmers have got on with the work of producing food and to some extent while not embracing all the added regulation, they have managed to work it but I also know that fundamentally if we not able to put solutions on the table of policy makers then something else will come down the track at us,” Brown added.
According to the UFU president the challenge for farmers in Northern Ireland is to “play their part in reducing emissions and feed the nation”.
He said there is an important balance to be struck between addressing climate challenges including reducing emissions and feeding people.
“Farmers can and will help Northern Ireland to meet its climate change targets. As we go round the counties on our roadshows now as we always do in January we are still having to explain some of the detail on climate change targets and what the implications may be and that is concerning.
“Here in Northern Ireland, we aspire to consistently improve our carbon footprint as an industry and reduce our net emissions farmers do need support and that is important,” Brown added.
