DEFRA carbon footprint scheme could harm UK dairy industry, warns consultant
A decision by DEFRA to measure the carbon footprint of the dairy sector could lead to imported dairy products being promoted as being kinder to the environment than UK dairy products, a leading dairy consultant has warned.
As part of its “carbon roadmap” programme DEFRA is calculating the carbon footprint of a handful of activities ranging from the production of gypsum, a key ingredient in the manufacture of plaster board, to milk production.
John Allen, a partner with Kite Consulting, fears that the absence of an internationally agreed system for calculating carbon footprints could be to the detriment of the UK dairy sector.
“If the international community fails to agree on a standard system of carbon accounting, we could see imported dairy products being marketed as having a smaller carbon footprint than the same product produced in the UK.”
Marginal footprint
According to Mr Allen, dairying is likely to have only a marginal carbon footprint if other environmental benefits are taken into consideration. “The reality is that the dairy sector is actually very good for the environment. If we include the greenhouse gas savings accrued from not sending food by-products, such as brewers’ grains, to landfill then the picture is very different.”
Meanwhile, to coincide with the Climate Change Bill launch, DEFRA secretary David Miliband has called for a radical re-think on land use to take account of climate change impacts and to enhance the quality and beauty of the environment.
Mr Miliband told a Campaign to Protect Rural England conference that climate change meant that more land would have to be used to generate low-carbon energy through wind-farms, solar power and biofuels. Ground would also be needed for forests and wetlands to absorb carbon.
The majority of land would remain as farmland, but the environmental footprint of farming must change, he said.
“This will require major change – farming methods that reduce water pollution and soil erosion, and greater use of biofuels. We must think how our farming subsidies can deliver the maximum level of environmental public goods. Preservation of the status quo is not an option,” he said. “I want to ask ‘what is land for?’ and ‘why do we value land’?”
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