Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Twitter LinkedIn
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Contact Us
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    • News
      • Arable & Agronomy
      • Dealership News
      • Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy
      • Event News
      • Health & Safety
      • Machinery
      • People
      • World News
    • Farm Machinery
      • Amenity & Maintenance
      • Cultivations
      • Drilling
      • Grassland Equipment
      • Harvesting
      • Muck & Slurry
      • Sprayers
      • Telehandlers
      • Tractors
      • Tractor of the Year
      • Tyres & Tracks
      • Whatever happened to?
    • Precision Farming
    • Markets & Policy
    • Profiles
      • National Arable and Grassland Awards
      • Company Profiles
      • Reader Profiles
    • Livestock
      • Beef
      • Dairy
      • Sheep
    • Magazines
      1. June 2025 issue
      2. Cereals event guide 2025
      3. May 2025 issue
      4. April 2025 issue
      5. March 2025 issue
      6. 2025 Tyre Developments supplement
      7. February 2025 issue
      8. National Arable and Grassland Awards supplement
      9. January 2025 issue
      10. December 2024 issue
      11. November 2024 issue
      12. October 2024 issue
      13. September 2024 issue
      14. August 2024 Issue
      15. 2024 Drills and Seeds supplement
      16. July 2024 Issue
      17. Cereals Supplement
      18. June 2024 Issue
      19. May 2024 Issue
      20. April 2024 Issue
      21. Tyres and Tracks Supplement
      22. March 2024 Issue
      23. National Arable & Grassland Award – Meet the Finalists
      24. February 2024 Issue
      25. January 2024 Issue
      26. December 2023
      27. Agritechnica Preview Supplement
      28. November 2023
      29. October 2023
      Featured

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      By Matthew TiltJune 20, 2025
      Recent

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      June 20, 2025

      June 2025 issue available now

      June 2, 2025

      May 2025 issue available now

      May 1, 2025
    • Events
    • Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy

    Increased organic land use could help reach environmental targets, OF&G finds

    Tobias HudsonBy Tobias HudsonDecember 12, 20232 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

    Organic Farmers & Growers (OF&G), a UK organic certification body that manages over 50% of UK organic land, has published a white paper showing that a shift to 10% organic land use in England would deliver on government environmental objectives.

    Their paper, “Growing organic – a multifunctional component of English land use policy” identifies how a three-fold increase in organic land use would lower agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. Reduced fertiliser use from this shift would also be the same as reducing 179,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, and over a million kilos of pesticide-active ingredients would not be used.

    OF&G’s chief executive, Roger Kerr, said: “It’s the same as removing 8,840 full lorry loads of fertiliser every year. If you parked the lorries bumper to bumper, they’d stretch from central London to Rugby.”

    “Organic farming at its heart seeks to work with and enhance natural processes and ecosystems. Our report evidences organic farming’s contribution to delivering necessary climate and biodiversity restoration goals while still producing nutritious food,” he said.

    Roger Kerr © OF&G

    The white paper also highlights biodiversity improvements by removing artificial inputs. Organic farming systems led to increases across nature, including a 95% increase in arable plant species, 21% in field margin plant species, 35% in farmland bird species and 78% in earthworm species, among others.

    Mr Kerr explained: “Continuing to feed people in the face of climate and biodiversity collapse is a complex problem and complex problems require versatile and multifaceted solutions like organic. Underwritten by clearly defined and auditable legal standards, organic is proven to provide significant improvements in public goods delivery and natural capital gains.

    “Organic farming is a standard and practice that already operates within planetary boundaries. It’s not a dream. There’s clear scientific evidence gathered over many years of its positive impacts and so it represents a clear direction of travel towards a low carbon, and nature and people positive food production system,” says Mr Kerr.

    OF&G believes the white paper shows that supporting organic land use in an integrated framework is an essential step towards a viable, low carbon economy.

    Tweet
    Share
    Share
    Pin
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticlePoliticians urged to back UK farming policies in new NFU manifesto
    Next Article Loch Lomond farmer raises over £13,000 for charity
    Tobias Hudson

    Read Similar Stories

    Calls for government to include food redistribution into SFI

    July 2, 2025

    Industry responds to government spending review

    June 11, 2025

    Hutchinsons invites farmers to see Omnia in action at Cereals

    May 26, 2025
    Most Read Stories

    Calls for government to include food redistribution into SFI

    July 2, 2025

    Kramp launches own-brand PTOs

    July 1, 2025

    Turney Group to take on Merlo brand with new dedicated depot

    July 1, 2025
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

    The UK's leading agricultural machinery journal

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

    Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • Farmers Weekly
    • AA Farmer
    • Poultry News
    • Pig World

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.