English farmland could be cut by 9% to hit green targets

On Friday, the government opened a consultation calling for ideas on how England should manage land use changes to balance food security, nature recovery, infrastructure needs and climate goals.

A working land-use framework would make it less likely “high-quality farmland” will be lost to housebuilding or energy projects, Defra said.

About 70% of England’s land is used for farming.

Government analysis found 1.6 million hectares of farming land needs to be repurposed to meet its legal environmental and climate targets by 2050, including:

Defra say the impact of these land use changes on domestic food production will be offset by productivity improvements.

If domestic production does decline, England may need to import more food, increasing the UK’s exposure to global food price shocks and supply chain disruptions.

“England is now one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world,” the report said – with poor farming practices and climate change damaging soil and increasing water pollution.

Under the plans woodland would cover 16.5% of England’s land by 2050, with an extra 500,000 hectares of new or restored “wildlife-rich habitat”.

Restoration of degraded peatlands would also help cut 8 megatons of CO2 emissions annually, Defra predict.