To grow food or to protect nature? It often seems as if one can only be done at the expense of the other. In this podcast, farmer & ex-MP Neil Parish seeks to find out if, in fact, we can do both.
Our relationship with food is on the brink of a massive shift. Global instability disrupting food security, UK farmers are being incentivised to promote biodiversity rather than grow food. And climate change is starting to transform what we grow, what we eat and how we live. As a Somerset farmer, Neil Parish is facing up to all these changes. And as an EU & UK parliamentarian, for 20 years he helped design the policies that shape our food system. Now, he has unfinished business. In this podcast, local, national & global experts join Neil to tackle crucial questions about the past, present and future relationship between food and the environment.
Produced by: jakelloyd.co.uk
Social media by millyfyfe.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
To grow food or to protect nature? It often seems as if one can only be done at the expense of the other. In this podcast, farmer & ex-MP Neil Parish seeks to find out if, in fact, we can do both.
Our relationship with food is on the brink of a massive shift. Global instability disrupting food security, UK farmers are being incentivised to promote biodiversity rather than grow food. And climate change is starting to transform what we grow, what we eat and how we live. As a Somerset farmer, Neil Parish is facing up to all these changes. And as an EU & UK parliamentarian, for 20 years he helped design the policies that shape our food system. Now, he has unfinished business. In this podcast, local, national & global experts join Neil to tackle crucial questions about the past, present and future relationship between food and the environment.
Produced by: jakelloyd.co.uk
Social media by millyfyfe.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
As part of its sustainable farming scheme, the UK government is offering farmers £382 each year for every hectare of ‘herbal leys’ they grow. This mixture of grasses, legumes, herbs and wildflowers is said to produce a high volume of food for grazing animals; greater resilience to drought; improved soil fertility; and more carbon sequestration.
In this bonus episode, Neil puts these claims to the test in the company of award-winning organic farmers RACHEL and JOE HORLER. They've had herbal leys for more than ten years, and here they tell Neil: the theory behind it (2m24s); how they graze their cattle on it (4m58s); how they turn it into silage (8m21s); and the health benefits to their cattle (9m14s).
More on the government scheme here: www.gov.uk/find-funding-for-land-or-farms/csam3-herbal-leys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.