Overview
The Scottish Government has committed to take action on climate change with legally binding targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It also has committed to contributing towards biodiversity targets. It is important that agricultural businesses are committed to, and supported where necessary to improve their environmental performance, whilst producing quality food for the Scottish food and drink sector.
The formation of the Arable Climate Change Group was announced on Wednesday 18 November 2020, by the Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy.
This was a short-life, industry led Group with members taken from across the arable and horticulture sector in Scotland.
This Group considered practical measures which would help the arable and horticulture sectors reduce greenhouse gas emissions from production of commercial crops in Scotland, in field, under polythene or under glass, including conventional and organic methods of production, to achieve:
- improved efficiency, productivity and profitability of crops produced from the cropping sector in Scotland
- enhanced environmental contribution from the sector through identification of practical ways in which net greenhouse gas emissions of the cropping sector can be reduced
- mitigation of other environmental impacts of production and enhancing contribution to sustainable land use, especially soil health and crop management
The Group was also asked to recommend how best such actions and activity might be supported financially and practically. Specific areas that the Group could examine in the course of its work included:
- sustainable crop management
- carbon audits and actions
- impacts on running costs
- precision farming and use of technology
- fertiliser use
- soil improvement and health
- energy use
- plant breeding including techniques
- plant health
- biodiversity
- potential for capital investment improvements
- deliverability and monitoring of measures
- new crops and products
- supply chain improvements encouraging producer groups with the potential to improve market development
- Farm Assurance
The group members were: -
Andrew Moir (Chair)
Brian Henderson
Anne Rae MacDonald
Willie Thomson
Amy Geddes
James Porter
Professor Fiona Burnett
Pearson Whyte
Professor Lorna Dawson
Ross Mitchell
Andrew Gilchrist
Mark Clark
Dr Matthew Brander
Colin McGregor
Alison Milne
Final Report
The final report, entitled A New Blueprint for Scotland's Arable Sector – The Arable Climate Change Group, is available on the Scottish Government website, together with the Arable Climate Group: climate change evidence report.
See also -
SASA