Thu, 29 May 2025

Thu, 29 May 2025 Can farmers still 'go green' without grants?

One family says the public is willing to pay more for beef produced on traditional pastures.

*Stanleys' farming style allows grass to grow with wildflowers and trees, then move the cattle onto it to graze.
*The old trees help store carbon, and the meadow has not been ploughed in hundreds of years.
*Cows only eat grass from the pasture and hay made from it in the winter - nothing else.
*Aidan: "This is working because of public demand."
*Their farm's restaurant makes this system work by selling beef to customers alongside high-end vegetarian dishes.
*The restaurant had 22,000 customers in its first year. Jimmy Woodrow, who runs Pasture for Life, says that green farming can save farmers money by reducing costs on feed, fertiliser, vet and medical costs. "He insists that this kind of green farming can save farmers money." Government is consulting on a replacement for the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme which was closed in March. "The new SFI scheme will target public funds more effectively to meet the needs of both farmers and the environment."
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