National Trust reacts to CAP reforms announced earlier today

Rob Macklin, National Trust Agriculture and Food Adviser said; “The Commission’s ambition to green the CAP is laudable, but the proposals announced today fall well short of meeting this. We’re disappointed that taxpayers in the UK and across Europe – who pay for the CAP – are being short-changed in this time of austerity and sold greenwash. The National Trust was hoping to see proposals that delivered much more for nature and the farmed landscape and prepared us for an uncertain future of climate and food insecurity.”

“Many farmers in the UK have made great progress over the last two decades integrating care for the environment into their farming practices. National Trust tenant farmers have played a key part in that transformation and we don’t want to see these gains lost.”

Food and Farming at the National Trust

* The National Trust is the largest non-governmental landowner in Britain, owning approximately 250,000 hectares of land across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. More than 80 per cent of the Trust’s land is farmed or is dependent upon farming for its management.

* There are 700 whole farm tenancies on National Trust land with a further 1,300 parcels of land which are rented out to farmers. Seventy per cent of farms on Trust land participate in agri-environment schemes.

* The National Trust helps and encourages farmers to manage their farms to high environmental, animal welfare and food safety standards. We work with our farmers to help them add value to the food they produce and to get a better return.

* The Trust manages 25 farms including Wimpole Home Farm in Cambridgeshire, Hafod-y-Llan in Snowdonia and Llanerchaeron in mid-Wales and over 300 further areas of farmland.

* Seven per cent of farms on National Trust land are registered as organic, including the award winning Coleshill Organics in Oxfordshire (three awards in the 2004 Organic Food Awards). This compares to a national average of four per cent.

* The Trust’s cooks and catering teams look first to their property or estate for produce, and then to their county, their region and from around the UK.

* The National Trust believes in using quality, local, seasonal and sustainable food. It matters that we know where our food comes from, how the crops were grown and that animals are properly cared for.

The National Trust

The National Trust is involved in the whole food chain, with 200,000 hectares of food producing land, over 150 restaurants and tearooms, and historic kitchen gardens, orchards and mills. The charity has community growing spaces – from allotments to kitchen gardens – at over 50 locations around the country and is increasing these annually. These spaces inspire the Trust’s 4 million members, 60,000 volunteers and visitors to think and learn about food. The National Trust has created 1,000 new growing spaces on its land over the last 2.5 years for local communities to grow their own fruit and vegetables. Find out more at: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/food.