Viewpoint: Land sharing vs land sparing — The UK needs to reevaluate farmland use in order to reach climate and biodiversity goals
It is 12 months since I highlighted the scientific evidence pointing to the urgent need to take forward a land sparing approach as the basis of a future UK land use strategy. Favoured by leading UK environmental scientists Andrew Balmford and Ian Bateman, and included in the 2021 National Food Strategy document The Plan, this approach advocates a three-compartment model for land use in Britain which if properly implemented could deliver a more sustainable balance in terms of food production, resource use, nature conservation and climate change mitigation.I urged a re-evaluation and fine t...