By Kerry Maxwell, communications manager, British Poultry Council
The Land Use Framework presents a big opportunity to safeguard UK food security while making the most of our natural capital. If the newly launched consultation is done well, it could finally deliver the joined up thinking we have talked about for some time now.
However, if key nuances between land use and food production go unrecognised, it will only create a data-heavy, well-intentioned document that circles back to the same questions time and again.
Deciding how land is used is huge…but who decides, based on what priorities, and with what consequences? And if land management and stewardship aren’t considered in scope then, arguably, we’re not talking about land use at all. We’re just playing the zoning game.
While deciding where land ‘goes’ is important, that alone won’t bring us any closer to a meaningful solution.
All these sectors — food, energy, housing, nature — are essential to building sustainable communities, but it’s fair to say that they don’t compete on equal footing. Some have binding legal targets while others (note, food production) lack that same focus. Without a definitive self-sufficiency target, food cannot anchor its place in this discussion. Until Government establishes clear priorities, like “what we want to see from our producers,” food production will always risk being deprioritised when talking about how we shape land use.
A ‘spatial approach’ looks good on paper, but land is more than just space. It’s about management and outputs. Take poultry meat production: we don’t require vast amounts of land, but we do need the flexibility to expand infrastructure to support animal welfare and food security. We’re an unsubsidised, market-driven sector and cannot afford to be side-lined just because we don’t fit neatly into the ‘traditional’ land use debate. With a focus on efficient indoor systems and welfare improvements, we align with government objectives for sustainable production and economic growth. This could be a success story. But without clear recognition of our role in shaping how land could be used, British poultry meat production will suffer and only go on to be undermined.
A successful Land Use Framework will provide clarity on how competing demands will be balanced and address the relationship between how land is both used and managed. It cannot just about where things should ‘go.’
All this being said, I’m optimistic. This is a real opportunity for joined-up thinking, and if we get it right, it could be really great.