A new Best Farming Practices booklet, now available, offers farmers 250 ways to benefit their business while protecting soils, water and wildlife.
What's good for business can also be good for the environment, that's the message from the Environment Agency's free booklet. It explains how wise stewardship of resources such as soil, nutrients, water and energy can help farmers to cut costs, while maintaining or improving productivity.
Full of simple, practical ideas, and 15 farming case studies from across England and Wales, it shows how a variety of farm enterprises can reap economic and environmental benefits from a range of simple, low-cost actions.
One of those featured is Philip Chamberlain, an arable farmer on a LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) demonstration farm in Oxfordshire. He describes how his crops benefit from carefully planned applications of sewage sludge, pig manure and composted green waste.
From an environmental perspective this well managed use of organic matter is helping to minimise pollution and maintain soil health. From an economic perspective he is saving £60,000 in fertiliser costs by accounting for all organic nutrient inputs, and his long aim is to supply all his crops' phosphate and potash requirements from organic sources.
"Whether in dairy, arable, horticultural or livestock production, we recognise the tough business environment that farmers are operating in," says Tricia Henton, The Environment Agency's Director of Environment Protection. "That's why we've revised, expanded and republished Best Farming Practices.
"Full of down-to-earth advice we hope it will provide food for thought and inspiration for action."
Best Farming Practices is available free to farmers, growers, land managers and farm business advisers. For your free copy call 08708 506 506 or visit
www.environment-agency.gov.uk/bestfarmingpractices
Please reference code BFP020
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Farming Online
t: 0870 909 0902
Farming Online Ltd
www.farming.co.uk
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