Dry spring places arable harvest 'on a knife edge'

Farmers could be facing another terrible harvest after the hottest spring on record and the driest conditions in decades, analysis warns.

- Emily Beament

The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) think tank warns climate change is already having a “devastating” impact on farmers, food security and shopping bills, and the recent extremes will have a negative impact on the harvest.

The warning came ahead of yesterday’s spending review, in which it is feared the Government will cut funding for sustainable farming, prompting farmers and environmentalists to warn it would hit efforts to restore nature, make farming resilient to climate shocks, and support rural communities.

Martin Lines, chief executive of the Nature Friendly Farming Network, said this year’s arable harvest was “on a knife edge” and warned of the need for funding to build resilience.

Nature-friendly farming measures such as ensuring healthy soils and boosting natural predators of crop pests can help make agriculture more resilient to climate extremes, experts say.

Mr Lines, who farms in Cambridgeshire, said: “Months of dry weather have left my crops stressed, with their yield potential now capped even if we get a good bit of rain. This is what farming in a changing climate looks like.”