What is the consultation?

The Senedd’s Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee has been set up by the Senedd to look at policy and legislation, and to hold the Welsh Government to account in specific areas. These areas include climate change policy, the environment, energy, planning, transport, and connectivity. The Committee consulted with stakeholders in order to help inform the Committee’s decisions on what its main priorities should be during the Sixth Senedd (2021-2026).

Why should nature-friendly farming be concerned?

Nature-friendly farming can play an important role in tackling climate change. It also supports vibrant rural communities and economies, produces plentiful healthy sustainable food and improves public health. Put simply, nature-friendly farming offers countless benefits for those areas that sit under the Committee’s remit. As such, it’s important that we raise the profile of nature-friendly farming amongst the Committee’s members.    

What are the NFFN’s key recommendations?

We urge the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee to prioritize the following key areas.

• The Wales Agriculture Bill and proposed Sustainable Farming Scheme

• The proposed Community Food Strategy

• Tree Planting and Carbon Offsetting

• National Minimum Standards for Agriculture 

Adopting on-farm nature-based solutions to climate is something that every farm in Wales can deliver, however, urgent policy support is needed to take nature-friendly farming to scale. Nature-friendly farming’s role in meeting Wales’ climate change ambitions must not be overlooked – it is an area that deserves the utmost attention.

What’s next?

We sincerely hope the Committee understands the importance of nature-friendly farming and its relevance to the Committee's work areas. We look forward to working closely with the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee over the term of the sixth Senedd.