Hansard

I, too, welcome the opportunity to debate the impact that Brexit will have and, in many cases, is already having on our food and drink sector.

In leaving the EU, we stand to lose economic benefits and much more. For two generations, Scotland’s food system has been defined by European regulations, policy levers, and funding streams underpinned by the common agricultural policy. Greens have long been critical of the CAP, but hard-won reforms over the past two decades have at least succeeded in ensuring that every country in Europe directly supports agri-environment measures that have led to the production of much greener food.

There is a strong European consensus that the future of our food system and the future of our environment are inextricably linked. I doubt that we would have achieved that unanimity without the driving force of the European Union. Greens, of course, would argue that that needs to go further. Climate change and environmental protection should be at the very heart of our farm support system, rather than stuck on the fringes and, while the UK has been embroiled in the never-ending Brexit row, the rest of the EU has been considering just that system. The current CAP round finishes next year and, from 2021, we will have a new, revised system. Scottish members of the European Parliament should be around that table, negotiating a united European approach to addressing the climate crisis and providing a strong future for farming communities. Instead, they have been disempowered by the UK Government and sidelined from the process.

Greens from across Europe have been participating. They have brought together 10 priorities for the future of the CAP, which include harmonising agricultural policy with health, environment and climate change targets; fairer distribution of CAP subsidies to support our small and medium-sized farmers; a refocusing on extensive rather than intensive food production; and a comprehensive public goods audit for all public funding and investment.

The majority of parties in the chamber have said that they want to remain in the EU. That means that we should be having parallel discussions right now about what a CAP for the climate emergency should look like, whether or not we end up being part of it. As my amendment makes clear, if we act now, we can turn a crisis into an opportunity for Scotland’s food and drink sector.

In the past few decades, public attitudes to the food that the public buy, cook and eat have shifted radically with an increasing understanding of the environmental impact of our diets. For example, the number of vegans in the UK has quadrupled since 2014. Concern for the environment and concern for health are the top reasons that people give for changing their diet. Many more people are looking to make more gradual changes, with 35 per cent of British consumers reporting having meat-free days throughout the week.

The recent UK Committee on Climate Change report worked on the assumption that we would see a 20 per cent reduction in meat and dairy consumption in the coming years. In evidence to the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee on Tuesday, the UKCCC admitted that that is a very conservative estimate and is based on the consumer patterns that we currently see. There is no need for a big push for behaviour change to achieve that 20 per cent because people are already making the change. However, the report said that a 50 per cent reduction in meat and dairy consumption would make a net zero target more achievable, and even that would still mean people eating more meat and dairy products than are recommended by public health guidelines. If we were all to eat according to the model that Public Health England has recommended, we would see a total reduction of meat and dairy consumption by more than 80 per cent.

We should not fight against those recommendations and the growing consumer trends that they reflect, nor should we see them as a threat to our food and farming sector. We need to embrace the opportunities. Scotland’s climate and land mean that we can produce carbon-neutral meat and dairy, and there is an appetite for highly sustainable, ethical food. Imagine the opportunities at home and globally if, eventually, we were able to say that all Scotch lamb and beef was carbon neutral. That will, however, require significant change and investment, including mainstreaming techniques such as holistic pasture management to lock more carbon into our soils; incorporating more trees on our farms, not just as patchy windbreaks but as integrated silvopasture systems; and, like it or not, reducing herd densities and switching to more extensive farming.

The reward will be a premium price for a desirable, sustainable product and more land and resources to invest in growing climate-friendly, plant-based foods. Other countries have already recognised that. Ireland’s successful origin green scheme highlights the most environmentally sustainable food that the country has to offer and accounts for 90 per cent of its food and drink exports.

It is time for Scotland to adopt a similar approach. I hope that our future lies firmly in the EU but, whether we stay or not, the climate crisis and our ability to respond to it will determine whether, in the years ahead, Scotland’s food and drink sector thrives or just survives.

The final part of my amendment is a reminder to the Scottish Government—Donald Cameron and Rhoda Grant have already given one—of what the chamber agreed last September. We know that the cabinet secretary inherited his role as champion of the good food nation bill, but Opposition parties recognise the desperate need for a joined-up food policy that brings together multiple strands, from health to land use and social policy. Parliament expects primary legislation this year, so the Government must deliver soon.

I move amendment S5M-17304.3, to insert at end:

“; notes the role that the EU has played in reducing the environmental impact of Scotland’s food and drink through the Scottish Rural Development Programme, and the protection provided through world-leading food safety and quality standards; recognises the future opportunities for the food and drink sector that will come from adopting climate-neutral farming and food production measures, and calls for the Scottish Government to make this a core principle of its approach to Scotland becoming a Good Food Nation, including through legislation to be introduced within the next year.”