Meat and dairy farmers are once again carrying the can for the climate crisis as councils across the country encourage residents to ditch meat in favour of a more environmentally friendly vegan diet.
Oxfordshire County Council, which sparked anger among farmers after it voted to serve only plant-based food options at full council meetings earlier this year, has further fuelled the fire by endorsing the Climate Action Oxford website, which bills itself as a one stop shop for tackling climate change in the county.
The site has been backed by all the local authorities in the area, including Conservative-controlled Cherwell.
First among its 24 ideas for practical things that you can do to help the environment is a call to adopt a plant-based diet. The site, which makes no mention of the meat, dairy or arable farmers across the county or the work they do to support sustainable food production, directs visitors to the Vegan Society.
The Countryside Alliance has hit back, arguing UK cattle and sheep account for just 3.7 per cent of UK carbon emissions and accusing the council of undermining the hard work of local farmers.
Tim Bonner, the groups chief executive, said: Challenging assumptions about the benefits of some plant-based products and the casual denigration of livestock farming matters, because if they are allowed to go unchallenged, they threaten the sustainability of both the planet and the countryside.
In response, a spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council said: We simply want to help people who want to make changes to help tackle climate change by making suggestions as to how they can do so.
Meanwhile in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, the town council has become the first in Europe to endorse the Plant Based Treaty - a companion to the UNFCCC/Paris Agreement that aims to halt the widespread degradation of critical ecosystems caused by animal agriculture and promote a shift to more healthy, sustainable plant-based diets.
Town clerk Steven Trice told Farmers Guardian: We understand there may be ill feeling from that [farming] sector. But we want to make it very clear we are not telling people or directing people what to do, we are merely flagging it up. The town council is committed to supporting all sectors of the community.
