Source: Richmond and Twickenham Times
Feltham and Heston MP Alan Keen is backing a campaign to stop farmers “trashing the planet”.Mr Keen joined campaign group Friends of the Earth last week to show his support for rainforest-free meat and dairy and to encourage farmers to rear their animals on food grown in the United Kingdom.
He said: “Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a rainforest-free lunch if you’re eating meat and dairy, but it is possible to farm animals without trashing the planet.
“I back Friends of the Earth’s call for policies that will help farmers to rear animals that are born, bred and fed British.”
He is one of more than 160 MPs to back calls for farm animals to be born, bred and fed British, instead of reared on imported animal feed grown on deforested land.
On current trends, animal feed production and cattle ranching alone are estimated to lead to the destruction of 40 per cent of the Amazon rainforest by 2050.
The green charity’s Fix the Food Chain campaign is striving to reduce the impact of the UK’s factory farms, which are wiping out rainforests and wildlife to grow animal feed.
The group revealed the meat and dairy industry is also currently responsible for a fifth of global climate-changing gases.
Friends of the Earth’s senior food campaigner Vicki Hird said: “It’s great that MPs like Alan Keen are waking up to the impact of factory farming and supporting the switch to planet-friendly meat and dairy farming.
“Friends of the Earth is campaigning for a new law that will cut the meat and dairy industry’s impact and will support farmers and consumers to make greener choices.”
The group has tabled a sustainable livestock bill and will be working with MPs in the new Parliament to make it law.