Today sees the launch of the environmental roadmap setting out practical, low-cost steps livestock producers across England and Wales can take to reduce GHG emissions, but maintain productive and profitable businesses.
Developed by industry-led steering groups, which the NFU has been part of, the Beef and Lamb Environmental Roadmap gives farmers, advisers, processors, retailers, policymakers and wider industry partners actions we can all take to improve environmental sustainability and potentially see a 7.9% reduction in GHG emissions – a statistic based on using GWP100 metrics rather than the split-gas approach favoured by the NFU and a coalition of agricultural organisations from across the globe.
As livestock farmers, we're committed to adapting to climate change. With the evolving political landscape, it'll become important to demonstrate the work we're doing to reduce environmental impact.
But it's a big challenge, and a reoccurring question I hear from producers is "where do I begin?".
Priority cost-saving mitigation measures
That's where the roadmap comes in. Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, the Beef and Lamb Environmental Roadmap focuses on the actions producers can start to take today.
By setting out seven ‘no-cost’ or ‘cost-neutral’ actions, the roadmap gives us all clear and achievable steps we can take now, all while supporting productivity, resilience and long-term profitability.
Let's be clear though. This is just the first step.
Progress depends on more than just science
Further emissions reductions will depend on continued investment in innovation, enabling policy frameworks, supply chain incentives and emerging technologies. Scaling beyond ‘no-cost’ or ‘cost-neutral’ measures will likely be essential, but this roadmap is a vital step forward.
Defra’s Farming Roadmap 2050 commits to supporting conversations on how emissions reductions can be made across farming sectors. For beef and lamb, those conversations have already taken place through this roadmap.
We are urging the government to build on this strong foundation and work alongside the sector to support delivery, helping farmers make meaningful emissions reductions while maintaining thriving, productive livestock businesses and a sustainable future for British agriculture
Transparency and accuracy in methane emission reporting
The roadmap also uses GWP100 metrics, and the NFU, together with 42 organisations from across the world, continue to call for transparency and accuracy in methane emission reporting by moving to a method of split-gas reporting.
Through our position on the roadmap groups, the NFU has ensured the roadmap makes this difference in reporting methods clear.
Ensuring actions are deliverable
The NFU's own visions for the beef and lamb sectors have a strong focus on improving environmental sustainability without compromising food production or farming business, and we were pleased to support the delivery of the roadmap through representation on the roadmap governance and ownership committee and technical group.
We have always maintained that British livestock farmers are well placed to lead climate-friendly beef and sheep production and were a strong voice in the room, ensuring emissions-reducing actions are realistic, deliverable on farms, and flexible enough to reflect different farm types.
Throughout the development of the roadmap we've ensured that it includes the following:
- Stronger caveats and disclaimers that the data used in the roadmap uses GWP100 and therefore may not truly reflect warming impact of short-lived GHGs (such as biogenic methane).
- Inclusion of an assumption that livestock numbers will be constant through to 2050, making it clear that emissions reduction should not come from declining livestock numbers.
- Inclusion of bTB as a disease that has impacts on productivity, longevity, and herd structures that are all likely to increase the GHG profile of affected beef systems.
- Stronger points made on the importance of truly understanding farmland sequestration.
- Inclusion of the Farm Data Exchange as a high potential industry initiative for data sharing.
- Inclusion of a case study on Uruguay and New Zealand as countries who use split gas accounting.
Next steps
So what's next? The roadmap includes a 2026 to 2030 action plan, setting out the next phase of work. In 2026, the sector will establish baselines for genetics, finishing age, health planning, soil condition, grass-legume adoption, nitrogen use and forage digestibility, before accelerating adoption and measuring impact through to 2030.
With strong supporting evidence for seven no-cost or cost-neutral actions, the NFU will use the roadmap in in discussions with government and industry to ensure any emissions-reducing support or actions are practical and deliverable on farm.
The roadmap makes it clear where work should now be focused and supports the NFU's position that livestock numbers should not fall to meet any climate ambitions.
By focusing on these actions, we can take responsibility for reducing emissions at home, rather than simply offshoring emissions to beef and sheep meat produced overseas.
The NFU will also continue to work on ensuring GHG emissions metrics truly reflect the short-lived nature of biogenic methane and therefore better reflects the contribution of the agricultural sector to climate change.
