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Farming Today: 11/03/22 Food prices and food security, NI eels, fertiliser prices soaring

11/03/22 Food prices and food security, NI eels, fertiliser prices soaring

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, 11/03/22 Food prices and food security, NI eels, fertiliser prices soaring

The RSPB says farmers' calls for a re-think on food security are "shameless opportunism"

The RSPB says farming unions' calls for a re-think on food security are "shameless opportunism".

"Shameless opportunism", that’s one description of warnings about food security here as a knock on effect of the war in Ukraine. Thomas Lancaster, Head of Land, Seas and Climate Policy at the RSPB, says calls for governments to prioritise growing food and step back from the drive to give more space for nature are unnecessary and wrong.

We have more on the ever rising price of fertiliser, partly caused by the war in Ukraine. Both Russia and Ukraine produce fertiliser and Russia also provides raw ingredients, like potash. But fertiliser has been going up in price for a while: producing it needs a lot of energy and high gas prices have shut some plants both here and across Europe. 

All this week we’ve been looking at the Northern Ireland Protocol and what it means for food and farming. Last year we talked about the challenges facing fishermen on Lough Neagh who were struggling to find an outlet for a fifth of their catch of eels, and having problems restocking the lough. Why ask how the last year has been.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

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11/03/22 Food prices and food security, NI eels, fertiliser prices soaring

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