![]() This dark history makes the modern enthusiasm for the animals all the more perverse.ĪDVERTISEMENT Pictured: Ben Goldsmith. Tens of millions of sheep have almost entirely stripped the hills and valleys of their green mantle In many parts of Britain, the arrival of sheep was the single greatest cause of the loss of upland villages. ![]() In Ireland, Wales and Scotland, it was the English who cleared the trees for building navy ships, before clearing the people and their cattle from the land in wave after wave of so-called clearances to make way for hordes of livestock. It was native, horned cattle that were the dominant livestock in Britain until recent times, when sheep took their place. Not mass produced at a huge cost, mostly for export, at the expense of great swathes of our countryside. British-grown lamb, mutton and wool should be specialty, homegrown products to delight in. Wool is a brilliant alternative to synthetic materials for a range of uses, but we are so heavily oversupplied with it that wool prices have fallen virtually to zero. And, of course, there is a beautiful, ancient tradition of keeping pedigree sheep hefted in some areas of upland Britain, but the numbers were always far, far lower than they are today. Sheep can also aid in the conservation of certain precious cultural landscapes, such as flower-rich hay meadows. Sheep can work well in the rotational practices favoured by regenerative farms in our productive heartlands. Of course, there are circumstances in which sheep are desirable. Farmers who, as well as fulfilling their vital role as food producers, take seriously their responsibility as stewards of the natural environment will be rewarded by taxpayers for doing so. The Agriculture Act (England) 2020, first conceived by Michael Gove, replaces the CAP with a new Environment Land Management Scheme, known as ELM – a world first, built on the premise of public money for public good. Now however, outside of the EU, England has grabbed the opportunity to end the madness, and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are likely to follow. In sheep farming, there are now no winners, only losers. As the average age of sheep farmers creeps ever higher, their take-home income creeps ever lower. Most sheep farming is hopelessly non-viable too in economic terms, unable to provide a decent living to hard-working sheep-farming families. The environmental cost has been catastrophic. Britain’s uplands, once comprised of extensive wood pastures, and temperate rainforests closer to the coast, have been cleared to make way for sheep. There’s strong evidence to suggest that, if you take into account winter feed which must be brought in from elsewhere, and the negative hydrological impact on more productive farming further down our catchments, upland sheep farming is likely to be net negative in terms of actual food production. Sheep tend to be raised on our less productive land, in areas not suitable to growing crops. There are, however, plenty of people who argue passionately that sheep are an important component of our national food security. The fact that even English acorns are toxic to sheep says it all.Īnd, surprisingly, Britons don’t eat much lamb or mutton. ![]() Their feet have a tendency of rotting in our perpetually sodden ground. Sheep suffer terribly in Britain, soaked through as they stand exposed out in the rain on our windy, wet hillsides. ![]() They come from the arid hills of Asia Minor. By compacting the soil and expunging vegetation, the animals create bare hillsides which are simply unable to collect and store rainfall, making soil erosion, flash flooding, and seasonal drought far more frequent and more severe, costing the country billions each year. It’s not just wildlife that loses out sheep have a brutal impact on the hydrology of our landscapes. These treatments render sheep so toxic that even maggots are unable to consume them if they happen to die on the hillside, which they often do. Sheep are susceptible to a range of parasitic infestations and consequently need to be dipped regularly in virulent chemical pesticides such as clikzin, which seeps into the natural environment poisoning the soil, and the invertebrates on which the whole food chain depends. As Charles backs study into historic connections to slave trade.The Royal Family is hit by new payout demands over their links by Caribbean campaigners who say the Monarchy 'must make repair and atonement' for their involvement.JAN MOIR: Does Camilla's epic devotion to Charles really deserve a queendom?.From restaurant rages to celebrity plagiarism accusations: All of James Corden's previous controversies and dramas - as he's hit with 'obnoxious' label from TV director.'Life isn't the same anymore!' People are shocked to learn what REALLY goes into the filling of Cadbury Creme Eggs.
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