Council passes ‘landmark’ farming decision

Cornwall Council has moved to support farmers around the county

Cornwall Council has passed a "landmark" motion to support farmers by committing to pro-actively sourcing local produce at council events.

The council will also be encouraging people to shop locally and take advantage of “home-grown, affordable, nutritious food”.

The motion was submitted by Conservative councillor Nick Craker at a meeting of the full council at County Hall in Truro on Tuesday.

The motion was passed unanimously.

After introducing the motion, Mr Craker said 33,000 people were employed in the agri-food sector in Cornwall - a figure he said was double the national rate in England.

Mr Craker said supporting farmers and growers was "essential" for the economy in Cornwall.

Liberal Democrat councillor Colin Martin called on leader Linda Taylor to work with Cornwall’s MPs to lobby government for major policy changes.

While supportive of the motion, Liberal Democrat councillor Dominic Fairman was critical of its "blind spot".

'Knock-on burden'

Mr Fairman said: “Whilst the motion goes to great lengths to emphasise how important meat and dairy are to a balanced diet – we are simply not getting that balance right, to the detriment of our health, and more importantly to this council, an ever-increasing knock-on burden to social care."

He also addressed the "elephant in the room" - saying the council needed a 30% reduction in meat consumption to meet its own climate and nature recovery targets - which he said were "enshrined in UK law".

Mr Fairman said the council needed "to be honest about the direction of travel and support the transition toward nature-friendly farming – producing free range and pasture-fed meat while meeting the increasing market-driven demand for plant-based foods".

He said the public were becoming increasingly aware of the climate and health implications of food, adding the council should be "embracing the shift instead of resisting it".

The Countryside Alliance said the result in Cornwall was a "victory for common sense" and would now urge other rural councils to follow suit.

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