For centuries, Welsh livestock farmers have played a pivotal role in creating and maintaining the spectacularly beautiful rural landscapes that we know and love. Their sustainable management has helped create a diverse rural environment that is rich in wildlife and visitor-friendly. It also sustains a network of protected areas carefully managed by responsible grazing.
While the impact of agriculture on climate change is currently a hot topic for discussion, it’s important to remember that there are huge variations in the environmental impact of different farming systems across the world, with Wales being especially suited for rearing cattle and sheep.
The Welsh Way
Centuries of traditional husbandry methods have been handed down through the generations, so you can trust that Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef are fully traceable and are born and reared in happy, healthy homes. Farming may have evolved and developed over the years, but farmer and dog still stand side-by-side with their flocks and herds.
Here are just three key differences between the Welsh way of agriculture and that found in other parts of the world…
- The majority (80%) of Welsh farmland is unsuitable for growing crops, therefore raising cattle and sheep is the most efficient way to turn marginal land into high-quality food.
- Unlike other parts of the world where scarce water resources are depleted or significant land is used to grow feed, the Welsh way of farming is largely non-intensive, with sheep and cattle overwhelmingly reared on our natural resources of grass and rainwater.
- Grassland in the Welsh hills captures carbon from the atmosphere, and Welsh farmers make a positive contribution to mitigating climate change by managing this grassland by combining traditional practices with new innovation.
It’s vitally important that consumers are aware of how and where their food is produced. The truth is that low-intensity sheep and beef farming in Wales has a vastly different story to tell than the systems in other parts of the world that have been criticised for their environmental impact.
By blending traditional and innovative farming methods, our system is underpinned by making the most of what we have in abundance – grass, rainwater and a whole lot of pride.