NFU president Ben Gill has announced that farmers can help tackle climate change by growing “green” crops.

Gill said that farmers hold a major key to tackling climate change by helping to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that society uses. Starchy plants such as wheat could be turned into green fields like bio-ethanol, while oilseed rape could be used to produce bio-diesel. Crops from hemp to potatoes could be turned into a range of products like car interiors, fabrics and cosmetics.

“More than any other industry, farming is beholden to the weather. Whether it rains or shines has a major impact on the whole crop cycle from planting to harvesting,” Gill said.

“Farmers can play a major part on tackling climate change by growing crops not for food but for fuel or as the basis for other industrial products that currently use non-biodegradable materials.

“This fledgling renewable energy industry must be allowed to get off the ground so that it can help tackle the effects of climate change.”

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