A father who joined three generations of his family at a climate change protest has emphasised it is a “multi-generational issue”, adding that disruption in London “can wake us up” to it.

Jeremy Williams, 38, joined Extinction Rebellion demonstrators with his parents, his wife and their young children.

“We’ve basically had this generation from the ’50s and ’60s who, with new access to flying, driving and other services, had the best of everything and emissions shot up,” he told the Press Association.

Disruption

“Then you come to the present with my generation, where we are aware of this issue and what my generation does to tackle it, in turn, affects my children’s lives and the world they inherit.”

The protests have caused significant disruption to public transport in London and demonstrators have vowed it will continue for weeks.

In a message to those affected by the travel disturbances, Mr Williams said: “If you live in Mozambique or California during the wildfire season you are already being disrupted by climate change.

“It is a luxury not to be disrupted by climate change and we need to wake up to that.

“If this disruption to our commutes, our streets and our cities can wake us up to it, then it’s worth that disruption to become aware of it.”

Inclusive

Mr Williams described the atmosphere at the protest like “a street party”, adding there was “a real sense of playfulness and creativity”, as his seven-year-old son Zachary and five-year-old daughter Eden drew in chalk on the road surface of Waterloo Bridge.

“The kids were waving flags and joining the silent disco and what have you and there were lots of families and older people there too,” he said, adding that some attendees assembled a skate ramp, which “fascinated” his kids, while others had picnics.

Mr Williams, who co-authored a book on sustainability earlier this year entitled The Economics Of Arrival, said he deliberately attended the first day of the protest to ensure it was “child-friendly”.

“We didn’t witness any arrests, but if you were there yesterday or today the police are getting a bit fed up,” he said.

Asked if there was a message he would like to share with those not at the protest, Mr Williams said: “Do not be afraid to get involved – Extinction Rebellion is a broad and inclusive movement.

“The press tends to go to the people getting arrested, but you can get involved without being arrested, you can just be part of it.”

This Author

Edd Dracott is a reporter with Press Association. 

Londoners face a fourth day of disruption as environmental protesters vow to maintain roadblocks across the capital despite nearly 400 arrests.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said “we’ve got the message” after some Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists glued themselves to a train and others chained themselves to Jeremy Corbyn’s garden fence.

Scotland Yard said more than 100 people were arrested on Wednesday, bringing the total to almost 400 as ongoing protests continue in Parliament Square, Waterloo Bridge, Oxford Circus and Marble Arch.

Impact

On Wednesday night, campaigners were playing a cat-and-mouse game with police, who promised to continue the operation overnight.

Three people have been charged over an Extinction Rebellion protest where activists climbed on the top of a train at Canary Wharf station in east London, British Transport Police said.

Activists said they plan to continue roadblocks, which have affected more than half a million people with traffic gridlock and disruption to transport and businesses since Monday, until at least next Friday.

Robin Boardman-Pattison, 21, who walked off during an interview with Sky News, said activists were planning to step up action on the rail and London Underground network.

“We will be escalating our disruption throughout the week,” he said. “The impact to the Tube system will grow.”

Democratic

Asked about the protests on the BBC’s The One Show, Mr Gove said: “I think it’s appropriate for people to make their feelings known but I also think, we’ve got the message, we understand that action needs to be taken.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Twitter: “We’re facing a climate emergency. I fully support the right of protesters to protest on this vital issue, and urge organisers to work with police to ensure their demonstrations are peaceful and lawful and that disruption is kept to a minimum.”

XR, which is demanding a meeting with the government, has said direct action is needed to force authorities to act urgently on climate change and wildlife declines and halt a “sixth mass extinction”.

TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham joined protesters at Oxford Circus on Wednesday, saying: “I believe the world’s leaders are not acting urgently enough to avert a climate catastrophe. As long as it is peaceful and democratic then they can count on my support.”

Some Londoners were critical of the group’s methods, which are causing disruption to their lives. A YouGov poll suggested public opinion has swung against the protests.

The survey of 3,561 British adults showed 52% either “somewhat oppose” or “strongly oppose” the action, compared with 36% who “strongly support” or “somewhat support” it.

This Article

This article is based on copy supplied by the Press Association. 

Farmers have put contingency plans in place amid concerns of a water shortage during the summer months.

It is understood that good growing conditions over the winter and early spring has increased crop yields, potentially meaning a need for more irrigation – controlled amounts of watering – at a time when rainfall is expected to reduce.

This would cause concern “across the board”, with high-value fruit and vegetable production, arable farming and livestock farming all being “vulnerable to rainfall and temperature patterns”, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) said.

Restrictions

The NFU also said that farmers have already put contingency plans in place in case of a dry summer, including trading water with one another.

In its monthly hydrological summary for March, the National River Flow Archive, which collects UK river flow data, said that groundwater levels were below normal in central and eastern England, most notably in East Anglia.

The report also states the lower levels highlight the need for additional rainfall to prevent pressure on water later in 2019.

As a result of low rainfall in Yorkshire in April, the Environment Agency has put in place a complete stop to abstraction on the River Seven, the River Swale and in Cod Beck.

Paul Hammett, the national water resource specialist at the NFU, told the Press Association that it is unusual for such restrictions to be put in place so early in the year, and that the move is “of concern”.

Discussing the challenge that the need for greater irrigation coupled with low rainfall can pose, he said: “It’s going to be quite challenging for farmers to manage their available water to make sure they can make it last as long as possible to manage crop needs.”

Food production

On the prospect of another long, dry summer like last year, he added: “The British weather is very variable but I think farmers are right to be concerned and trying to put contingency plans in place just in case the worst happens.

“We’ve found that a high proportion of the farmers that we’ve spoken to, in terms of irrigated cropping, are increasing their storage, looking carefully at their cropping plans and are looking to trade water with other farmers.

“So we’re looking at a number of options to try to limit the risk of water shortage. I think that all farmers will be keeping a close eye on mid-term weather forecasts and reports about water availability.”

Mr Hammett said that a recent discussion he has had with the Environment Agency has helped reduce fears about water restrictions being put in place in East Anglia, but added that a general reduction of rainfall this year and in 2018 is of longer-term concern.

He added: “We do seem to be in a long period of consistently below average rainfall, and I guess that we’re already thinking about 2020 and what the prospects for water for food production might be like next year.

“The amount of water that we are collecting and is available in the soils is also of potential longer-term concern.”

This Author

Henry Clare is a reporter for Press Association.

Prakash Naranbhai Vankar looks up, taking a break from his intense concentration on the handloom he is weaving a carpet on.

I have just asked him why he has not gone into IT or some other ‘modern’ job that so many of his age have done. His response is the same mix of simplicity and complexity of the design he is weaving on his carpet: “My loom is my computer.” 

I am with my colleagues from the civil society organisations Kalpavriksh and Khamir, and we are studying the transformations that handloom weavers and weaving have undergone here.

Constant thought

We are sitting in Prakash’s house, in Bhujodi village of the west Indian district of Kachchh, a vast region of grasslands and salt deserts and agro-pastoral ways of life that constitute one of India’s most unique biocultural landscapes.  

In one of the many conversations that we were carrying out across the vankar (weaver) community, we are asking Prakash why he was continuing the family tradition of vanaat (weaving), instead of going into some industrial job or migrating to some middle-eastern country in search of more lucrative pastures. 

Pressed to explain, he says that weaving carpets on a handloom is far from a mechanical job. There is constant thought, innovation, passion, satisfaction, and dedication going into it, as well as freedom, identity, and being with family.

Why would he want to be an anonymous labourer in someone else’s factory, or sit in an office subject to some boss’s command? 

Our study is looking at the revival of a traditional craft in Kachchh, a phenomenon rarely seen elsewhere in India where, for decades, macro-economic policies have favoured mass machine production over handmade.

Mechanised labour 

India’s famed textiles were once the largest and most diverse in the world, being exported to all parts of the world for at least the last 2000 years.

Th textile trade took a big hit during colonial times, when the British administration heavily taxed local production, imposed severe duties on imports of Indian textiles into Britain, squeezed out local yarns, and flooded Indian markets with products from its own mills.  

After Independence, the industrialization and mechanization of the textile sector continued apace, despite Gandhi’s very sane advice to sustain and generate millions of livelihoods by maximizing hand production. 

Powerlooms have replaced handlooms, yarn has become more expensive, wages for handloom workers have remained low. In most parts of the country, weavers are abandoning the craft, and the younger generation in particular no longer has the incentive to stay on. 

But in Kachchh, handloom weaving has been on the rise in the last decade. So we have been looking at why this is the case, and what are its economic, social, cultural, and economic ramifications. Ours is part of a global study, the Activist-Academic Cogeneration of Knowledge for Environmental Justice (ACKnowl-EJ), sponsored by the International Science Council.

To understand the various dimensions of transformation, we are using a participatory analytical tool, the Alternatives Transformation Format. The tool has been developed by Kalpavriksh on the basis of learnings from Vikalp Sangam, a nation-wide process platform for alternative initiatives in various fields. 

Revived traditions 

Prakash is one of several youth who have either stayed back in vanaat. There are others who have, even more interestingly, come back to it after trying their hand at industrial, construction, and other jobs.

In Siracha village, over a dozen have quit (or were laid off from) working in the nearby Tata and Adani factories, and are back into weaving; another dozen or more are wanting to do the same. This is a village that had over 50 looms operational before a massive earthquake flattened Kachchh in 2001, destroying many traditional livelihoods.

Industries that came in quickly after that capitalized on the desperate need for work, snapping up the cheap labour of hundreds of people. From a total collapse of weaving around that time, Siracha is back to having about 20 looms, and looking forward to many more. 

A host of factors has aided in this counter-trend. Perhaps the most important is the intervention of Khamir, an institution set up in the early 2000s to facilitate the sustenance of Kachchh’s unique crafts.

Khamir innovated on design and production, and revived the full ‘value chain’ linked to Kala cotton, an organically grown indigenous variety ideally suited to Kachchh’s aridity. It perfected the production of exquisite cloth and a range of products from Kala (carpets, shawls, saris, stoles, shirts, kurtas, bags), and helped find a niche market.

New handloom and design schools have also created opportunities for formal learning for young weavers, building on what they learn from their parents at home.

Hybrid culture

This ‘hybrid’ culture pervades the revival of vanaat. Young people are flowering into their own, expressing their creativity in ways their elders would not have imagined.

But they stay solidly faithful to the unique ‘Kachchhi chhaap’ motifs, still learn the basics of weaving at home, and continue to respect the wisdom and expertise of their parents. There are also technological hybrids; the fundamentals of the loom have remained the same, but marketing has found a new avenue in online platforms.

In Kotay village, young Shamjibhai told us: “I directly market my produce digitally; I can work from the comfort of my home while making a good living”.

Shamjibhai’s articulation displays one of the most interesting aspects of the revival. The renewed attraction of weaving for the youth most certainly has economic motivations, but this is explicitly mixed with socio-cultural ones.

In village after village we are told that being able to work at home, being with family (notably, traditionally as also now, weaving processes involve the entire family), continuing the craft heritage, having dignity in work, being one’s own time master, and being able to innovate using one’s own creativity, are also equal motivations.

Empowering women 

Does this all comprise a quiet re-affirmation of Gandhi’s emphasis on the dignity of manual labour; and an escape from the all-too-common alienation from one’s own labour in capitalist production that Marx brilliantly exposed?

Of special significance is the taking up of vanaat by young women in many villages. While women have always been essential to the pre-loom processes (a part of vanaat being a family occupation, mentioned above), sitting on the loom has traditionally been almost exclusive domain of men. This is changing.

For both economic reasons as also simply because women are finding their voice and confidence, emerging from being subservient to men all these centuries, young girls to older women are now weaving, expressing their own creativity in the design and products, and even beginning to deal with the outside world in marketing and outreach.

Young Champa Siju Vankar of Awadhnagar weaves some of her own designs and recently exhibited her work in United Kingdom as part of an exchange programme.

In Jamthada village, in which over 20 girls have taken to weaving, several of them come for a meeting we’ve organised. Sheetal Hiteshbhai Sanjot said she earned Rs. 200 for 8 hours of backbreaking construction work till two years back, then took to weaving and now earns 300-350 for the same number of hours, but in a more relaxed atmosphere.

Economic divide

She and Roshni Pachanbhai would like to make their own designs one day. Rajjiben Harijan of Awadhnagar has helped pioneer weaving with waste plastic introduced by Khamir, and become a trainer for Khamir, an example for many other women to emulate. Unfortunately though, since there is no similar move amongst men to share in the housework, many women weavers are now doing two jobs. 

There are also downsides to this revival. The upturn in economic livelihoods has not touched all the vankars evenly. Those with greater access to capital (for buying raw material, stocking produce, etc), or to urban markets such as Kachchh’s capital Bhuj or Mumbai and Delhi and even European consumers, have prospered more.

There is a visible economic divide between entrepreneur weavers and weavers who service their orders, not having the capital or opportunity to become entrepreneurs.

Elders like Shamjibhai Vishram Siju of Bhujodi told us that such inequality was uncommon a few decades back when the trade was mostly local. As in many other occupations, a dependence on global trade has been capitalized on by some, not all.  

Additionally, the ecological footprint has increased. Once made exclusively for other local communities in local barter or monetary transactions, quite a bit of the production is now for national and global markets. Even much of the yarn comes from outside, other than Kala cotton. The fossil fuel footprint has most decidedly increased.

Ecological footprint

On the positive side, our study did find that compared to production using the genetically modified Bt cotton (that has taken over most of India’s cotton producing lands), Kala cotton has only half the ecological impact. 

Slowly, these issues are becoming part of discussions amongst the vankars. Our study has partly contributed by making their articulation sharper.

Several elders agree on the need for action especially on the inequality front, e.g. by assisting economically weaker or geographically dispriviliged vankars with greater market access. So also regarding revival of some local exchange, including the use of wool from Kachchh’s pastoral populations; Khamir is working on reviving this value chain.

The larger issues of elitist markets and ecological footprint will not be possible for the vankars to deal with themselves, they need civil society and government policy support.

If this support is forthcoming, the remarkable turnaround of Kachchhi handloom could become even more of a shining example of how India could tackle its severe livelihood, ecological, and cultural crises. 

This Author 

Ashish Kothari is a founder and member of Indian environmental group Kalpavriksh, Ashish has taught at the Indian Institute of Public Administration, coordinated India’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan process, served on Greenpeace International and India Boards, helped initiate the global ICCA Consortium, and chaired an IUCN network dealing with protected areas and communities.

Ashish has (co)authored or (co)edited over 30 books, and helps coordinate the Vikalp Sangam and Radical Ecological Democracy processes in search of alternative well-being pathways to globalized development. His latest books are Churning the Earth: Making of Global India (with Aseem Shrivastava) and Alternative Futures: India Unshackled (ed., with KJ Joy). 

The League Against Cruel Sports has gathered 284 reports of illegal hunting activity and 43 reports of fox kills by hunts, from November when the season opened, to now, at its close.

Hunting an animal welfare remain key political issues in Westminster, with the focus now on the need to strengthen the Hunting Act.

Chris Luffingham, director of campaigns at the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “These figures sadly show the scale of the killing still taking place in the British countryside by fox hunts.

Turning the tide

“We know these reports are just the tip of the iceberg, with fox hunts killing indiscriminately across the UK and lying about their bloodthirsty activities to cover up their crimes.

“However, I believe the tide is turning, and political parties are now recognising the need to take animal welfare much more seriously and put in place stronger legislation to protect British wildlife.”

Separately, 129 cases of fox cub hunting were received by the League between the beginning of August and the end of October, which is when they are typically targeted. This is a practice where the hunts’ hounds are trained to kill in the run-up to the fox hunting season – by being let loose in woodland to target fox cubs and literally tear them to pieces.

The figures were compiled from the League’s Animal Crimewatch service, which consists of reports from members of the public and from the League’s professional investigators, as well as from evidence gathered from photos and videos shared on social media.

Strengthening laws

Concerns over the fact that fox hunting is still taking place are getting a lot more exposure in Parliment.

A parliamentary debate on wildlife crime in mid-March led to calls by cross-party MPs for the Hunting Act to be strengthened.

It followed a recent review of the policing of illegal fox hunting arranged by Cheshire’s Police and Crime commissioner David Keane, late last year, which highlighted the challenges posed by the current legislation, and proposed strengthening it.

Elsewhere, the Scottish Government announced plans in 2018 to strengthen hunting laws in Scotland, reducing the number of hounds in a pack to two, and introducing measures that would prevent hunts using the ‘trail’ hunting deception used in England and Wales.

Animal welfare

The National Trust has also come under pressure recently to stop issuing licences allowing the hunts to access its land.

The number of hunts issued licenses in the 2018/19 hunting season was down to 24 compared with 67 in 2016/17, due to pressure from the League. This fell to 20 after four hunts had their licences withdrawn this season following allegations of illegal hunting.

Chris Luffingham said: “The issue of animal welfare has never been such an important issue for the public and political parties and it is becoming vital to electoral success.

“We are calling for the hunting ban to be strengthened with the introduction of prison sentences for those caught illegally hunting.

“We need a proper deterrent to stop the barbaric activities of the hunts and we also need to close down the loop holes that allow hunts to get around the law.”

This Author 

Brendan Montague is editor of The Ecologist. This article is based on a press release from the League Against Cruel Sports. Any suspected illegal hunting activity can be reported to the League’s Animal Crimewatch service. Alternatively, phone in confidence on 01483 361 108 or email LACS Crimewatch.

Climate protesters have climbed on top of a train in a busy financial district and say they will glue themselves to the roof.

Two Extinction Rebellion demonstrators clambered aboard the carriage of a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) at Canary Wharf station in east London at around 11am on Wednesday.

The pair, a smartly dressed man and woman, unfurled a banner saying “climate emergency”, while below them another demonstrator wearing a hi-vis vest appeared to glue his hand to the train window.

Vitally important

The demo comes as authorities disabled Wi-Fi at tube stations in a bid to stop campaigners intent on disrupting Underground services from co-ordinating their efforts.

An Extinction Rebellion (XR) statement said of the DLR stunt: “Our aim is to create moments in time when humanity stops and fully considers the extent of the harm we have done and are doing to life on earth.

“It is vitally important at this time. It is a matter of life and death – whether you live in Tower Hamlets or Taipei, Melbourne or Mumbai.”

It comes on the third day of a series of climate change protests which have led to nearly 300 people being arrested in the capital.

A British Transport Police (BTP) spokeswoman said: “In the interests of safety and to prevent and deter serious disruption to the London Underground network, BTP has taken the decision to restrict passenger Wi-Fi connectivity at Tube stations.

Non-violently

“We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and we would like to assure passengers that this decision is not taken lightly and will be reviewed throughout the day.”

Transport for London (TfL) said: “We will restore access as soon as we are able to do so.”

XR demonstrations have been taking place at Parliament Square, Waterloo Bridge, Oxford Circus and Marble Arch this week.

The protests have led to road closures, traffic gridlock and serious disruption to public transport and local businesses, with 55 bus routes closed and 500,000 people affected.

The campaign group outlined plans to “non-violently disrupt Tube services to highlight the emergency of ecological collapse” on Wednesday if the Government does not meet its members.

Arrested

It added: “Participants will peacefully break the law in order to stop the Tube and then will wait to be arrested.

“We sincerely apologise to all those who may suffer as a consequence of this disruption. In any other circumstances we would never dream of disrupting the Tube, but this is an emergency.”

Groups of protesters remained in place through the night and into Wednesday morning at several locations, blocking the road at Marble Arch and Oxford Circus.

A woman at Marble Arch, who gave her name as Virginia, said she had come from Oxford to join the protest “to keep the planet in good nick for my grandchildren”.

Police have said 290 people had been arrested in connection with the demonstrations, with many of these at Waterloo Bridge.

Protesters

Five people were arrested on suspicion of criminal damage following disruption outside commercial premises in Lambeth on Monday and have since been released under investigation.

The other 285 people were were arrested on Monday night and throughout Tuesday for Public Order Act offences, obstructing a highway and one for obstructing police as well as two further arrests for criminal damage at a commercial premises on Belvedere Road, Lambeth on Monday.

One arrested protester from Oxford called Ben said he was heading straight back to Marble Arch after being released from custody in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Scotland Yard said on Wednesday that “contingency plans are in place should custody suites become full”.

The Met imposed a 24-hour condition on Waterloo Bridge on Monday evening, telling protesters to continue any demonstrations in the Marble Arch area, but on Tuesday said it extended until Friday.

Occupied

Another 24-hour condition was imposed in the Oxford Circus area on Tuesday with the force saying a “number of arrests” had been made in the area that evening, but did not give details of how many or on what grounds.

The force added: “There is a need to ensure the right balance is struck between allowing the right to peaceful protest, while disruption to communities is kept to a minimum.”

The Met warned that demonstrations are expected to continue “throughout the coming weeks”.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, 29 people were arrested after hundreds of activists from the Extinction Rebellion Scotland group occupied Edinburgh’s North Bridge, bringing traffic to a standstill.

This Article

This article is based on a report from Press Association. 

Campaigners are planning to disrupt London Underground tube services as part of a series of climate change protests which have led to nearly 300 people being arrested in the capital.

Extinction Rebellion demonstrations have been taking place at Parliament Square, Waterloo Bridge, Oxford Circus and Marble Arch this week.

The protests have led to road closures, traffic gridlock and serious disruption to public transport and local businesses, with 55 bus routes closed and 500,000 people affected.

Passion

The campaign group said it is planning to “non-violently disrupt Tube services to highlight the emergency of ecological collapse” today if the government does not meet its members.

It added: “Participants will peacefully break the law in order to stop the tube and then will wait to be arrested.

“We sincerely apologise to all those who may suffer as a consequence of this disruption. In any other circumstances we would never dream of disrupting the Tube but this is an emergency.

“We request that workers do not intervene in the protests to ensure that they go as smoothly and safely as possible for all involved.”

It is not clear how the group plans to disrupt Tube services. But London Mayor Sadiq Khan said that while he shared the passion of the protesters about the urgent need to tackle climate change he was “extremely concerned” about plans to disrupt the London Underground.

Planet

In a statement posted on Twitter he said: “It is absolutely crucial to get more people using public transport, as well as walking and cycling, if we are to tackle this climate emergency – and millions of Londoners depend on the Underground network to get about their daily lives in our city.

“Targeting public transport in this way would only damage the cause of all of us who want to tackle climate change, as well as risking Londoners’ safety and I’d implore anyone considering doing so to think again.”

Groups of protesters remained in place through the night and into Wednesday morning at several locations, blocking the road at Marble Arch and Oxford Circus.

Four people ensconced in the road at Oxford Circus were playing cards and reported being visited by the police.

Meanwhile, a woman at Marble Arch, who gave her name as Virginia, said she had come from Oxford to join the protest “to keep the planet in good nick for my grandchildren”.

Rebelling

Police earlier said 290 people had been arrested in connection with the demonstrations, with many of these at Waterloo Bridge.

Five people were arrested on suspicion of criminal damage following disruption outside commercial premises in Lambeth on Monday and have since been released under investigation.

The other 285 people were were arrested on Monday night and throughout Tuesday for Public Order Act offences, obstructing a highway and one for obstructing police as well as two further arrests for criminal damage at a commercial premises on Belvedere Road, Lambeth on Monday.

One arrested protester from Oxford called Ben said he was heading straight back to Marble Arch after being released from custody in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

“I was respectful, they were respectful and they had to let me go because they didn’t have the resources to keep me in there, so I’m just keeping on rebelling basically,” he said in a video published on the group’s Twitter.

Standstill

The Met imposed a 24-hour condition on Waterloo Bridge on Monday evening telling protesters to continue any demonstrations in the Marble Arch area, but on Tuesday said it extended it until Friday.

Another 24-hour condition was imposed in the Oxford Circus area on Tuesday and the Met said that a “number of arrests” had been made in the area that evening, but did not give details of how many or on what grounds.

It added: “There is a need to ensure the right balance is struck between allowing the right to peaceful protest, while disruption to communities is kept to a minimum.” The Met warned that demonstrations are expected to continue “throughout the coming weeks”.

A Transport for London spokesman said it was aware of plans for demonstrations on the Underground and urged people to check for travel updates before setting off.

“The safety of our customers and staff is our number one priority and we’re already working closely with the police to manage the impact on London’s transport network.”

Elsewhere on Tuesday 29 people were arrested after hundreds of activists from the Extinction Rebellion Scotland group occupied Edinburgh’s North Bridge, bringing traffic to a standstill.

This Article

This article was written by Press Association staff reporters.

Moderate amounts of ham, bacon and and other red meats are linked to bowel cancer, experts have warned.

People who stick to NHS guidelines on red and processed meat consumption still increase their risk of bowel cancer by a fifth compared with those who eat very small amounts, a study part-funded by Cancer Research UK found.

The Department of Health said that people should cut their intake of red and processed meat to about 70g per day, which is the average daily consumption in the UK.

Slice

The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) said there is strong evidence that eating processed meat such as salami, bacon and ham is a cause of bowel cancer, while eating a lot of red meat such as beef, lamb or pork also increases the risk.

For the new study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, experts examined data from 475,581 people aged 40 to 69 at the start of the study and followed them for an average of 5.7 years. During this time, 2,609 people developed bowel cancer.

The study found that people consuming an average of 76g per day of red and processed meat had a 20% higher risk of bowel cancer compared with those who ate 21g per day.

For red meat only, the risk was 15 percent higher for people who ate 54g per day (about one thick slice of roast beef or one lamb chop) on average compared with those who had 8g per day.

For processed meat only, the risk was 19 percent higher for those who had an average of 29g per day (about one rasher of bacon or a slice of ham) compared with those who had an average of 5g per day.

Diets

There was some good news however, with those people having a high intake of fibre from bread and breakfast cereals lowering their risk of bowel cancer by 14 percent. Around one in every 15 men and one in every 18 women will develop bowel cancer during their lifetime.

Professor Tim Key  co-authored the study, is deputy director at the University of Oxford’s cancer epidemiology unit and is Cancer Research UK’s expert in diet and cancer.

He said: “Our results strongly suggest that people who eat red and processed meat four or more times a week have a higher risk of developing bowel cancer than those who eat red and processed meat less than twice a week.

“There’s substantial evidence that red and processed meat are linked to bowel cancer, and the World Health Organisation classifies processed meat as carcinogenic and red meat as probably carcinogenic.

Meat free

“Most previous research looked at people in the 1990s or earlier, and diets have changed significantly since then, so our study gives a more up-to-date insight that is relevant to meat consumption today.”

Existing evidence points to an increased bowel cancer risk for every 50g of processed meat a person eats per day, but the new study found that risk increases at just 25g per day.

Dr Julie Sharp, Cancer Research UK’s head of health information, said: “The Government guidelines on red and processed meat are general health advice and this study is a reminder that the more you can cut down beyond this, the more you can lower your chances of developing bowel cancer.

“This doesn’t necessarily mean cutting out red and processed meat entirely, but you may want to think about simple ways to reduce how much you have and how often.

Processed

“Although breaking habits we’ve had for a long time can be hard, it’s never too late to make healthy changes to our diet.

“You could try doing meat-free Mondays, looking for recipes using fresh chicken and fish, or swapping meat for pulses like beans and lentils in your usual meals.”

Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England (PHE), said: “Our surveys show that many people consume too much red and processed meat.”

She said reducing the amount of red and processed meat eaten regularly could also cut salt and saturated fat in the diet and decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease.

This Author

Jane Kirby is the Press Association health editor.

When the Portuguese invaders arrived in Brazil more than 500 years ago, there were an estimated three to five million indigenous people.

Since then, many have been exterminated and seen their populations reduced through murder, torture, enslavement, imported diseases, and the theft of their lands.As a result, Brazil’s indigenous population today stands at around 850,000.

The first 100 days of Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency are just the latest chapter in this long war of attrition.

Core constituency

Since Bolsonaro took office on 1 January, armed invaders have descended on indigenous peoples’ lands, as protected territories have come under attack from land grabbers.

In fact, this surge of incursions began even before he  assumed the presidency, with the Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) reporting a 150 percent increase in land invasions following Bolsonaro’s victory in the presidential election last October.

Today, 45 percent of rural Brazil is owned by less has 1 percent of land owners. It is as if the country has returned to colonial times: only now the conquest is at the hands of the agribusiness sector.

It is this sector – which is responsible for 23 percent of Brazil’s GDP – that helped propel Bolsonaro to power.

Within hours of taking office, he began attacking the country’s environmental safeguards by issuing an executive order transferring responsibility for setting indigenous land boundaries from the national Indian foundation, FUNAI, to the agriculture ministry.

Europe’s complicity

This was followed by a barrage of measures and announcements with the same aim: advancing the interests of the agribusiness sector, and eroding the strength of those who stand in the way of them bulldozing the country’s precious rainforests and savannahs.

In the first month of his presidency, deforestation in the Amazon reportedly rose 54 percent on the same month in the previous year.

But it is not just Bolsonaro and the agribusiness sector who bear responsibility for this: those trading in and consuming agricultural goods which have led to human rights violations, or which has been produced on land taken from indigenous communities, cannot simply turn a blind eye to it.

The EU and Brazil share deep economic ties.

EU countries combined are Brazil’s largest source of foreign direct investment, and the EU is Brazil’s second largest trading partner,accounting for 18.3% of its trade.

The EU is a huge market for Brazilian agricultural exports, in particular, soya and beef – which are major causes of land rights abuses and deforestation in Brazil. In 2017 Brazil accounted for or 42% of EU beef imports, and historically soy products accounted for a third of Brazilian agricultural exports to the EU.

What’s more, the EU is also in the throes of negotiating a comprehensive free trade deal with the so-called Mercosur trading bloc, of which Brazil is the largest and most powerful member.

Calling for boycott

Given all this, the EU is well placed to exert the kind of demand-side financial pressures that could act as a brake on Bolsonaro. As one commentator put it:  “For a country that has become an agricultural superpower, exporting massive amounts of soybeans and beef, the loss of even a small part of these markets translates to millions [of dollars].”

With the help of Articulação dos Povos Indígenas do Brasil (APIB), indigenous peoples in Brazil are now calling for a boycott of companies which source their material from areas which are riven by conflict.

At the European level, the EU can help stop Brazil’s unfolding calamity by ensuring that neither EU finance, nor products placed in the EU market have violated human rights or caused deforestation. This can be done by passing new laws requiring companies to trace their supply chains fully and making it mandatory for them to know the history of any agricultural commodity they import.

Finally, the Mercosur deal’s negotiators cannot be oblivious to events in Brazil: quite simply, the agreement should not be signed without binding guarantees respecting indigenous peoples’ land rights.

Failure to act will see the damage and see more devastation increase: as cattle ranchers and soy producers sweep through the Amazon, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul and elsewhere, seizing land, burning forests and polluting rivers.

Indigenous peoples, who a body of evidence shows are the best guardians of their forests, have resisted the pressures on them for centuries. It is up to the EU – and all those trading in goods which have caused environmental and social damage – to support them.

This Article

Sonia Guajajara is coordinator of Articulação dos Povos Indígenas do Brasil (Articulation of Indigenous People of Brazil) (APIB), an organisation representing more than 300 Brazilian indigenous ethnic groups. In 2018 she became the first indigenous woman to run for federal executive office in Brazil, as a vice presidential candidate for the Socialism and Liberty Party. Nicole Polsterer is a campaigner for Fern, a Brussels-based forests and rights NGO.

This article first appeared on Climate Home.  

Scientific research has shown that the UK can still produce enough protein and calories without the need to farm animals for meat, which is welcome news to the increasing number of people who are are already eating increasingly plant-based diets.

A brand new study from Harvard University has found that the UK would be able to sustain itself by returning a portion of land used for animal agriculture back to forest. It showed that converting land currently used for grazing and growing animal feed crops to forest could soak up 12 years’ carbon emissions.

British lead author Dr Helen Harwatt, speaking at the first of its kind Grow Green Conference which was all about plant agriculture, warned the UK is far from having a Paris Agreement-compliant food system.

Nutrition

The legally binding agreement sets out a global action plan to put the world on track to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2°C.

Researchers modelled a scenario where pasture land is returned back to forest and the areas used for growing animal feed are converted to grow health-promoting crops for human consumption.

They found this could make a fair national contribution to tackling the climate crisis and provide enough protein and calories for the British population.

Animal agriculture is an inefficient way of producing food, as for every 100 calories we feed to animals, we receive only 12 calories back by consuming their flesh and milk.

Almost half of all land in the UK is currently used for farming animals, providing very little nutrition compared to the resource inputs involved.

Emissions

The UK imports a staggering 90 percent of its fruit and vegetables and we currently grow 50% of what we eat nationwide.

Beans and other pulses are very efficient crops to grow in Britain – as they have nutritional and environmental benefits – and could be grown in place of animal feed, in addition to a range of fruit and vegetables.

Meeting the Paris Agreement also requires carbon dioxide (CO2) removal from the atmosphere, which the researchers found we can “eat our way to” by returning pasture and animal feed crop land back to forest.

The report details unique findings from two scenarios. The first maximises CO2 removal by returning pasture land and cropland used to grow animal feed back to forest. This removes the same amount of CO2 as 12 years of the UK’s current emissions.

The second scenario trades off some of the CO2 removal and keeps croplands in production, to allow for an increased and diversified supply of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains and pulses to the UK population. This removes CO2 equal to 9 years of the UK’s current emissions.

Radical action

Scenario 2 maximises the opportunity to produce more fruits, vegetables and pulses, to help meet changing consumer demands for more plant-based foods, and help address the mass under consumption of the five-a-day fruit and vegetables recommendation.

The UK would be self-sufficient under this scenario.

The new habitats would also create opportunities to tackle the wildlife crisis by reintroducing beavers, turtle doves and lynx.

These suggestions would of course need to be supported by the government but are nevertheless a fascinating insight into what we can do as a country to help combat climate change.

Dr Harwatt and Dr Hayek emphasised there is a need for a radical action, far beyond that currently planned, to reduce emissions steeply and rapidly. There is no ‘business as usual’ for any industry anymore.

This author

Dominika Piasecka is media and PR officer at The Vegan Society and a keen vegan activist. If you care about the environment and want to learn about how veganism benefits it, take our seven-day planet-saving challenge here. A copy of the full report can be found on the Harvard website.

Image: cocoparisienne via Pixabay