Field margin at RSPB's Hope farm, Knapwell, Cambridgeshire

Agriculture and land-use

The day-to-day decisions made by farmers are influenced greatly by agricultural policy at the national level and, despite the results of the referendum, at the European Union level too in the immediate future.

The RSPB campaigns for policies which provide a fair deal for farmers, consumers and wildlife. We want to see sustainable farming which provides safe, healthy, affordable food, protects and enhances the environment and its wildlife, supports diverse and attractive landscapes and contributes to a thriving rural economy.

Agricultural policy

Skylark Alauda arvensis, at the grassy edge of a small field. Cornwall

Agricultural policy and farmland wildlife

As practices change and new technologies develop, farming no longer automatically provides what birds and wildlife need.
Small scale trials of potential solutions to farmland bird decline before use in larger scale research trials or agri-environment scheme options, RSPB Hope Farm, Cambridgeshire

Common Agricultural Policy

The RSPB campaigns for policies that provide a fair deal for farmers, consumers and wildlife.

Agri-environment schemes

Staff placing & monitoring dams across drains in former forestry plantations at Forsinard Flows RSPB nature reserve, Sutherland, Highland region, Scotland

Agri-environment schemes compensate farmers for the costs of carrying out wildlife-friendly management on their farms.

Find out more

Farming, land use and nature

Pink footed geese Anser brachyrhyncus, in flight past wind turbines, Near Diepholz, Lower Saxony, Germany,

Tackling climate change

The changing climate is a major threat to the natural world and one of the key challenges facing agriculture.

Harvest mouse Micromys minutus, adult on wheat showing farmland habitat, Hertfordshire

Food and the choices we make

Food is a vital part of all our lives. Not only do we need it for physical sustenance, it also plays a vital social role
Loch a Chnuic, Abernethy RSPB reserve, Speyside, Scotland, August 2007

Uplands

The UK's uplands landscape we see today is the product of past and current land management activities.
RSPB Forsinard Flows; view from visitor trail, including snow-capped Ben Griam, Highland, Scotland

Peatlands

Peatlands are some of the UK's most valuable habitats – damp, colourful wetlands that support an array of wildlife.
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Food and farming

Just as you depend on the UK's farmland for the food you eat every day, so does much of our wildlife.

Find out why farming matters

Our newsletter, Fieldfare

Young rabbit Oryctolagus cunniculus, Conwy RSPB reserve

Find out more about Fieldfare, the RSPB UK newsletter on land-use policy and wildlife.

Read here

Our farming blogs

Grain being spread from tractor at feeding site for Common or Eurasian crane Grus grus, during autumn migration period, near Gunz

Read our blogs to see how we're working with farmers and to find out where you can meet us at events.

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Documents

We work on a wide variety of issues relating to farming and agriculture policy. Browse and download the latest agriculture policy documents.

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