Campaigners press Welsh government to pause chicken farm applications
A campaign to pause intensive poultry unit development has been taken to the seat of government in Wales.
On Wednesday, environmental groups from across Wales, including Sustainable Food Knighton (SFK), met politicians at the Senedd in Cardiff asking for a moratorium to be placed on intensive poultry farming.
As well as the moratorium, they are calling for a ban on imported soya feed used on chicken farms, as they claim its production in South America has “decimated” biodiversity and communities there.
SFK, which campaigned against a chicken farm near Knighton will also ask for more effective monitoring and compliance with regulations on nitrates and phosphates which pollute rivers and affect wildlife
They also want a “proper debate” on genetically-modified food and crops in Wales.
SFK member Camilla Saunders said: “Despite Welsh Government’s claims and its climate emergency declaration, nothing changes in Powys.
“The drive for ‘cheap food’ only profits supermarkets and big multinationals.
“It is harming communities and ecosystems here and in South America, and causing animal suffering – which is not even a consideration for planning.
“It’s all that is bad about global food production and it’s happening here in Wales.
“We call on the government to stop making excuses and actively support farmers to produce good food now and in the future.”
The clamour for a chicken farm moratorium has been gathering momentum, with several Powys environmental groups wanting to meet Julie James, the Welsh Government’s climate change minister, to discuss the issue
A petition for a moratorium has also been discussed several times by the Senedd’s petitions committee and is expected to return again for further debate soon.
Since 2015, more than 130 poultry unit applications have been approved in Powys, a number which dwarfs similar applications approved all over Wales and the neighbouring English counties of Herefordshire and Shropshire.
