The recent BBC investigation Meat: A Threat to our Planet? has caused quite a storm.
For many farmers, much of the issue they had with the programme was that they filmed the majority of it in America, where standards of welfare are substantially below those that British farmers adhere to. But the BBC implied throughout much of the programme that what was been said was equally applicable to any livestock farmer - even here in the UK.
Some things they stated were just plain wrong. Below is just one such example.
The BBC said: “Over the course of a year, the burps from a single extra cow heat the planet as much as burning around 600 litres of petrol. Together with all other livestock, the meat industry now produces more greenhouse gases than the running of all our transport”.
Fact: As far as the UK is concerned, this claim is completely erroneous. Figures from the Committee on Climate Change show that UK agriculture as a whole accounts for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions, compared with 24% for energy supplies and 27% for transport. Furthermore, of farming’s 10% contribution, just 4.5% is from livestock.
When I was growing up, everyone had huge respect for the BBC, especially the standards that their journalists upheld. Perhaps we were just being naive?
Nowadays however, I feel that there is an underlying attitude of "don't let the odd miss-truth get in the way of creating a damn good, headline grabbing story".
That is a great shame.
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