The organisers behind the Oxford Farming Conference have commissioned a research project to investigate the contributions of UK farming delivers to wider society. OFC-commissioned research will examine whether farming does deliver benefits to society and assess the value of its contributions.

The research will be presented to delegates at the annual conference in Oxford, which runs from 2-4 January 2013. OFC organisers have promised “The research will draw on a wide range of evidence in order to identify and evaluate the full range of environmental and social values that farming delivers to the population.”

The project is being undertaken by Dr Peter Carruthers of Vision 37 Ltd and Professor Michael Winter, Professor and Director of the Centre for Rural Policy Research at the University of Exeter.

Following the release of this year’s research topic, OFC Chair Mike Gooding commented, "This will be a seminal piece of work that will try to determine farming's value to society beyond its contribution to the country's GDP and employment figures. Farming provides a host of societal benefits some of which are well acknowledged like flood defence, landscapes, carbon storage and air quality. In this regard a number of attempts have already been made to calculate UK farming's measureable impacts on soil, air and water."

The OFC chair continued, "What is less well documented is the boost to people's well-being that is delivered by their association with the countryside and farming - whether that be from a walk in the countryside, a convalescent's view over green fields from their hospital bed or a family spending an afternoon with a picnic on the South Downs. What this research seeks to do is to tie together all of these deliverables to give an all-encompassing value to society."

However, conservationist commentators have suggested that environmental degradation caused by some farming techniques has resulted in more severe flooding, particularly in North Yorkshire, and that the misuse of chemicals has damaged wildlife and water resources. Sustainability experts have sought to encourage policy makers to consider these environmental impacts in research and decision-making regarding food production.

Widely-respected conservation organisation RSPB is part funding the OFC research, though the environmental and societal costs of current landscape management, do not appear to have received the same attention ahead of the conference-supported research.

Darren Moorcroft, RSPB's Head of Species & Habitat Conservation and research co-sponsor said, "This research will highlight the true value of agriculture, and help to piece together the jigsaw of effects it has on the things that matter to society, including food, wildlife, community, water and landscapes.  It can help us all maximise the benefits to society and rise to the challenges to reduce any negative impacts"

William Neville of Burges Salmon also commented, "Living in a small densely populated island, the competing demands on farmland are enormous and central to using this valuable finite resource wisely is a proper understanding of its value. This research could hardly be more timely."

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