In the wake of a pastoral address by the Prince of Wales at last week's Oxford Farming Conference, residents of a Cornish city where Duchy farmlands have been sold off to developers have accused the Prince of hypocrisy.

Speaking in Oxford on Thursday, organic farming advocate Prince Charles distanced himself from the industrial players present, stating "I have resisted the temptation to make a speech about the transformational change I believe we need in order to make our food systems genuinely sustainable so that we can feed as many [people] as possible."

He continued, "The damaging flooding before Christmas, combined with the remorseless increase in so many costs, is putting huge pressure on farm businesses everywhere, and especially the smaller, family farms."

The Prince proceeded to paint an Arcadian picture of rural life, stating, "It is the people and what they do that creates the beating heart of our countryside – the vitality that comes from the busy village shop and pub, a thriving school, the tractors in the fields, from the Church and W.I." and added, "Rural landscapes are not something fixed in aspic. They are alive and have to be kept alive and vibrant. You can only do that if you have a care for the well-being of rural communities."

However, protestors from the Save Truro pressure group suggested the sell-off of Duchy land stands in complete contrast to the message of the Prince's speech. Members of the Save Truro campaign said at the beginning of the week that the speech was "outrageous" in light of the development in Cornwall, and accused the Prince of "Paternal hypocrisy."  

The Duke of Cornwall told delegates in Oxford that, "Growing crops and the landscape's biodiversity [are] under threat from a combination of climate change, disease of every kind and also insensitive development," and warned that crops, livestock and biodiversity are "absolutely fundamental to sustainable farming and to the economy."

In March 2012, Cornwall Council granted planning permission for a Waitrose supermarket and local food retailer, a large car park and 97 houses to be built on farmland owned by the Ducky of Cornwall. Developers claim their work in the Tregurra valley, outside Truro will create 210 jobs and comprise environmental features. Work is due to begin early this year.