Here's how we can return rainforests to the UK and Ireland

Feb 15, 2023

Only a tiny and fragmented area of UK and Irish rainforest remains. Image: Unsplash/Sergey Konstantinov

Emma Garnett

Researcher in the Health Behaviours Team, University of Oxford

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Most of the UK and Ireland’s grass-fed cows and sheep are on land that might otherwise be temperate rainforest – arable crops tend to prefer drier conditions. Image: Unsplash/Jason Murphy.

Rainforest and livestock grazing are therefore competing for space. Image: The Conversation/Our World In Data.

Grasslands in the British Isles with low levels of grazing can be important ecosystems for wildflowers and insects. Image: Unsplash/Joshua J. Cotten.

A bar chart showing arable land use of meat and legumes from UK and Irish farms. rainforest

Generally British beef uses more crop land per kilo than British legumes. Image: The Conversation/ Emma Garnett

British and Irish rainforests are moving up the public consciousness thanks to campaigners such as Guy Shrubsole and Eoghan Daltun. Image: The Conversation/National Food Strategy

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