15 A Pentland Centre Research & Impact Digest, 2025 Heading Towards Net Zero Meat Production https://pod.co/transforming-tomorrow/lake- district-farmers LDF image Meat production and its associated carbon emissions is a topic that has gone beyond farmers and environmentalists into the mainstream. Lancaster Environment Centre, the Pentland Centre and Lake District Farmers have collaborated on a multi-disciplinary Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) on the subject. The KTP has sought to develop an understanding of the environmental impacts of upland livestock farming and meat production in particular, and the opportunities farmers offer in transforming the carbon emissions of these. There are three main research themes: • To establish baseline soil carbon stock (the amount of carbon held in soil, and therefore not released into the atmosphere) measurements in upland livestock farms in Cumbria • To model how soil carbon stocks may change under different farm management scenarios • To explore how farm-level carbon accounting may be useful to better understand business transitions towards Net Zero Three case study farms represent both the diversity of upland farming systems in Cumbria and the heterogeneity in climate, geology and aspect, which influence the soil type and farm environment. The key aim for both the researchers and the farmers is to investigate whether there is potential to reduce on-farm emissions in meat production and if there is a likelihood of increasing soil carbon stocks through changes in production and land management. To address the first theme, soil samples have been collected from across the three farms. Laboratory analyses have been carried out at Lancaster Environment Centre to determine carbon stocks. Using these data, the impact of different farm management decisions on soil carbon levels under future climate change scenarios will be modelled, employing a model developed by Professor Jess Davies and her colleagues. This work will have additional value as their model has not been tested in livestock systems. Consequently, the team will be able to understand the potential value of using this model in farm decision-making, and what modifications may be required to optimise the model for this use. The third research theme is looking to explore how different carbon accounting methods could be used to reflect the carbon profiles of case study farms. This will include bringing academic and business stakeholders together to focus on the best ways to model a life cycle analysis of upland livestock production that justly demonstrate the environmental impacts and financial implications of transitioning to Net Zero in these less-studied farming systems. This cross-discipline KTP collaboration has brought together a wide range of voices, enabling dynamic thinking about how we might move towards Net Zero meat production. Listen...
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