Greenwich & Lewisham campaigners dressed to impress29 June 2010
Members of Greenwich & Lewisham Friends of the Earth dressed as farm animals to meet Joan Ruddock MP and discuss reducing the environmental impact of meat and dairy consumption.
The meeting took place at Hilly Fields summer fair, where the group were calling on members of the public to back our campaign. Ms Ruddock agreed to sign the petition, which asks MPs drawn in the Private Members Ballot to support our proposal for a Sustainable Livestock Bill.
The Bill would aim to reduce British meat and dairy factory farms' dependence on animal feed grown in South America.
Wildlife and rainforests are destroyed so that these feeds - such as soy - can be grown. This destruction also accelerates climate change.
Campaign success
Thanks to hard work from local activists across the country, Robert Flello, Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent South - drawn second in the Ballot - agreed to table a Bill.
The proposed new law commits the Government to action to limit the wildlife and rainforest destruction caused by animal feeds.
It will also help UK farmers to thrive and ensure they are not squeezed by big business farming.
There's a real appetite for planet-friendly food and farming among local people - over 400 Lewisham and Greenwich residents signed a petition calling for the bill, and 150 signed our petition at the weekend.
Ted Burke, Coordinator, Greenwich & Lewisham Friends of the Earth
Raising local support
Greenwich & Lewisham Friends of the Earth are one of over 100 local groups who have been campaigning for the Bill since the campaign launched in 2009.
Take action
Find your nearest local group.
Find out more about the target=_self>Fix the Food Chain campaign.
© Ted Burke
