The UK has an estimated 100 harvests left before soils become too degraded to grow crops, one study shows.
Rebecca Pow, parliamentary private secretary to environment ministers, told the Guardian the agricultural bill, expected to be published later this year, would contain a section devoted to soil health, in the first attempt by ministers to reverse decades of soil loss and threats to fertility. She said it was too early to tell exactly what form the regulation would take, but indicated that it was likely to set a target of reversing the declines and restoring soil health across the country by 2030.