Poor soil 'could affect' English farming

The deteriorating quality of soil in some parts of the England could have a detrimental affect on the country's agriculture, a new report claims.

According to the study by the Royal Agricultural Society of England (Rase), heavy machinery and drier summers are among the reasons for the decline in the quality of English soil.

Professor Dick Godwin, one of the authors of the report, said more research was needed into the effects of climate change on the production of food, reports the BBC.

"I think as far as production is concerned at the moment we are managing to produce a reasonable amount of food from our own resource - but we could do better than that and as populations increase around the world we need to do it," he commented.

Established in 1840, Rase aims to support farming and the rural industries in the UK through research, development and practice.