CPRE, the countryside charity, has called for new solar farms to be banned from the UK’s highest-grade farmland over concerns that they impact domestic food security.

A report from the body claims that 59% of England's largest operational solar farms are located on productive farmland, while almost a third (31%) of the area they cover is classified as the nation’s ‘best and most versatile’ (BMV) agricultural land.

Solar power is one of the primary forms of energy generation that the UK will need to utilise if Labour’s plan to decarbonise the grid by 2030 is to be achieved. However, figures from last year showed that solar was responsible for just 5% of energy generated, compared with 30% from wind. 

CPRE is calling for 60% of the UK’s solar to be generated on rooftops, alongside a ban on new solar farms on the highest two grades of farmland.

The report examined the 38 operational solar developments that produce more than 30MW of energy and found that more than half of these sites (53%) include patches of land officially designated as high quality under the agricultural land classification system. 

The analysis found that, in total, 827 hectares of BMV land has been covered by solar development – equivalent to around 1,300 football pitches.

Three operational solar farms – Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire, Goosehall in East Cambridgeshire, and Black Peak Farm in South Cambridgeshire – are located entirely on BMV farmland. 

The government is aiming to ramp up the UK’s solar capacity from 16.6GW today to 47GW by 2030, meaning that many new projects will need to be built in the short term. Under current policy scenarios, 60-65% of this capacity could come from large-scale solar farms that would move more agricultural areas from food production for up to 60 years.

But despite government projections that solar will cover only 0.4% of UK land, CPRE said that the distribution is likely to be highly uneven. In the parliamentary constituency of Sleaford and North Hykeham, for example, 7% of land is already covered by solar farms. 

Previous research has shown that installing solar panels on the roofs of suitable domestic and industrial buildings, as well as on car parks, could deliver 40-50GW by 2035 and up to 117GW by 2050. Despite higher up-front costs, solar farms are often cheaper on a cost-per-kilowatt basis for large-scale energy generation in comparison to rooftop installations and are typically less impacted by shadows from nearby buildings.

CPRE campaigns lead and report author Jackie Copley said: “The government’s new Solar Roadmap sets out welcome ambition for rooftop solar deployment but does not go far – or fast – enough. CPRE’s new analysis reveals a deeply concerning trend that threatens both rural landscapes and the UK’s food supply. 

“While there’s common cause in achieving clean power, we must find solutions that unite rather than divide communities. The current approach, which has seen 59% of mega solar farms built on productive farmland, is short-sighted and wasteful. We’re needlessly sacrificing irreplaceable agricultural land when rooftops, car parks and brownfield sites could deliver even greater amounts of energy. 

“This isn’t just about protecting our countryside, it’s about smart energy planning that brings people together around practical solutions that work for everyone.”

A University of Sheffield study earlier this year showed that installing solar panels on farmers’ land would not result in a loss of agricultural activity. This is achieved through the deployment of agrivoltaics – which would see solar panels installed in ways that allow farming activities to continue underneath or between panels so that crop production or livestock feeding could continue.