Richard Young, who has died of heart disease aged 73, was a champion of animal welfare and an advocate of the importance of livestock in sustainable food systems. He was one of the early adopters of organic farming in the 1970s, and his deep understanding of sustainable farming principles was derived from direct experience.
Young’s rise to prominence within the organic movement owed much to his dedicated engagement with two pioneer organisations that were later absorbed into the Soil Association: British Organic Farmers and the Organic Growers’ Association, whose journal, New Farmer and Grower, he edited for several years. He played a pivotal role in the development of the Soil Association’s organic livestock standards in the late 1980s, making sure that the rules expressly prohibited feed containing animal waste.
