Red Tractor has announced that its voluntary environment module will be available from April 2024, but while the news has been welcomed by retailers, farmers have fiercely criticised the move.

According to Red Tractor, the module offers farmers, processors and packers one set of common criteria, and is set to operate very differently from the typical core standards.

It is being introduced to tackle the potential increase in audit demands on farmers as retailers, out of home operators and brands face pressure to source produce more sustainable.

However, a backlash on social media and forums has seen farmers raise serious concerns that the module could become compulsory, forcing farm businesses to spend more on higher environmental standards, without being paid for it.

What is the Greener Farms Commitment?

Red Tractor says the module will allow farmers to make commitments and track their own progress across five key areas for environmentally focused farming:

• Carbon foot printing
• Soil management
• Nutrient management
• Waste management
• Biodiversity.

It will recognise other schemes or programmes such as the SFI and other devolved government schemes, reducing the cost and complexity, and making it as easy as possible for farmers to complete, Red Tractor says.

The GFC will also have its own logo, for farmers to demonstrate their environmental credentials to consumers, whilst also differentiating the high quality of British products compared to international competition.

From 1st April 2024, the scheme will be open to the supply chain across all sectors where members are already certified against Red Tractor’s core standards. The GFC will be administered by Red Tractor directly, rather than by appointed Certification Bodies.

Unlike core standards, the GFC does not require the same thing at every farm, but instead requires farmers to register a plan for progress that is unique to their circumstances, and then measure their success and learning against that.

There will also be a dedicated Development Advisory Panel (DAP) to oversee the detail, operation, and evolution of the GFC. Its first task will be to give feedback on the technical content of the module before it is finalised and published to help ensure its practical application by sector.

The news has been welcomed by major retailers and the British Retail Consortium.

Farming reaction

Speaking on BBC 4’s Farming Today programme, Leicestershire farmer Joe Stanley said that whilst the industry is keen to move in a more sustainable direction, natural capital services such as carbon footprinting, soil management and biodiversity creation etc, which the GFC refers to, are all expected to create new income streams in future, to replace BPS payments.

“So I think the concern here from many farmers is that we are looking at being set up to give those things away for free to the rest of the food supply chain, to the retailers, to help them fulfil their environmental commitment.”

He added: “Of course it’s being trailed as a voluntary measure but as is usually the case with such things, it will inevitably soon become the industry standard and everyone will be required to adhere to it.”

Norfolk farmer Henry Catling commented on X: ‘Once again British farmers are being asked to go above and beyond for no premium. Voluntary will soon be compulsory, and once again UK Ag will suffer to the supermarkets benefit.’

North west farmer Liz Hoggarth, meanwhile, said on X that adhering to the module would cost her business £9,000 a year and expressed concerns that the NFU was not part of the consultation process.

She wrote: ‘I love the #redtractor model, it engages and is recognised by the general public, but we need to do more ourselves to engage as primary producers, we need to sell our product before the @Conservatives sell us down the river like the bales in Inveraray!

‘@RedTractorFood have to ensure farm assured farms receive a premium for their produce if the retailers want us to just through hoops, the cost has to STOP being passed down to the primary producer.’

NFU president Minette Batters replied: ‘It’s my understanding that the consultation starts now. Whether we like it or not sustainability is becoming the licence to trade but there MUST be a premium and that premium must come back to the farm gate.’

“Completely unacceptable”

Having come under fire from farmers on X, NFU vice president Tom Bradshaw said in a statement that the union has been “robustly challenging” the governance behind the environment module for the past 18 months.

“I was alarmed that it had been previously decided by the Red Tractor board that in developing this module all of the technical committees and sector boards where NFU members sit would be bypassed. I have found this position completely unacceptable and said so repeatedly.”

He added: “We have never said that as one of the 18 members of the Red Tractor board we didn’t have knowledge of the module, but at no point have expert NFU members and advisors been involved with the development of the crucial details within it.”

Mr Bradshaw said “significant concessions” had been gained to allow the module to be scrutinised by the technical advisory committees and sector boards. The NFU also fought for and gained agreement to set up the Development Advisory Panel. The union also highlighted concerns about how this could work in the devolved nations with their differing agricultural policies, which have not been involved at all, he added.

Aim is to “protect farmers”, CEO says

Defending the scheme, Red Tractor CEO Jim Moseley said it aims to protect farmers from from future audit demands, costs and complexity.

Speaking on the Farming Today programme he said: “We know that almost all retailers are looking to demonstrate their environmental commitment. Our concern is that could potentially lead to a multitude of demands on farmers and that those farms are going to be inundated with requests for different carbon footprints, different approaches on biodiversity etc etc.

“So where we started from is trying to develop a common industry approach that would reduce the number of programmes, audits or things farmers would have to do by having one simple module that meets the needs of all of those retailers and brands and OOH operators.”

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Known as the most comprehensive report on UK wildlife, State of Nature is a collaboration between leading professionals from over 60 research and conservation organisations, incorporating the latest data from monitoring schemes and recording centres.

According to the report, one in six species (16%) is at risk of being lost from Great Britain, with species decline averaging 19% since monitoring began in 1970.

Even with recent shifts towards nature-friendly land and sea use, the report points out that only a fifth of UK farmland is currently in agri-environment schemes, and just 44% of woodland is certified as sustainably managed.

While acknowledging the improvements made over the past 20 years, the report calls for nature-friendly farming to be implemented at a much wider scale to halt the decline in farmland wildlife, alongside producing food for the nation and responding to the climate crisis.

Responding to the report, NFU President Minette Batters said: “For Britain’s farmers and growers, the environments we work in are our homes and often have been for generations.

“That’s why we care passionately about protecting the great British countryside and huge amounts of work have been carried out through agri-environment schemes and industry-led initiatives to boost nature, create habitats for wildlife, and benefit soil health and water quality.

“For example, hundreds of flower rich field margins have been developed to provide habitats for bees and other insects, while 149 species were recorded during this year’s Big Farmland Bird Count, including 33 species from the Red List for Birds of Conservation Concern.”

Planting more trees and hedges is also part of the NFU’s ambition to reach net zero by 2040, however, proposals to boost nature recovery must sit alongside equally ambitious plans for food production, Ms Batters said.

“As the past 18 months have shown, food supply chains are fragile, but we can and must do more, supported by the right policy framework that values both quality, sustainable food and the environment in which it is produced.

“It’s in everyone’s interests to ensure climate-friendly British farming in the future, with a domestic agriculture policy that enables our farmers and growers to embrace accessible schemes that are fit for purpose.

“These schemes must offer fair rewards and strong incentives for participation, so farm businesses can continue to be productive and profitable while continuing to deliver the environmental benefits we all want to see,” she concluded.

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The study, published in Environmental Research, assessed the environmental impact of a pasture-based beef system using a wide range of factors, metrics, assessments and scenarios, including GWP* (Global Warming Potential), which accounts for the faster breakdown of methane over time.

The research supports the long-standing view that current Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) used to assess the environmental impact of foods are far too simplistic and fail to acknowledge distinct nuances within agricultural systems.

Current LCAs convert the impact of different greenhouse gases (GHGs) into CO₂ equivalents using the internationally agreed GWP100 (Global Warming Potential over 100 years), established at the 2015 Paris Agreement, of which the UK is legally bound.

Meanwhile, GWP*, which was developed and first made public in 2018 by scientists at the University of Oxford, is an alternative way of calculating the warming effect of methane, a GHG which is short-lived, dispersing in the atmosphere after 12 years, unlike CO₂ that has a half-life of 1,000 years.

AHDB’s Livestock Science and Environment director, Chris Gooderham, commented: “AHDB welcomes this acknowledgement of GWP* from the scientific community, and as an evidence-based organisation, we support emerging scientific debate and discussion to ensure the accurate measurement of our industry’s impact on the climate.

“Early analysis by our experts suggests that when applying the more accurate GWP*, the warming impact of methane emitted by UK livestock could be much less than currently reported, casting serious doubt on the current narrative that UK livestock are causing global warming.”

The development of GWP* has gained extensive academic interest, including from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which announced its intention to review the work in 2021, acknowledging that the current methodology in accounting for methane is incorrect.

This most recent study provides significant evidence supporting the adoption of GWP*, as it appears to better reflect the actual warming impact of methane on the climate, which could have a significant impact on future recommendations to policymakers and consumers.

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Following feedback from industry, the government has extended the application window for CS 2024 Mid-Tier agreements by four weeks to 15^th September to give more time for farmers and landowners to submit their applications online, resulting in a further 600 applications being received.

Defra has confirmed today that all those who started their application by this deadline or who submitted land changes with the intention to apply will receive support from the Rural Payments Agency to ensure they have sufficient time to complete these.

“I want as many farmers as possible to be able to sign up to our successful Countryside Stewardship scheme which is boosting food production, protecting the planet, and supporting farmers to run profitable businesses,” said food and farming secretary Thérèse Coffey.

“This is why I extended the initial deadline for Countryside Stewardship 2024 and am making sure that anyone who started their application by the deadline will be given the time and support to complete this.”

CS runs alongside the government’s other agri-environment schemes, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and Landscape Recovery, that have been developed to replace the old Basic Payment Scheme (BPS).

Applications for SFI 2023 scheme will open next week on 18^th September, and Defra has assured thousands of farmers will benefit from the new accelerated payments this year.

Improvements to the new CS scheme have included increasing payment rates on both revenue and capital items; simplifying and improving options to make them more workable on the ground; and making administrative processes more efficient.

Further improvements to come include greater flexibility over when farmers can apply and how they manage their agreements, with improved access for tenant farmers and increased access to Higher Tier options and agreements.

Farmers can be part of both CS and SFI at the same time, as long as the actions are compatible and they are not being paid for the same action twice.

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Event organiser Helen Browning from the Soil Association talking to the audience on a farm walk. Image credit: Pete Williams

Held on the organic farm of Helen Browning from the Soil Association amid unseasonably high temperatures, the inaugural Agroforestry Show saw “the beginning of change” with consensus across 1,200 delegates that trees are key to ensuring food production while tackling climate change and biodiversity loss.

The show, organised by the Soil Association and Woodland Trust charities, saw farmers, foresters, researchers, environmentalists, and policymakers sharing insights and advice on how to help farm businesses benefit from trees.

The two days of workshops and talks took place on Eastbrook Farm in Wiltshire and covered how agroforestry – combining trees with livestock or crops – can help both arable and pastoral farms to protect livestock, crops, soils, rivers, biodiversity, and climate.

Organic livestock farmer George Young from Essex, who started planting trees in an agroforestry system 2.5 years ago, said of the event: “The show has been fantastic. The big thing for me was just how many practical opportunities there were for planting trees and so many different ideas.

“I think we’re going to see a big upsurge of different planting styles in the next few years when people see what agroforestry can mean and realise that it can fit into their style of farming. It genuinely feels like the beginning of proper change,” he added.

After a recap on current, limited funding options in a session with policymakers, many attendants also called for the investment and policy changes needed to help farmers make this long-term commitment. There were particular concerns for tenant farmers.

Although none were able to give details of any new schemes to boost uptake, representatives from all four UK governments were positive about supporting agroforestry to help deliver benefits for both food production and the environment.

Soil Association chief executive Helen Browning, who has been running an agroforestry project on her farm for seven years, said: “The extraordinary number of people here have shown there’s a real thirst for knowledge on agroforestry from both the traditional forestry and farming sectors.

“If our farms are going to be resilient to face the future with happy and healthy animals and crops that grow well then trees are going to be a big part of that, as well as being very useful for reaching our environmental goals. It’s a win-win.”

Closing the show, Woodland Trust chief executive Darren Moorcroft said he hoped all attendants leave “inspired and energised” by the fact that agroforestry is the future and that “the UK now needs to reach the tipping point to take us from a really powerful set of early adopters into a mainstream conversation”.

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He and his family grow wheat, barley and oilseed rape, and graze sheep and cattle, as well as running an agricultural plastic recycling plant at Barff Farm, Lincolnshire. When the Moores bought the farm, it was a highly productive operation growing solely winter crops. Over time, the management of black-grass became increasingly difficult, which affected their profits. Robert began to think about how the business could be run more sustainably and efficiently.

“We moved to the farm in 1988 and it had almost no hedges or trees – historical maps show there used to be over 90 small fields here which had been reduced to just 13. While the land was good productive, arable soil, black-grass had become a serious issue.”

In partnership with Woodland Trust

Looking to increase biodiversity, enhance the visual impact of the land, and make better use of underperforming areas, he started researching planting schemes. Following a recommendation from a neighbour, he applied to the Woodland Trust’s MOREwoods scheme, which provides advice and funding for landowners looking to plant trees.

Robert worked closely with an adviser from the Trust to design a scheme to meet his specific needs. Together, they identified less productive areas which were suitable for planting, and assessed drainage maps to make sure field drains were not compromised. Native species such as rowan, an excellent food source, were chosen to encourage biodiversity.

They planned a substantial woodland, measuring 100×600 metres and split into three segments, with a track running through it for access. Planting began in January 2021 with a total of five hectares of trees (1,600 trees per hectare) planted next to Paunch Beck, which runs into the River Ancholme at the edge of his land.

“We have a stream that goes right through the centre of the farm with the track alongside it. So, we decided to put the woods south of the track, so any shadows coming from the woods would be on the track and not the crop over the dyke.”

Enhancing wildlife habitats with hedgerows

Aware of the steep decline in biodiversity in the British countryside, Robert was keen to create corridors for wildlife by linking his new woodland with hedgerows. Having received MOREwoods funding, he became aware of the MOREhedges scheme and went on to plant 1km of hedgerow.

“We have a big reservoir on site that’s utilised for the recycling side of the business. So we interlinked the reservoir with hedges to the new plantations of wood for wildlife tracks to go down.”

Planting trees and hedgerows for future generations

Robert’s project took six months from application to planting the final tree. The subsidy allowed him to plant more woodland at a lower cost, although the return on investment isn’t straightforward.

“The benefit is in taking bad land out of production and planting a viable resource that has values you can’t quantify – like the visual impact and effect on the farm as an overall asset,” he explains.

The MOREwoods scheme provided a 60% subsidy, with Robert choosing to use Woodland Trust contractors for planting. The hedging project received a 75% subsidy, using a self-appointed contractor.

“Working with the Woodland Trust was very easy from start to finish,” he adds. “The application was simple and straightforward … and they even managed the Environmental Impact Assessment process which was required due to the size of area being planted.”

He anticipates the benefits will grow as the woodland and hedgerows mature. “We’re enhancing the farm for future generations. Yes, it’s going to take a fair while, but the plan is to leave the farm better than when we received it – not saying it wasn’t right when we got it because it was. It was the right farm for the time, but times have changed.

“The changes we’re making now are not only restoring the productive areas to a more sustainable system. We’ve taken out less productive land, squaring up fields and restoring some of the lost hedgerows and trees. The value of carbon sequestration alongside crop protection, soil fertility and the boost for wildlife are all long-term gains.”

Woodland Trust working with farmers

The Woodland Trust has decades of experience working side by side with farmers to harness the benefits of trees for business, nature and climate. The MOREwoods and MOREhedges schemes make it easy and affordable to plant trees on your land, whether you are looking to shelter crops and livestock from our increasingly wild weather, diversify your business, capture carbon or create habitats for wildlife. The schemes have already helped over 3,000 landowners with their planting projects – that’s 4 million new, native trees in the ground.

What funding and support do the schemes offer?

MOREwoods and MOREhedges subsidise up to 75% of the cost of woodland and hedgerow creation. They provide the advice and guidance needed for projects to be successful; from site suitability and species selection to planting, tree protection and management.

All farmers, landowners and land managers are welcome to apply providing the following eligibility criteria are met – all you need is a grid reference and a map of the area to be planted.

MOREwoods

• Eligible projects must plant at least 0.5ha of new woodland, with an average of 1,000-1,600. trees/hectare.
• The total area can be made up of multiple blocks of land, each 0.1 hectare minimum.

The cost to the landowner depends on project size, species choice and tree protection. On average, self-planted projects cost 40-80p per tree plus VAT, or £1-£1.80 per tree plus VAT if planted by a Trust-arranged contractor. A one-hectare site at the recommended 1,000-1,600 trees per hectare would therefore cost around £900-2,000.

MOREhedges

Qualifying schemes comprise 100 metres or more of new hedging with a large tree planted every six metres. The hedging must connect with:

• At least 0.2 hectares of existing or newly planted woodland (0.1ha in Scotland), or
• Woodland via established hedgerows within 500m of the new hedge.

Applications for MOREwoods must be submitted by 1st November if you wish to receive your trees this winter. Apply by 1st December to plant a MOREhedges this winter.

_{The Woodland Trust is a registered charity (294344 and SC038885). The Woodland Trust logo is a registered trademark.}

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Courteenhall Farms is a 2,500-acre estate in South Northamptonshire that has been farmed by Dr Wake’s family for over 350 years.

Since taking over in 2013, Dr Wake has evolved Courteenhall from being a business based around arable farming and residential property to one on a much more diverse and sustainable footing.

In recognition of his outstanding management of the estate, Dr Wake was awarded this year’s RASA Bledisloe Gold Medal, which is supported by Evelyn Partners.

Speaking at the awards ceremony, Dr Wake said: “It is a real honour to be awarded the Bledisloe Gold Medal for Landowners and it’s a testimony to the hard work of the whole team at Courteenhall.

“We’re a family-run business committed to farming as sustainably as possible, working with and protecting the environment, and pushing the boundaries so we can be at the vanguard of positive change.”

Sustainability is at the heart of all farming activities carried out at Courteenhall estate, with some of the work aimed at increasing biodiversity, improving soil health through maximising the use of natural fertilisers, carbon sequestration and utilising a range of renewable energy sources to power on-farm operations.

Work is also ongoing to reintroduce traditional Hereford cattle and Rare Breed sheep to the parkland at Courteenhall where animals will be allowed to graze naturally all year round before being sold to The Ethical Butcher.

“We have a long and proud legacy to preserve, and we’re passionate about supporting the local community and protecting the environment for future generations,” Dr Wake added.

This year, the Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) recognised six members of the agricultural community for their outstanding contributions to farming for food, people, the environment and profit at the annual RASE Awards Day.

David Grint, CEO at RASE, said at the awards ceremony: “Bringing people together to celebrate the leaders in the industry and to be inspired by what can be achieved is what these awards are about.

“The Bledisloe Gold Medal is awarded to a landowner who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in the successful land management and development of an agricultural estate in England.

“Dr Wake puts community, sustainability and legacy at the heart of every decision made, demonstrating an exceptional model of best practice and one which sets examples for estates across the whole of England,” he added.

Mr Grint went on to thank the award supporters and The Crown Estate’s Windsor team for organising the inspirational event in celebration of outstanding achievements in agriculture.

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Now in its second year of three, Branston’s Net Zero crop nutrition project is working with partners agritech firm B-hive Innovations, the University of Lincoln, crop storage technologists Crop Systems Ltd and multiple growers. The project is establishing a process that will achieve the lowest possible GHG emissions while still producing a commercially viable crop.

In this year’s Net Zero field trials – which are being undertaken with David Armstrong Farms in Lincolnshire and Arbikie Farming in Scotland – the main focus is on optimising crop nutrition. Nitrogen fertiliser is an essential element in growing a crop of potatoes, but it also makes up a significant part of the potato carbon footprint.

As with most other conventional field crops, a good dose of fertiliser is needed to encourage plant growth and boost production. Branston is looking at the potential to rely less on synthetic fertilisers through a range of different trials – from novel sources of fertiliser, to the potential for reducing fertiliser inputs and recycling nutrition in the field.

In both trial fields, Branston established a base-line plot with no nitrogen applied. Then it has set up further plots with varying levels of nitrogen application, both from conventional and from novel sources. It is already noticing differences in the colour and vigour of the canopies; it will be interesting to see what variation we get in yield at harvest.

Branston is already noticing differences between plots in the colour and vigour of the canopies.

Crop nutrition – testing plant feeding levels

Branston are also assessing how much it can feed through the leaf as the crop is growing. R-leaf is a new technology with the potential to change the way we think about crop nutrition.

Developed by Crop Intellect, the photosynthetic catalyst is sprayed onto the leaf and, in the presence of sunlight, turns atmospheric NOx gases such as nitrous oxide (N₂O), nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), into nitrate that can be used by the plant. R-leaf could enable growers to reduce the fertiliser application at planting, knowing that they can top up through the growing season.

To work out what the plants need as they grow, Branston is evaluating a new system from Piketa. This system will give in-field, real-time nutrient analysis via the leaves. It has the potential to save the cost of lab analysis and allow growers to respond immediately by feeding the crop what it needs, when it needs it.

The carbon footprint of producing synthetic nitrogen fertiliser is already well documented.  What Branston is particularly interested in for the Net Zero project is what happens as the crop grows and the fertiliser breaks down in the soil. On this project it’s working closely with the University of Lincoln. Together they are looking at soil health and gaseous emissions at field scale throughout the growing season.

Nitrous oxide – which is 265 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide is released from the soil as synthetic nitrogen-based fertiliser is broken down. The University of Lincoln is measuring this important greenhouse gas throughout the growing season across all the fertiliser plots.

They are also collecting and analysing the CO₂ and other gases that are released from the soil, across the fertiliser trial and the range of different types of cultivations that are also part of the Net Zero field trial.

The potato industry needs a step change if it is to achieve its ambitious net zero targets.

A commercially viable crop

Different potato varieties may also play an important role in reducing the carbon footprint of production. Plant breeders are assessing new varieties to see which ones can perform at low levels of nitrogen and can produce a quality, high yielding crop with reduced irrigation and lower quality land.

While much of the work undertaken is around reducing inputs, the team is well aware that yield and quality are still important. Any reductions that lower the marketable yield could necessitate an increase in other inputs and detriment the overall carbon footprint. Branston is looking at ways to get the balance right for truly sustainable potato production.

In reality, a step change is required from the potato industry as it looks to achieve ambitious net zero targets. A “business as usual” approach isn’t going to cut it anymore, and the responsibility rests across everyone involved to find solutions.

The direction of travel is changing, and for the most part the industry seems to be steering in the right direction. However, a consistent, concerted, combined effort is needed to sift the ideas and find data-backed, sustainable solutions that can help us achieve our collective target.

Please visit the Branston website for more information.

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Is regenerative agriculture the answer?

While it was acknowledged that there is still work to do to convince some people of the merits of nature-friendly approaches, the webinar heard that changing weather patterns, problems with drought and flooding and the increasing struggle for farms to turn a profit are all driving people to look at alternative solutions.

Martin Lines, CEO of NFFN, said: “We have a really large mountain to climb but a lot of people are going up the mountain at various paces. There’s a growing awareness our current models are not resilient, are having an impact and are in need of change.

“The impact of climate change on food production is here and now, it’s already happening in my business and in the businesses of my farming colleagues. We can see it on the shelves when we go to buy food.”

He added: “We wouldn’t have heard much about regenerative agriculture several years ago but there’s a groundswell of opinion right across the UK and farmers who often haven’t felt represented but are doing amazing things. There are voices saying it is challenging but there are thousands of farmers delivering solutions now. There’s growing interest around this consensus and in bringing people together to show how it works.”

Farming can be about much more than just producing food

He told the webinar how his own father farmed right up to the edges of the fields to maximise production, the approach that dominated thinking in agriculture from the Second World War onwards, but how he had stepped away from that.

He spoke of the benefits of a diverse farmed landscape that serves a variety of purposes and expressed his hope that the Government’s Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes currently being shaped will evolve to fairly reward farmers for providing ambitious environmental delivery and offer support to deliver the sort of agriculture being championed by the consensus.

He said: “The role of a farm is feeding the stomach, the heart and the mind. We need food but we also need a beautiful landscape to make the heart flutter and access to landscapes improves wellness and makes us feel better. We can play a real role in delivering all that we need to nourish ourselves. Farming is the most exciting industry with the most opportunities for the future, if we think differently.”

Nature-friendly farming can help farmers by reducing their fossil-fuel based inputs such as fertilisers, which have recently rocketed in price due to events such as the war in Ukraine. It involves prioritising soil health, sustainable and nutritious food and making space for nature, particularly to address biodiversity losses such as the declines of pollinating insects.

However, the webinar acknowledged that debates around issues such as land use and food production have become polarised. The consensus movement began in the margins of the Oxford farming conferences when farmers who were frustrated by the tone of debate and didn’t feel their voices about a nature-friendly approach were being heard reached out to other organisations about building a platform to share a common message.

We need one clear, strong, unified voice

Helen Browning, CEO of the Soil Association, told the webinar: “We need one clear, strong, unified voice. At the moment it’s just too easy for us all to be picked off and sidetracked into sterile and binary debates. When politicians are vying with each other to de-green their policies it’s crucial we show the investment we want to make will repay quickly and bring huge benefits to society.”

Webinar attendees also gave their views on three questions related to the future of farming. There was a consensus that “ecological security is crucial for food production, human wellbeing and prosperity”. A massive 91% of  those who answered the question strongly agreed with this statement.

Opinions were decidedly split over the importance of the role technology has to play in the future of agriculture. Just 5% strongly agreed that technology “will have the most important role in helping the agricultural sector meet net zero”, with 19% agreeing, 32% neutral, 32% disagreeing and 12% strongly disagreeing.

Finally the meeting threw down a challenge to politicians as 66% of those who answered strongly agreed that the current UK government “has overlooked the link between food and a resilient society”. A further 24% agreed, while 7% were neutral and 4% disagreed.

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The PigProGrAm project aimed to find a farm-focused solution for the harvesting of green ammonia from pig waste that could also lead to the creation of hydrogen – a valuable tool in the fight against climate change.

The innovative Downflow Gas Contactor (DGC) was installed on a pig farm in July.

Harvesting ammonia from pig waste means that ammonia emissions will be lower. In addition, the byproduct from the process creates a resource that can be used in several ways, such as producing a high-quality fertiliser as well as potentially generating hydrogen.

The research team consists of AHDB, Beta Technology, the University of Leeds, Duynie Feed, a commercial pig unit in North Yorkshire, and newest partner Membracon.

Aman Sohl from Membracon said: “The DGC will be used on this ambitious project to help generate a route for the livestock sector to become truly sustainable; considering the true practices of a circular economy, while retaining a sound financial profile to continuing operations.”

Zanita Markham, AHDB’s projects and engagement relationship manager, said: “We hope that the PigProGrAm project will be the first stage of a larger demonstration of the potential of this innovative approach to harvesting green ammonia from livestock and will contribute to the UK meeting its net-zero emission target.

“The project is a step forwards in helping reduce the environmental impact of pig farms which not only enables us to keep meeting environmental targets but could have a significant positive impact on the public perception of pig farming.”

The project has received £600K of government money under the Farming Innovation Programme.

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