Written by Chris Fellows
Farmers are at the frontline of meeting environmental challenges while keeping their businesses resilient and productive. Innovation—especially farmer-led innovation—is key to moving regenerative practices forward. The ADOPT Fund is now open and aims to do exactly that.
With up to £20.6 million available in 2025/26, the Accelerating Development of Practices and Technologies (ADOPT) Fund is designed to support the on-farm trialling and demonstration of practical innovations that improve productivity, resilience, and environmental sustainability.
What You Can Apply For
There are two key funding opportunities available:
- Full ADOPT Grant
For farmer-led trials and demos that help spread new regenerative techniques or tools across the sector.- Funding per project: £50,000–£100,000
- Must be collaborative, practical, and designed for long-term change—not just short-term experiments.
- ADOPT Facilitator Support Grant
A £2,500 grant for farmers, growers or foresters in England to bring in a Project Facilitator to help prepare and submit their application for the full grant.
The fund is being delivered by Innovate UK, with application support available via webinars and an online hub.
What the Fund Is For
ADOPT is aimed at speeding up the adoption of innovations that:
- Boost productivity and profitability
- Increase resilience to climate and market shocks
- Help reduce emissions and improve environmental outcomes
Projects must show how they’ll make a lasting difference—ideally with results that others can adopt and adapt.
Regenerative Farming-Focused Examples
If you’re practicing or transitioning to regenerative farming, here are the kinds of projects ADOPT could support:
- Multi-species cover crop trials: Testing species combinations for soil structure, nutrient cycling, and weed suppression under different rotations and conditions.
- Low-disturbance direct drilling innovations: Demonstrating machinery or methods that reduce soil disturbance and maintain surface cover while improving establishment.
- On-farm composting systems: Trialling aerobic composting or vermicomposting setups to convert local waste into high-quality amendments and reduce reliance on synthetic inputs.
- Integrating agroforestry: Testing silvopasture or alley-cropping layouts to improve water retention, boost biodiversity, and provide additional income streams.
- Biological inputs in regenerative rotations: Evaluating the role of bio-stimulants, mycorrhizal fungi, or microbial inoculants in enhancing crop health and reducing inputs.
- Mob grazing and pasture monitoring tech: Trialling decision-support tools or satellite imagery to improve grass recovery, stock health, and carbon outcomes.
Next Steps
If you’ve been experimenting with regenerative practices or have an idea that could benefit others in the community, now’s the time to take it further.
The fund is open for applications, and support is available to help shape your project. Whether you’re focused on soil health, biodiversity, or low-input systems, ADOPT is a chance to turn ideas into action—and share the benefits with others and have the support of up to £100,000 of funding.
Do you need a collaborator?
Support from Direct Driller Magazine
If you have an idea, but need support from a Project Partner, then why not pick Direct Driller to support your project. We have been part of projects before, so can offer project management, survey support, farmer communication, market identification and most importantly – you can write about your project in the magazine to help other farmers to understand your project and how they could adopt the idea as well.
After all – that is the real aim of this, the aim Direct Driller has had since it started. Helping farmers benefit from the experience of other farmers. This collaborative approach aims to help farmers learn from each other’s experience, pick up insights and get more out of their projects.Â
Please email me on chris@agriwebmedia.co.uk and we can have a conversation about your project and how to get started.
Webinar
A webinar was held on 30 April for those interested in applying. The webinar, delivered by Innovate UK, provided further guidance on the application process. Watch it here:
