Research

Farming carbon or farming better? – A Nuffield Perspective

My name is Andrew Sincock and I grew up on my grandparents mixed Dairy, Beef and Arable Farm in Cornwall. My first job on the farm was mucking out an old stable that served as a temporary home for new mothers and their calves. The stable was 3 meters wide, roughly 6 meters long and …

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AHDB needs new monitor farmers in England and Wales – could you be one?

What is a Monitor Farm? With economic pressures mounting, including the end of the Basic Payment Scheme this year, finding new ways to improve performance and profitability is more important than ever for farmers. One way to do this is to pool knowledge with other, similar farming enterprises. AHDB’s Monitor Farm programme brings together groups …

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Robotics and perception in agriculture: smart farming getting smarter

The National Robotarium has been set up to help bring to the field the UK’s inherent R&D expertise in robotics, Associate Professor Dr. Fernando Auat Cheein sets out its plans. Agricultural processes worldwide are experiencing fundamental changes motivated by different technology revolutions. Examples include the improvement of connectivity resources (such as 5G or 6G) and …

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Hitting rock bottom

Written by Dr David Cutress: IBERS, Aberystwyth University. • Silicate and carbonate reactions could offer a route for long-term carbon storage• Whilst issues surround carbonate minerals, silicates, like basalt rock, appear more promising• Applying crushed silicatesto agricultural soils could benefit carbon footprints, nutrient availability, pH, soil water retention and plant growth and yields• Currently, there …

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Basics best for hi-tech wine

Knowing basic infrastructural information about fields is a key requirement to unlocking technological progress for an Oxfordshire wine producer. Tech Farmer visits JoJo’s vineyard. By Mike Abram Three simple words explain why Ian Beecher Jones, and his partner Tess, started the 2ha JoJo’s vineyard that nestles on the chalky slopes of the Chiltern Hills, not …

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How being in the black can help keep you green

Profitable businesses are best placed to help the planet. Knight Frank’s Mark Topliff speaks to consultants Simon Britton and Andrew Martin to discuss the five standout traits of the most successful farmers they have worked with. Farming businesses that perform at the top 25% level financially are more capable of riding out volatile markets and …

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Making the most of organic materials to reduce fertiliser bills

Written by Lizzie Sagoo from ADAS Earlier this month, ADAS, Rothamsted and Bangor University welcomed over 250 delegates from 25 countries to the 18th International RAMIRAN conference in Cambridge. The theme of this year’s RAMIRAN was maximising the utilisation of organic fertilisers against a background of changing regulation and increasing pressure on the environment and food production. Following …

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Unearthing Insights: Navigating Compaction Challenges in the Transition to Conservation Agriculture

Written by Joe Stanley from the Allerton Project It’s well established, including by our own research (in part discussed in June’s article on our pioneering Conservation Agriculture trial), that a move to reduced tillage or direct drilling (DD) can generally be considered beneficial for the triumvirate of farm economics, soil health and environmental sustainability. With …

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