In this series, we look at the changes in management that farmers and growers are taking in response to a changing climate. We’re looking at the tips, techniques and approaches that are borne out of the lived experience of farmers and growers, in response to a changing climate driven by global heating.
FCT exists to help food and farming businesses to reduce their carbon footprint, but increasingly every farming business also is having to adapt to the climate that we now have. It’s therefore vital that food and farming does both climate mitigation and adaptation at the same time.
Over recent years they have noticed a change in weather patterns, which has affected their farm in significant ways. Adam comments:
“The increasing frequency and intensity of high rainfall events coming with our changing climate are causing challenges in crop planning, and significant impacts on our soil. Soil erosion and water infiltration can be made much worse by heavy rainfall, especially in short amounts of time, as we’ve been experiencing.”
Indeed, research by EJP Soils shows that changes in rainfall patterns across Europe will be responsible for up to 23% more soil erosion by 2050. This could have very significant impacts on soil health, water quality and could lead to significant losses of soil carbon – the one major asset that farmers have to sequester carbon on their farmland.
The UK Met Office predict that rainfall will get more intense in both summer and winter over coming years and decades, in particular with very local variations; in other words, hard to predict and plan for.
Protecting the soil
Whilst we can’t influence the weather, we can respond to the weather patterns as we see them emerging. A good example is how we manage our soils, as this is so fundamental to food and farming. It is well known that leaving soil uncovered (in arable and horticultural systems) can lead to soil erosion, a decrease in soil organic matter, a loss of soil biodiversity, and other negative impacts on soil health and structure.
In turn, bare soil can have significant short and long term impacts on crop health, quality and yields. Water courses can end up being clogged up with soil and full of the nutrients that should be in our fields. Carbon can be oxidised and lost to the atmosphere, so that soils emit rather than sequester carbon.
Working out ways to change farming systems to be more resilient to these changes in climate will be critical for all farmers and growers. There are range of ways to build a more resilient soil, as Adam discusses:
“Over the last few years, we have changed our soil management practices. We’re working towards improving and maintaining soil health through regenerative principles. We’ve reduced tillage significantly, ploughing just one year in four now, and using pig tail tines as primary cultivation, with a power harrow. We’re also rotating some land with livestock and we’re very keen on keeping living roots in the soil as much as possible.
An example of standing water in tractor wheelings and a bed of carrots just harvested, with bare soil visible
Importantly we’ve really increased plant diversity and soil coverage. We’re constantly undersowing crops, so 80-90% of all fields have a green manure of some sort. This reduces exposure of soil to the weather, builds fertility and increases biodiversity.
There are three rotations across the market garden. Fertility building leys make up about 20-25% of land in any given year. Here we’re using 10-15 different varieties, including clovers, and annuals or biannuals – no long term grasses, we prefer cereals like rye oats and barley, plus winter wheat. We’re aiming to put in more deeper rooted species such as plantain, buckthorn, chicory, yarrow.
Deep rooting species can help improve soil structure and water infiltration
We also add manures (from our landlord’s organic farm), the amount being crop dependent. But with Soil Organic Matter levels at over 7%, we don’t need to add too much manure, and increasingly the green manures are performing that fertility building role.”
The impacts
Seeing is believing, and farmers and growers tend to learn a lot from looking at each other’s farms and understanding what others do differently. Knowing when something is working can be self-evident to farmers, not necessarily needing research to back it up.
At Pitney Farm Market Garden, Adam describes the impact of the changes they’ve made:
“Water infiltration rates on the areas covered by green manures are so much better; it’s obvious just to look at. There is no standing water on the green manures, even after heavy rain, whereas in the wheelings and a few bare beds there is standing water. This is evidence enough to me that we’re doing something right.
Kale with red and crimson clover undersown
Living plants cover the soil, reducing the speed and intensity that rain hits the soil. Roots help water sink into the ground, massively increasing infiltration rates and stopping the water running off the surface and carrying soil with it.
Soil improvements through Adam and Rita’s management have led to much improved water infiltration through better soil structure and aggregation
The healthier a soil is, with better aggregation, the faster the infiltration rate will be, meaning the larger amount of rainfall that the soil can deal with. We’re seeing good aggregation now in the top four inches of soil and lots of earthworms. We’re hoping that by introducing more deeper rooting species that aggregation will improve further down the soil profile.”
Bigger picture
When it comes to managing these issues of flooding and drought on a wider scale, Adam shares some thoughts:
“I’m coming to think that undersowing crops and ensuring the soil is covered, is actually an essential practice, not a nice add on. This is because of the increasing frequency and intensity of high rainfall events coming with our changing climate.
A lot of our agricultural soils in this country are in poor health. Many soils – particularly those under maize, are in very poor condition and have very little capacity to hold water. As the climate deteriorates, more and more farmers have to work harder and harder to produce crops, and do even more to protect our most precious resource, the soil, from harsher conditions.
Green manures and crops side by side, ensuring almost full soil cover at Pitney Farm Market Garden
Is the support, both technically and financially, in place to help farmers across the board to do this? Sadly, I really don’t think it is. The government doesn’t have a handle on it, and is not taking it seriously, which is really worrying. The climate crisis terrifies me on all sorts of levels. The impacts on global food supply chains and food security could be massive. We need to manage our soils better to both mitigate and adapt to climate change, as well as recreating our food systems to build resilience in food and farming.”
Written by Grace Wardell/Calculator Development Officer
Due to an increasing awareness of climate change, more people than ever are interested in the environmental impact of the products they’re buying. But how many of the claims around carbon are true and how can we trust them? The UK Green Claims Code suggests that 40% of green claims made online could be misleading1. As a farm business, it is particularly important to ensure that claims made around carbon or greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions and removals are truthful and transparent. Whether you’re being offered ‘low carbon’ fertilisers or want to promote your GHG reductions, navigating green claims can be tricky.
We know this can feel scary, no one wants to be accused of greenwashing. If you’re looking to make positive environmental claims about your farm, we would advise keeping a record of your working with evidence to back it up. We’ve laid out some key terminology to help get you started with carbon accounting, how you can market it and how you can evaluate the green claims of products you buy.
What are green claims?
Green claims (also sometimes called ‘environmental claims’ or ‘eco-friendly claims’) are often made by a product or business that claims a benefit to, or a reduced impact on the environment.
Some examples of green claims include:
“This product will reduce the carbon footprint of your farm”
“Company’s environmental footprint reduced by 20% since 2015”
“CO2 emissions linked to this product halved as compared to 2020”
How can carbon footprinting help?
Carbon footprinting is the first step to making green claims about your business or a product you’re selling. In order to reliably report changes in GHG emissions, you first have to estimate them. Conducting a carbon footprint can highlight ‘hot spot’ areas in your business which might be emitting more GHGs than you thought. Addressing these ‘hot spot’ areas and reducing emissions associated with them is often an easy first win in the journey to lower emissions, net zero and even financial savings. You can try out our carbon calculator tool, which is free for farmers and growers. You will then need to record your GHG emissions estimate in subsequent years. Once you have evidence of reduced emissions over time, you may want to promote this, for example on a product you sell or as a business. Here are some key terms to get familiar with.
Key terms
Reduced emissions refers to the direct lowering of GHG emissions by adopting more sustainable agricultural practices, technologies, and management strategies. These reductions involve minimising the release of GHGs that occur during conventional farming activities. Looking at ways to reduce GHG emissions is the first recommended step before you seek to make any “green claims”.
Example: A farmer adopts precision agriculture techniques to apply fertilisers more efficiently (e.g., using soil sensors, variable rate application, or slow-release fertilisers).
Impact: By optimising fertiliser use, the farm reduces the amount of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions, which are released when excess nitrogen is applied to the soil. Improving nitrogen use efficiency can directly reduce N2O emissions.
Avoided emissions refer to GHG emissions that would have been released into the atmosphere under business-as-usual practices but are prevented through changes in farming methods, land use, or supply chain activities. These emissions reductions do not remove carbon from the atmosphere directly, but rather prevent emissions from occurring in the first place. It’s very similar to “reduced emissions” but it is more hypothetical.
Example: A distributor uses biofuel from used cooking oil to transport their products (renewable energy source) instead of using diesel.
Impact: High emissions that would have been released from burning diesel or during transport are avoided. This distributor may have lower GHG emissions from transporting the same quantity of goods the same distance as compared to a distributor using diesel. However they may require more biofuel to transport the same quantity of goods the same distance so the avoidance of emissions is not guaranteed.
Carbon Removals is the process of actively removing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it for a long time, using either technology or nature-based solutions. In a farming context, this is mostly done by natural sequestration of carbon into soils, trees and other biomass. These removals can help offset GHG emissions, making them a critical component of climate change mitigation efforts in agriculture.
Example: A farm establishes hedgerows along field boundaries, which serve as natural windbreaks and biodiversity corridors.
Carbon Removal Mechanism: Hedgerows sequester carbon in plant biomass and enhance soil carbon storage along the boundaries of agricultural fields.
Impact: In addition to carbon removal, hedgerows provide habitat for wildlife, improve soil health, and protect crops from wind and erosion.
Carbon insetting refers to reducing GHG emissions – or increasing carbon storage – within a company’s own supply chain, focusing on sustainability improvements that benefit the company’s own production processes and stakeholders. Whereas carbon offsetting involves reducing GHG emissions – or increasing carbon storage – outside of the companies supply chain, often by purchasing carbon credits from environmental projects, such as tree planting. With carbon offsetting, the reduced emissions, or enhanced carbon storage, occurs elsewhere and is therefore harder to track. Read our detailed explanation of carbon insetting and offsetting on our getting paid for carbon page.
When entering into any carbon insetting or offsetting agreement, try to ensure there is a clear definition of the project, who is responsible for claiming the GHG reductions and where those reductions are taking place. These principles can ensure there is clear evidence of where GHG reductions are coming from and can help prevent the double counting of emissions reductions.
Assessing green claims on products you buy
You might have come across “Low Carbon” products, one example of this is low carbon fertilisers. Traditional nitrogen-based fertilisers (e.g., ammonia, urea) are energy-intensive to produce, mainly due to the reliance on fossil fuels for the Haber-Bosch process, which converts nitrogen from the air into ammonia. Improvements in technology have now produced Green ammonia, manufactured using renewable energy (solar, wind, hydropower) to generate hydrogen through water electrolysis, instead of using fossil fuels. This significantly reduces the carbon emissions from fertiliser production. Alternatively, Blue ammonia is ammonia still being produced using fossil fuels, but incorporates carbon capture and storage methods to remove CO2 produced during the process. Blue ammonia still relies on the heavy use of fossil fuels, whereas green ammonia reduces this demand.
Urease inhibitors are an example of a GHG mitigation product that can reduce ammonia emissions associated with urea fertilisers. Urease enzymes are naturally present in soil and are involved in the process of changing urea into ammonia and carbon dioxide. This means that when urea is applied to soils, a significant loss of nitrogen occurs as ammonia is released into the atmosphere, resulting in air pollution. Urease inhibitors are added to urea-based fertilisers (sometimes known as protected urea) to slow down the enzymatic process, keeping more nitrogen in the form of plant-available ammonium for longer and increasing the fertiliser efficiency. New rules in England (2024) have outlined when unprotected/uninhibited urea can be applied, check out this AHDB article to see how it may affect you.
Another example of a GHG Mitigation product are methane inhibitors for ruminant animals. Methane inhibitors are feed additives designed to reduce methane emissions produced during digestion, specifically in the process known as enteric fermentation. The goal is to prevent or slow down the final step in the fermentation process where methane is produced without harming the animal’s digestion or productivity. A methane inhibitor feed additive (Bovaer by DSM-Firmenich) has been approved for use in the UK that on average claims a 30% reduction in methane emissions for dairy cattle and 45% reduction for beef cattle2. It is worth noting that the efficacy of these products can vary across different feeding systems and therefore may not always be a ‘silver bullet’ to reducing methane emissions.
Provenance
“Farm washing” by big UK supermarkets often leads people to believe that they’re buying products grown on small family farms within the UK, however a lot of this produce originates overseas or from big industrial scale farms.
Riverfords recent ‘Farmers against Farmwashing’ Campaign showed that 74% of shoppers want supermarkets to be transparent about produce and meat that is not British and sourced from abroad. When shoppers were shown a photo of produce in a UK supermarket under a Union Jack flag, 68% of people expected more than half of it to come from a British farm, when in fact, none of it did.
Supermarkets have been called out beforefor marketing these fake farm brands that sell imported produce under a fictitious farm name and even a Union Jack flag. As a consumer, you can always check the fine print on produce packaging to see where it originates and don’t just rely on branding.
Case Study: I’ve got a Life Cycle Assessment for a product I buy in, can I use it in my carbon footprint?
For inputs on your farm, you may be buying products that come with their own associated carbon footprint and want to know if you can incorporate this into your business’s carbon footprint. Let’s work through an example.
The feed you buy your dairy cows has a life cycle assessment (LCA) carbon footprint that has been passed onto you by the company selling this product.
Always check that the product LCA you have is for exactly the item you have purchased. The functional unit in this example would most likely be for 1 kg feed wheat and not a derivative of that, for example 1kg of white flour. Different products will have different processes involved that generate emissions, we can’t always assume that just because the products are similar, they will have a similar carbon footprint.
Check the methodology of the LCA to understand how it has been generated and what the uncertainties around it are.
For example, the feed wheat claims that it has a negative emissions factor (-1.2 kgCO2e/ kg wheat), i.e. the production of it has sequestered more carbon than it has generated. The LCA claims that this is due to using regenerative practices to grow the wheat which has enhanced soil carbon stocks. However, when you look at the methodology, it lists that carbon sequestration was not measured by direct soil measurements, but was instead modelled with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changes (IPCC) methodology Tier 1 approaches (see Box 1).
If the product you are buying claims to have a negative emissions value, then the methodology needs to be based on direct soil carbon or GHG measurements on that farm. If a direct measurement of sequestered carbon can be provided, this increases the reliability of the claim and can be passed on to a company which could include it as part of its scope 3 emissions inventory.
The choice of methodology will impact the reliability of the results. For example, there are three IPCC tiers to the recommended approaches (see Box 1). If direct soil measurements are taken, this would be a tier 3 approach and is the most reliable method, however the methodology uses a tier 1 (global) approach with estimated carbon stocks.
Check how the carbon footprint is reported.
Ensure the carbon emissions are reported separately to any carbon removals the company claims – not just the carbon balance (i.e. emissions – removals). There is a requirement by carbon reporting guidance to separate these two values. It is mandatory to report emissions, but not removals, due to the uncertainty around them.
Check the units that it is reported in (usually kg CO2e / kg product) and ensure that this makes sense for the way you will use the product.
Has the footprint been validated externally by third party verification? Although this is not absolutely necessary to have a reliable product footprint, it can help add confidence that the methodology has been checked by others.
If you are satisfied that the LCA has supplied a clear methodology on how the carbon footprint has been calculated, you may wish to include it as part of your scope 3 emissions report.
Box 1. IPCC Methodologies for Calculating GHG Emissions
Tier 1: This is the most basic approach, using default emission factors and generalised activity data provided by the IPCC for different sectors. It mostly uses global data and is intended for broad estimates with low accuracy.
Tier 2: This approach uses country- or region-specific emission factors and more detailed activity data, such as local energy usage. It improves accuracy compared to Tier 1 by incorporating factors that are more relevant to the specific conditions of the region.
Tier 3: The most advanced method, using detailed modelling or direct measurements and highly specific data for the particular circumstances of the country or sector. Tier 3 provides the highest level of accuracy by incorporating real-time data, complex models, and system-specific emission factors.
Each tier increases in complexity, accuracy, and the level of data required.
Pointers on how to sense check and provide robust environmental claims
The competition and markets authority has set out six principles for businesses to follow when making green claims and provided examples to help you assess green claims3. Here we have summarised the principles with examples:
Is the claim truthful and accurate?
Check the facts: Verify that the environmental benefit being claimed is backed by credible evidence. Look for data, scientific studies, or certifications that support the claim.
Avoid exaggeration: Ensure that the claim reflects the actual impact of the product or service and is not overstating the environmental benefits.
Is the claim clear and unambiguous?
Does it go beyond using generic phrases like ‘green’ and ‘eco-friendly’ and list the specifics of how it is an improved product?
Does the claim omit or hide important relevant information?
This may be hard to know and would probably involve doing a little bit of research around the product and its production methods.
For example, a product with ‘save our seas – these are microbead free’ makes you believe that similar products may contain microbeads – however microbeads are banned in the UK, and therefore shouldn’t be in any of the products!
Does the claim make fair and meaningful comparisons?
If a product is claiming to be better than others on the market, how has this been assessed? Has the comparison included a wide range of alternative products?
Does the claim consider the full life cycle of the product or service?
Life cycle assessments show the overall impact of a product from cradle to grave.
Is the claim substantiated?
An example of a substantiated claim might be: “Our product packaging is made from 100% recycled materials and is fully recyclable. By using recycled materials, we have reduced our packaging-related carbon footprint by 40% compared to virgin plastic packaging. This reduction has been verified through a third-party Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in compliance with ISO 14040 standards.”
Now in its second year, the annual Carbon Farmer of the Year competition is organised by the Farm Carbon Toolkit and generously sponsored by HSBC Agriculture UK. The competition aims to find farmers and growers who are engaged with–and passionate about–reducing their business’s climate impact through changing management practices to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Andrew Brewer was awarded the Carbon Farmer of the Year Award for 2024, presented by Steve Dunkley, our sponsor from HSBC Agriculture (seen in the picture below).
Andrew Brewer, Winner of the Carbon Farmer of the Year Award for 2024 presented by Steve Dunkley, HSBC Agriculture UK
Andrew is part of the Farm Net Zero project and low GHG farming has been a top priority for him and his farm for a number of years. He manages 500 Jersey X dairy cows across his 400 Ha farm in Fraddon, Cornwall. He stood out to the judges for his understanding and application of a range of practices to enable his pasture-based dairy farm to remove atmospheric carbon into soil, trees, and hedges, while simultaneously minimising farm GHG emissions by focusing on maximising forage intake for his dairy cows and minimising inclusion of supplementary concentrate feeds. Andrew also selectively breeds his cows to work well within his pasture-based system. There is an opportunity to tour his farm during a farm walk he is hosting on November 8th.
The other two finalists, Tom Burge and Jason Mitchell were praised for their continued efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in their businesses. The finalists awards were presented by David Cope, Head of Sustainability at the Duchy of Cornwall who was also on the panel of judges (seen below). Tom Burge, who featured in the mob grazing workshop has done fantastic work cultivating a low input grazing system which has seen vast improvements in his grass quality and sequestration potential.
Similarly, Jason Mitchell is a Director of Greenville Dairies Ltd based in Newton Stewart, Northern Ireland. He has also been recognised for his continued effort to farm in a low carbon management system. At Greenville Dairies they have reduced emissions from their 850 strong dairy herd, largely through the application of genomics leading to greater feed efficiency alongside the development of a significant Anaerobic Digestion facility which sees them now taking in food waste alongside utilisation of cow manure to produce electricity, liquid natural gas (LNG) and digestate. Electricity and LNG are sold to the grid and to Companies such as Lakeland Dairies (their customer for their milk).
Tom Burge and Greenville Dairies, Carbon Farmer of the Year 2024 finalists, with David Cope, Head of Sustainability at the Duchy of Cornwall
Competition judges, Steve Dunkley (HSBC UK), David Cope (Head of Sustainability at Duchy of Cornwall), and Liz Bowles (CEO Farm Carbon Toolkit) were very impressed with the commitment and innovation shown by all the finalists in identifying sources of GHG emissions on their farms and developing strategies to both reduce emissions and increase the rate of carbon removal into soils and non-crop biomass.
Liz Bowles, Chief Executive Officer at Farm Carbon Toolkit, says:
Once again, the Carbon Farmer of the Year competition has identified some truly inspirational farmers. All our finalists have made great strides in reducing business reliance on fossil fuels through changes to their farming practices and careful soil management to reduce GHG emissions and sequester carbon.
It was particularly positive to see a dairy farm winning this year’s competition, given that dairy farming is often in the media spotlight for its adverse environmental impact. We are looking forward to showcasing the many effective ways that our finalists are reducing on-farm emissions and increasing carbon storage for others to see at free farm walks over the coming months. Watch this space!
Steve Dunkley, HSBC UK Agriculture, says:
HSBC UK Agriculture is pleased to support the 2024 Carbon Farmer of the Year competition. The quality of entries has been superb and hugely inspiring. As a business, we’re very keen to support the agriculture industry in transitioning towards net zero. While that will take many forms, we have the ambition to help farmers fund investment in the new practices and technologies needed to evolve.
The Carbon Farmer of the Year competition is a great way of showcasing how farmers are already achieving these changes and encouraging others to follow their lead
The FCT field day was an event to shine a light on the sustainable solutions benefiting farmers economically, socially and environmentally. The focus was on mixed agricultural systems, as well as celebrating those who are doing the most to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon into their soils.
On the 25th September 2024, our Annual Field Day brought together farmers from all over the country, including the winners of our past FCT Soil and Carbon Farmer of the Year competitions, to hear about the exciting developments in sustainable agriculture. In addition, we were grateful to HSBC UK Agriculture who helped sponsor the Carbon Farmer of the Year Competition and to all our supporters of the Annual Field Day – Cross Compliance Solutions, First Milk, Shearwell, Velcourt and Yeo Valley.
The event was held at Boycefield Farm in Dilwyn, courtesy of Billy Lewis, Soil Farmer of the year (2022) and the Lewis family. The day was a grey one with a few showers but did not dampen any spirits or the curiosity of the farmers that enjoyed the day!
Our delegates arrived ready for a 10am start which was officially kicked off by a welcome from FCT CEO Liz Bowles and an introduction to the farm by host Billy Lewis.
Opening comments by Billy Lewis to all the guests
Billy Lewis – Our host and 2022 Soil Farmer of the Year talking about how the farms’ approach of integrating livestock and herbal leys into a previously intensive arable system has rejuvenated soil health, drastically reduced fertiliser and feed inputs, whilst boosting profitability. Billy also mentioned the challenges his farm has been facing, with the changing climate and consistently wet weather proving to be high on the list.
We enjoyed a circuit of the farm to join workshops on subjects including adapting arable rotations to build fertility and resilience in a changing climate, mob grazing and the importance of soil testing. We heard about developments that have been made on Boycefield farm, as well as from farmers implementing similar systems across the country.
We have captured a snapshot of the workshops below:
Soil clinic – chaired by Becky Wilson (FCT)
We heard from our very own Becky Wilson and Niels Corfield, a regenerative agriculture advisor.
Becky standing in the soil pit explaining the benefits of upkeeping healthy soil to the group
Niels and Becky focussed on firstly, and most importantly, how the health of the soil is crucial to any agricultural system. Having a deeper understanding of what to look for within the soil aids farmers in assessing their own soils and tailoring their systems to increase soil health and fertility.
Becky brought us around the freshly dug soil pit to demonstrate the levels of compaction that occur at different depths. Highlighting the importance of less dense, yet stable soil in the top layer so that root growth of grasses and herbal leys are not hindered by increased soil density. It was pointed out that Billy Lewis’s mob grazing style was contributing to the meadow’s low soil density and therefore thriving grass system. As the stock is moved frequently, there is little time to compact the soil by trampling. Becky also highlighted the importance of earthworms for soil health. Earthworms are a key indicator of good soil health as they provide a multitude of benefits. Their burrowing increases spaces within the top layers of the soil which allow in water and air which promotes root growth for pastures through reduced compaction. Additionally, as Becky mentioned, their powers of nutrient cycling cannot be understated. Earthworms feed on organic matter which is excreted into plant available nutrients, speeding up pasture growth.
After Becky’s talk on soil qualities Niels took over to discuss a few practical methods (without the use of fancy gadgets) farmers can use to assess their soil health. With only the use of a spade and an inspection of what’s going on below the grass you can tell a lot about the soil. Niels encouraged the guests to go out into their fields and start to collect samples. He demonstrated the method of collecting a core sample by inserting a spade to a depth of around 30 cm on three sides and used the last side as a hinge to lever up a block of soil to inspect. Once the sample was out of the ground, he highlighted the relative ease of which the soil broke up as well as pointing out the abundance of earthworms, noting that this isn’t the case for a lot of agricultural soils.
Neils showing the group the simple ways in which soil samples can be taken
Livestock and mob grazing – chaired by Stefan Marks (FCT)
In this talk we heard from Tom Burge, an upland beef and sheep farmer, Billy Lewis, the host farmer, as well as Dan Smith, a farm manager running a commercial, net zero livestock farm alongside being a facilitator at the Herefordshire Rural Hub. They talked about their experiences with mob grazing, grass quality and the lessons they have learned experimenting with grazing systems.
Billy, Tom, and Dan discussing the benefits of mob grazing in front of one of his Hereford mob
In this session, Billy, Tom, and Dan discussed the benefits as well as the challenges involved with mob grazing while drawing on their shared experience of experimenting with this type of grazing system.
Tom Burge is a 4th generation farmer, owning an upland grazing farm in North Exmoor rearing over 1,000 Romney X ewes and 500 Scottish Blackface ewes. As well as 100 Angus suckler cows. After setting aside a 150 acre field trial with the aim of reducing fertiliser application, he began experimenting with mob grazing. He found that moving stock regularly (in his case every 2-3 days) and long resting periods resulted in improved grass quality and increased grass growth. All the panellists concurred that long resting periods for the grassland is crucial for increased grass quality and plant diversity which leads to more resilient grasslands.
In terms of economics, all the panellists agreed that the switch to mob grazing resulted in higher live weights and milk yields from their cattle and sheep. However, it was interesting to hear that these yield increases were marginal compared to the reduction in costs which resulted from the change of system. Dan found that within his new system, he could keep sheep outside all year round, including during lambing. He noticed that less bacterial infections and instances of pneumonia were occurring when he made these changes. Billy also noted the lack of fly related infections on his cattle on his mob grazing system which resulted in lower veterinary costs and better welfare. Although Billy still has periods through the winter where cattle are kept inside, these periods have reduced and therefore feed costs have decreased as a result. All the panellists concluded that optimising for a low input system was of great benefit to not only their pockets but the health of the stock as well.
An insightful question came from one of the listeners of the talk, who asked; how do you measure the changes in pasture performance? All three panellists admitted that they didn’t formally measure or record grass growth or quality of. Through anecdotal evidence and multiple decades of experience growing grass and farming on their respective farms they could see the difference in the quality of their grass which has translated into the quality of their stock and produce. Dan Smith added to this, highlighting that the preferred measure of performance is through financial gains, where all three of panellists have found a financial benefit.
A second question was fielded around the time consuming nature of mob grazing after Billy mentioned his rotations may only last 6-12 hours on some of his more intensely grazed meadows. He has found that frequent livestock movement isn’t as unmanageable as one might think. He proceeded to demonstrate the ease of which he can move electric fencing hexagonal fence posts (as seen in the picture below). These structures rotate along the ground as Billy moves the end of the fence, saving time by not having to take out every fence pole and place it in a different location in the field. Through experience, Billy often decides when to move his cattle by eye and knows that a system that incorporates flexibility works best for him. This certainly helps with the weather challenges that the three panellists agreed was a main limiting factor to their system. Droughts and periods of heavy rain (which were wonderfully demonstrated throughout the day) are challenges where flexibility is a crucial mitigator. Billy with his free moving electric fence pointed out that he can avoid waterlogged areas in order to protect the soil and grassland from trampling which is even more of a danger in wet conditions.
The easily movable electric fencing which saves Billy time when moving his stock
Arable/ Herbal Leys – chaired by Tilly Kimble-Wilde
We heard from Angus Gowthorpe (mixed farmer and Soil Farmer of the Year 2018 finalist), Edward Gent (Cambridge arable farmer who has been no-till for 16 years) and FCT’s Anthony Ellis (FCT farm carbon and soil advisor and mixed farmer). The talk focussed on their experiences with diversifying arable rotations, sometimes with herbal leys as well as their different approaches to grazing these areas.
Panellists in one of Billy’s arable fields – note the agroforestry alleys in the background
Angus Gowthorpe, who manages a mixed farm in North Yorkshire, spoke about his transition from conventional to regenerative farming and how herbal leys have played a crucial role in this shift. By integrating a mix of species into his rotation, including deep-rooting herbs such as chicory and plantain, he has seen significant improvements in soil structure and organic matter. Angus highlighted how the diversity of plant species in the herbal leys helps build resilience in the system, reducing reliance on chemical inputs. He highlighted how grazing these leys with his cattle further stimulates root growth, enhancing the biology of the soil, contributing to a more productive and resilient farm ecosystem. The sentiments of this approach were echoed by both Edward and Anthony who had implemented similar systems.
Afternoon Sessions: The economic and climate impact of ‘regen’
Following lunch, we moved into a panel discussion Chaired by James Daniel with presentations from Anthony Ellis (FCT), Angus Gowthorpe, Tom Burge & Nick Down (Velcourt Farming Ltd).
James Daniel – Founder of Precision Grazing, whose primary objective is to optimise performance from pasture, James works across the UK helping farmers to implement and manage their grazing systems alongside ensuring family quality of life for farmers.
Angus Gowthorpe – mixed farmer and Soil Farmer of the Year 2018 finalist. Angus has been at the forefront of the regenerative transition in the UK and continues to push the envelope on what defines a sustainable farming system.
Tom Burge – Upland beef and sheep farmer whose move to a regenerative, grazing-based system has helped to eliminate inputs and transform the finances on his challenging Exmoor farm
Nick Down – Nick is the Head of Sustainability for Velcourt Ltd. Velcourt directly manages 57,000 hectares and provides advice in both the arable and dairy sectors across the UK. Nick oversees the farming operation of the Yattendon Estate in West Berkshire. The estate is going through a transition to a more sustainable farming system, incorporating more space for nature and enhancing carbon sequestration under an ambitious environmental delivery program. The farm is also a LEAF demonstration farm.
First each of the panel members presented an overview of their farming system, the regenerative practices they’ve employed and the subsequent improvements this has made to their business carbon footprint, resilience and profitability.
Angus sharing with us the financial benefits of his regen system
Angus shared with us a side by side comparison of his arable operations between his previous conventional system and his current low-input regen system for winter wheat production. From this slide it is obvious to see what financial benefits arise from converting to a regen system. Firstly, his in-field operations have reduced from four operations to only using direct drilling on his fields. This saves him a total of £142 per hectare. Additionally, a reduction of his fertiliser inputs saved his business £189 per hectare. Through soil analysis he found that his past applications of P and K were superfluous to crop requirements. He has also reduced reliance on fungicides and plant growth regulators by £103/ha. The reduction in inputs has given Angus an ability to withstand a lower yield without reduction in enterprise margin. At current prices he calculated that this was equivalent to around 2.3 tonnes/ ha or around a 30% reduction in yield.
A perspective of the greenhouse gas emissions reductions and financial benefits of regenerative agriculture from livestock farming came from Tom Burge who kindly shared his numbers before and after adopting his new farming strategy.
Tom Burge’s projections on how his emissions will change while continuing on his regenerative farming journey.
From starting his journey in 2017, he has eliminated use of fertiliser on his pastures, significantly reduced reliance on external feed and fuel, as well as reduced the number of hours of manhours worked on his farm. This has all translated into a steady reduction of on-farm emissions (expressed as kgCO2e per kg live weight of his stock). Due to implementing mob grazing strategies, pasture growth has increased by 0.9 tonnes of dry matter per hectare, displacing 36 tonnes of fertiliser and 72 tonnes of feed between 2017 and 2022. On top of the 1.66kgCO2e per kg of live weight, this has saved Tom’s business financially, to a tune of £24,000 per year. By 2022, Tom realised that the increasing cost of inputs outweighed the potential added value of his outputs, making these inputs un-economical to use.
Breakout workshops on field trials, weatherproof farming and composting
Billy showing the guests the resulting compost after he uses his windrow compost turner
Composting: Billy Lewis
Billy Lewis showed us his farm-yard manure composting process. After buying a windrow compost turner second hand, Billy is able to easily turn the compost pile to aerate it. Ensuring good air flow is key to creating compost, as aerobic microorganisms feed on the organic components and convert them into a nutrient rich soil amendment. Composts are much more stable than farm yard manures, providing a more consistent and slow release of nutrients, therefore, benefitting soil health in the longer term. This slow release enhances soil health and pasture growth by reducing the amount of leaching and volatilisation that occurs. Billy explained how he adds different components to his compost depending on what is available, such as wood chips and apple peel from a nearby orchard.
Research Trials: Hannah Jones
Hannah Jones (Senior Soil and Carbon Advisor with FCT) led an insightful discussion on effectively planning and conducting field trials in a scientifically robust yet practical way. She began by explaining the essentials of multi-year farm trials, covering aspects like choosing crop options for trial strips, combining various tests within one field, and structuring controls to minimise the effects of natural variations on trial results.
A major focus was on understanding how different factors can influence outcomes and the importance of controls. For instance, in a trial introducing beans into crop rotation, it’s crucial to have both fertilised and unfertilised areas to determine if observed benefits are due to the nitrogen contribution from beans, the fertiliser itself, or just field characteristics. In livestock research, increasing population size reduces the impact of natural variation (e.g. individual susceptibility to disease), thereby making the data more statistically reliable. Randomly assigning animals to control and trial groups is also key, as it prevents biases that could affect outcomes; for example, having the first ewes going through the hurdle enter one field and the latter half go into another could unintentionally separate the flock by skittish and lazy animals, skewing results because they have different temperaments.
Hannah also shared ideas and trials setups which some of the attending farmers were considering. The conversation highlighted the value of data sharing—each farm is unique, but insights from one trial can benefit many. By participating in groups like the Innovate funded Nitrogen Climate Smart agriculture (NCS) project, farmers can connect, share findings, and collaborate on new practices. FCT advisors are available to help with planning and can connect participants with like-minded farmers to optimise trial efforts.
Weatherproof Farming: Niels Corfield
Niels delivered a presentation which demonstrated to us the importance of improving soil health for sustainable farming. Niels Corfield is a farm advisor interested in regenerative farms and landscapes.
He shared video examples of how compacted soils, often mistakenly thought to be saturated due to standing water, were actually preventing deeper water infiltration and leaving dry soil underneath. Healthy soil, with proper porosity, was shown to allow water to penetrate, “banking” moisture for dry periods, which is crucial for crop resilience in hot summers.
Niels made a case for weatherproofing farms to both rain and drought through a mixture of practices including soil management, mechanical interventions e.g sub soiling, mineral, and biological interventions. We looked at some of these in detail. A key takeaway was that root health is central to improving soil structure, and managing grazing or cropping practices to encourage root mass and density is a fundamental part of improving soil resilience and health.
The evidence presented showed that a move away from set stocking and changes in pasture management was able to extend grazing seasons, reduce the need for winter housing, and boost grass production. Data from various drought years showed how drought severely impacted grass growth across the UK. However, farms with better-managed soil saw increased productivity due to better water retention, emphasising the benefits of improving soil structure and retaining water during wet seasons for use during dry spells.
We were left with the idea that land provides honest feedback which can be seen and acted upon: It reveals the effectiveness of farming practices through direct observation and we were encouraged to inspect the land regularly ourselves in real-time with a range of tests, rather than solely relying on lab results.
Carbon Farmer of the Year 2024
This very interesting and insightful field day concluded with the presentation of carbon farmer of the year. It is the second year of the competition and is awarded to a farmer who is engaged with and passionate about reducing their business’s climate impact. The award focuses not only on changing management practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also on understanding and enhancing carbon storage in farmland. We were delighted to be joined by the three finalists. Andrew Brewer was awarded the Carbon Farmer of the Year Award for 2024, presented by Steve Dunkley, our sponsor from HSBC Agriculture (seen in the picture below). Andrew is part of the Farm Net Zero project and low GHG farming has been a top priority for him and his farm for a number of years. He manages 500 Jersey X dairy cows across his 400 Ha farm in Fraddon, Cornwall. He stood out to the judges for his understanding and application of a range of practices to enable his pasture-based dairy farm to remove atmospheric carbon into soil, trees, and hedges, while simultaneously minimising farm GHG emissions by focusing on maximising forage intake for his dairy cows and minimising inclusion of supplementary concentrate feeds. Andrew also selectively breeds his cows to work well within his pasture-based system. There is an opportunity to tour his farm during a farm walk he is hosting on November 8th.
Carbon Farmer of the Year 2024 Winner Andrew Brewer, Ennis Barton (right) presented by Steve Dunkley, HSBC UK Agriculture (Left)
The other two finalists, Tom Burge and Jason Mitchell were praised for their continued efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in their businesses. The finalists awards were presented by David Cope, Head of sustainability at the Duchy of Cornwall who was also on the panel of judges (seen below). Tom Burge, who featured in the mob grazing workshop has done fantastic work cultivating a low input grazing system which has seen vast improvements in his grass quality and sequestration potential.
Similarly, Jason Mitchell is a Director of Greenville Dairies Ltd based in Newton Stewart, Northern Ireland. He has also been recognised for his continued effort to farm in a low carbon management system. At Greenville Dairies they have reduced emissions from their 850 strong dairy herd, largely through the application of genomics leading to greater feed efficiency alongside the development of a significant Anaerobic Digestion facility which sees them now taking in food waste alongside utilisation of cow manure to produce electricity, liquid natural gas (LNG) and digestate. Electricity and LNG are sold to the grid and to Companies such as Lakeland Dairies (their customer for their milk).
Carbon Farmer of the Year 2024 Finalists Tom Burge (middle), Adel Tajouri representing Greenville Dairies (right), presented by David Cope (left)
Watch a replay of this webinar held on the 11th September 2024 where representatives of the three major farm carbon calculators shared more details of the work they are doing together: Work to support UK agriculture to measure GHG emissions using the most up-to-date and accurate tools possible, harmonising the methodologies and outputs of their carbon calculation tools.
We received a great list of questions during the webinar event and teams from the various calculators will look to address those queries in due course.
The three major farm carbon calculators featured in the Defra Report Harmonisation of Carbon Accounting Tools for Agriculture – SCF0129 have announced a collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), intended to harmonise the methodologies used in calculating the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture.
The three companies are looking forward to their joint work on this major challenge, to fulfil the requirements outlined in the comprehensive Report, compiled by ADAS throughout 2023. It is generally agreed that the overarching goal should be to reduce the overall greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture through resource efficiency improvements, optimising production practices and mitigating environmental impacts.
Liz Bowles, Farm Carbon Toolkit CEO, said:
We are not seeking to reach a point where all three calculators will produce the same answer for any given dataset. As the Defra report put it, “ there is no single ‘right’ answer”. Rather we are striving to make it possible for users to fully understand why different calculators produce different answers.
We plan to align with the Science-Based Targets initiative Forestry Land and Agriculture Guidance (SBTi FLAG) and draft Greenhouse Gas Protocol Land Sector Removals Guidance (GHGp LSRG) through our collaborative actions. This commitment underscores our dedication to maintaining high-quality standards and ensuring environmental sustainability in our operations, and in calculation outputs.
Scott Davies, Agrecalc CEO, said:
It is intended that we agree on a common set of data sources which all three calculators will use. All calculators can go beyond these baseline requirements, and all parties to this MOU will retain their commercial independence. We will also involve the relevant government and other organisations’ teams with our work plan as we develop it.
This collaborative approach supports a joint understanding of industry requirements and advancing consistency in our tools and methodologies. Our goal is collaboration with industry, trade bodies, and fellow calculator providers in the UK and internationally, so that we can actively contribute to the development of more consistent approaches to on-farm carbon calculation.
Richard Profit, Cool Farm Alliance CEO, said:
We are looking forward to this collaboration, as it will help align methodologies where that makes sense and that will especially allow us to look into new areas that require attention. How we then incorporate the new information in our calculators will vary from calculator to calculator as a result of our different base approaches.
We will also ensure that the tools include the latest and most robust scientific findings into their frameworks and roadmaps.
The calculators are seeking that this joint work become the “agreed way” and at some point, become a minimum required standard for all calculators to adopt. The companies will engage in consultations with Defra, Welsh Government, Scottish Government, and Northern Ireland Government to reach a practical and realistic form of ongoing validation of their harmonisation work.
Methodologies or other harmonisation solutions developed as a direct result of the MOU will be published transparently, or will otherwise be made available for others to use.
Although this MOU currently only involves the three major companies in this space, the group is open to other calculators joining the coalition so long as they publicly provide transparency in their Calculator methodologies.
We will be holding a joint webinar on the 11th September 2024 at 1pm – 2pm to share more details of the work we are doing together. Please register here if you would like to join us
Notes to Editors
Farm Carbon Toolkit is an independent, farmer-led Community Interest Company, supporting farmers to measure, understand and act on their greenhouse gas emissions, while improving their business resilience for the future.
The Farm Carbon Calculator uses the IPCC 2019 and UK GHG Inventory methodologies and is aligned with the GHG protocol agricultural guidance. Recent development has allowed us to provide greater interoperability with other data platforms through our Report Export API and Carbon Calculation Engine API. This represents a step-change in the industry’s ability to provide trustworthy carbon footprints with transparent methodologies on platforms where farmers already collect data, thus reducing the data inputting onus on farmers. This new functionality has been warmly welcomed by supply chain businesses who are now using our Calculation Engine to support their customers without need for further data entry.
The Farm Carbon Calculator is used across the UK and on four continents with global usage growing at around 20% per year.
For over a decade, Farm Carbon Toolkit has delivered a range of practical projects, tools and services that have inspired real action on the ground. Organisations they work with include the Duchy of Cornwall, First Milk, Tesco, Yeo Valley and WWF. The Farm Carbon Calculator is a leading on-farm carbon audit tool, used by over 8,000 farmers in the UK and beyond. To find out more visit www.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk
Agrecalc, a carbon footprint tool developed by combining practical expertise with world-class agricultural science, is a precise instrument that offers both breadth and depth of on-farm and through-the-supply-chain calculations of GHG gas emissions.
Agrecalc is the largest source of collated farm benchmark data from thousands of farms, having been used as the designated tool to deliver carbon audits under various schemes since 2016. It is recognised as the preferred carbon calculator in many of the emerging government programmes.
With a mission to increase efficiency and business viability of food production, the scientists, consultants, and developers who work on Agrecalc, strive to constantly upgrade the calculator according to the most up-to-date available research results and recommendations.
Cool Farm Alliance Community Interest Companyis a science-led, not-for-profit membership organisation (community interest company) that owns, manages, and improves the Cool Farm Tool and cultivates the leadership network to advance regenerative agriculture at scale.
For over fifteen years, the Cool Farm Alliance has worked to put knowledge in the hands of farmers and empower the full supply chain to understand and support agro-ecological restoration by providing a respected, standardised calculation engine to measure and report on agriculture’s impact on the environment. The Cool Farm Tool has established widely endorsed, science-based metrics for water, climate, and biodiversity, supported in 17 languages and used in more than 150 countries around the world.
Cool Farm Alliance members share the need for a respected, consistent, standardised, independent calculation engine and have joined the Alliance to ensure the Cool Farm Tool meets this need, now and in the future. To find out more visit https://coolfarm.org/
As this blog goes live, we have experienced an extraordinary weather year across the UK, and the impact on farming and growing has been profound. February and March saw record rainfall across most of the country, followed by some drier spells and then continued rain in places. The net result has been one of the most challenging springs for years, which is such a crucial time in the UK farming calendar. Late spring and early summer has been very variable, according to which part of the country you are.
Rewind to summer 2023 and June was considered to be the hottest June ever in UK weather records, followed by another hot spell in September. Yet in between, July and August were unsettled, with two major storms. Mild, stormy and wet spells were the continuing theme for the latter part of the year.
Everyone in farming and growing understands the critical effect that weather plays in the annual cycle of producing food, managing land, and the financial health of farm businesses. It is clear that weather patterns and the climate are becoming more unpredictable, creating significant impacts for farms, land and food. How do farmers and growers plan for the future with climate extremes becoming the norm?
The outlook
Met Office predictions for the trends in UK weather patterns over the next 30 years or so will include:
Warmer and wetter winters
Hotter and drier summers
More frequent and intense weather extremes
This is happening now, but the knock on impacts are sometimes harder to predict, for example:
Unpredictable weather patterns make all sorts of farming operations – from silage cutting, potato planting, arable drilling to crop harvest far more difficult to plan
Significant variations in crop and animal health due to stress factors
Uncertainty in business planning and financial returns
Cumulative impacts that compound to present challenges – such as shorter windows to plant, changing pest and disease pressures, international market changes, etc.
In short there are many climatic challenges facing farmers, growers and the wider food sector, and many of them are simply not known yet. We’re all learning in this process and no one has all the answers. Climate adaptation is every bit as important as climate mitigation in the farming world, and sometimes the answers for both mitigation and adaptation can be the same. Weatherproofing your farm should be a priority for all farmers and growers.
Short to medium term solutions
So what can you as a farmer or grower do about it? There are things out of our control – the location of our farms (well, unless you’re up for moving!) and the weather systems we receive, but there are plenty of things that can be done to adapt. We’ll look at our top five actions
Soil health
Water management
Diversity in the business
Knowledge of the trends
Investment in the future
Soil underpins everything we do in farming, and a healthy soil can be incredibly resilient in terms of water management, soil health and structure. Increasing organic matter content, enhancing soil biology and minimising cultivation and compaction can have massive benefits.
Water is crucial for all plant growth, but having too much or too little can massively affect all crops, from grass to cereals and vegetables. A soil with good structure and good organic matter levels can help buffer against both flood and drought conditions. However, having plenty of available water for irrigation when needed can be essential for crops like vegetables and fruit. Most farms can improve their water storage capacity, harvest more rain water and implement efficient irrigation systems.
Diversity of enterprises on the farm will help guard against the danger of having all your eggs in one basket. Inevitably some crops or products do better than others in different years. This might mean a range of crop types, genetic diversity within a particular crop, or branching out to try different breeds of plants and livestock. A biodiverse farm can also help regulate extreme weather events, even changing the micro climate of a farm.
Knowledge of the farmer or grower is one of the most powerful tools. Understanding what a changing climate might look like for the farm, and planning ahead is vital to build resilience and guard against risks from extreme weather.
Investment in the future could be the key to business resilience. For example, identifying that the farming system would benefit from more trees, water storage, different cultivation equipment, livestock sheds, etc. This forward planning and investment should be strongly considered if and when finances allow. Grants are also available, such as those offered by Defra.
Longer term solutions
At Farm Carbon Toolkit (FCT) we work with businesses every day to create Carbon Action Plans, where we recommend short, medium and long term solutions; Climate Adaptation Plans should be seen in a similar way. Having said that, making a long term plan to cut carbon is much easier in its aim – to cut net carbon emissions to zero or beyond. But with climate adaptation plans – what is the aim?
That question is hard to answer as the climate of the future is uncertain. But what do we know is true? Well, the climate we’re used to is changing , as are weather patterns. Predictions are currently largely coming to pass, and so that gives us some guidance. Bearing in mind they are just predictions, one thing is certain – farms need to be resilient, adaptable and well prepared. It is likely the future will not look much like the past.
Change can be very challenging, especially in businesses like farming which are inherently long term. Embracing change can be difficult for many reasons – resources, money, land capability, mindset, tradition and much more. But burying our heads in the sand is also not viable – this is difficult, but it is happening!
Here are some areas to consider:
Cultivated soils are particularly vulnerable to soil erosion, drought and flooding. Moving towards reduced cultivation and better soil that is permanently covered will build resilience
Adapting land use to be more resilient to intense rainfall events
Livestock can be very vulnerable to heat and extreme weather. Providing shade and shelter can help reduce the impacts on animals
Animal feed supply can be impacted significantly by weather, in terms of price, availability and quality. Are there ways to boost feed self-sufficiency and feedstock resilience for the farm?
Perennial crops tend to be more resilient than annual crops. Opportunities might exist to shift cropping systems to build resilience
Diversity of farm outputs may help to reduce the number of “eggs in one basket” and spread climate-related risks
Microclimates can help farms to adapt. Trees, hedges and agroforestry can help to provide shade, manage water, and shelter from storms, as well as offering alternative income streams
Water storage can improve in quantity and ability to deliver water to crops, in combination with soils that have improved water holding capacity.
Varieties and breeds that are adapted to your local soils and climate may do better than others, for example population wheat. Local seed breeding is a skill that has largely been lost to most farmers and growers.
Whatever future path is chosen by farmers looking to adapt to a changing climate, two themes are clear. Firstly, that no one solution will work and a pathway should be holistic. Secondly, those plans should be adaptable and may well have to change. The future is uncertain, but a resilient business that has planned ahead has a better chance in weathering future storms. FCT can help you in that planning.
Helping you
An increased focus for us at Farm Carbon Toolkit will be to help you with services, tools, techniques and insights to adapt to a changing climate. We have over 15 years experience in helping farmers and growers to measure, understand and reduce their carbon footprint. We have a range of services, and a team of experts who really understand farming. Increasingly we will be doing more to help you both reduce your carbon footprint, and adapt to a changing climate.
Written by Tilly Kimble-Wilde, Farm Carbon and Soil Advisor
Richard Anthony, of R & L Anthony near Bridgend, was awarded Second Place in the 2023 Soil Farmer of the Year competition. He was commended on how he responded to and managed challenges, never veering from thinking holistically, always upholding soil health as a priority, and treating each challenge as something from which to learn.
A majority arable business, Richard farms a 6-year rotation of wheat, maize, oilseed rape and westerwolds intermixed with a diverse array of cover and companion crops which he is passionate about. “The emphasis on farm is the soil, improving the soil and organic matter, and keeping a crop in the ground; keeping the soil biology alive.”
Richard and the team also strive to promote and create habitats for wildlife: planting wild bird seed mixes, establishing wildlife corridors, and bordering all hedgerows with a 3m margin to encourage growth year on year. 2m flower margins have also been implemented around all fields of oilseed rape which has been, to quote, “absolutely fantastic.” Encouraging insects and bees and getting the public on side too.
The farm walk itself took place on 23rd November 2023 and kicked off with a presentation taking us through the past year and outlining the various activities and obstacles the farm faced. We were then treated to a fantastic farm walk whereby Richard gave our group of visiting farmers, agronomists, and advisors a tour of some of what they get up to across their extensive arable and forage business.
A big part of what Richard and his team are trying to achieve across the farming business is to use very little bagged fertiliser. Most of the nutrients applied to the soil come from digestate, conveniently stored in the farm’s digestate lagoon. Tankers come in and fill alligator bags for easy transport and the digestate is spread on wheat, oilseed rape and maize.
So far, Richard has managed to eradicate artificial fertiliser when growing maize and OSR; however, wheat still receives a small amount of early application. This wouldn’t have been possible without the construction of the digestate lagoon, a project which was undertaken at the beginning of last year. Still, as Richard says, there is room for improvement. The farm is looking to reduce its N inputs even further by trialling an N inhibitor, all to build more resilience into the system.
This mindset has been applied to fungicides. To use less, Richard has changed the sprayer to accommodate the wet and windy weather brought in from the coast. Now at 250cm spacing, the booms can run very low resulting in no drift even if it’s windy. This enables more spray days and a better chance at getting the timeliness right.
As with most farms across the UK, the weather has been the biggest challenge with dry weather in May and June, and then rain as soon as harvest began.
Luckily, Richard had installed a biomass boiler 6-7 years ago for grain drying after a very wet harvest having heard about them in Scotland. It has been a game changer. Their 1-megawatt biomass boiler provides a lot more spare heat than previous methods of grain drying where they used up to 1.2 megawatts of gas on one drying floor. In the old system, if they were on 25% moisture, it took 10 days to dry one side. With the biomass boiler on woodchip, they can dry 2 drying bays, double the output, and never have to run the boiler flat out. With the right combine (Richard uses a MacDon belt header), the corn is cut as soon as it gets to 25% and achieves good output, as Richard emphasises “do not wait”.
Planting OSR in August was a struggle, with some fields too wet to put a tine in and any cultivation out of the question. Instead, Richard planted the wet parts of the field by snipping the OSR with a sprinter drill and planting the dry parts with a farm standard drill and a top down.
To better manage the unpredictable weather, Richard has a selection of drills that he’s held onto rather than sell. The farm will run 2, sometimes 3 drills if they can, capitalising on days when they have the right weather. This was especially helpful during autumn when the farm received 295mm of rain in October alone.
The farm also spends a lot of time on drainage. Ditches are cleaned, dug out, drains put in; all with the aim of evening out patches in fields and making the farm more resilient. As Richard says, it’s great getting 16t/ha on wheat in a bit of field but if you’re only getting 3t/ha in another part because it’s too wet there is space to do better.
Still, the most used bit of kit on the farm is a spade. By continually monitoring and assessing soil structure, Richard can make a well-informed decision when determining how to establish the next crop.
Farm Walk
During the farm walk, we were shown multiple cover crop and companion crop trials that were taking place on the farm. Steve Corbett from Agrii has worked with Richard for many years, trialling different varieties and combinations, highlighting the importance in being selective. You need good establishment, and it must earn its keep.
What they have found is that OSR, a “lazy rooting brassica”, completely lends itself to companion cropping, in this case with beans, spring vetch and buckwheat. Beans help to get the roots down as well as provide free nitrogen through nodulation. Spring vetch as opposed to winter vetch grows quickly providing biomass and N fixation. Buckwheat adds to the canopy, slowing down flea beetle, making it more difficult for pigeons to land, as well as mining phosphates. When the companion crops die, all the fixed nitrogen and phosphates will be released back into the soil ready for the next crop.
Richard deliberately plants OSR at low seed rates to encourage big branchy plants in spring which will grow away, allowing light through the canopy. By choosing thicker and well-branched OSR types, flea beetle is more contained, damaging only the outer leaves, leaving the middle to branch out. In Richard’s experience it provides a plant that will survive despite a pest living within it.
In terms of cultivation, Richard is a big fan of direct drilling. When direct drilling wheat, he believes it is important to see what is happening underground: what is the root depth? Taking stock of root depth and maintaining that attention to detail during crop growth is essential to determine the next steps in terms of cultivation. At Sealands farm, root depth is critical to survive the winds, Richard has found through monitoring that cultivation disrupts root growth, and that direct drilling fits his system best.
Ultimately, Richard has tried a lot which didn’t work out, but he’s kept at it. One outcome which has surprised him the most was the success of forage rye which he believes is underestimated. In the field, Richard showed us the root mass it was building and the excellent soil structure it yielded. This has provided Richard with an extra income stream, either taken for silage or grazed (ensuring to move stock on in wet conditions to avoid undoing all the good work he’s built up!).
Looking to improve the soil structure even further, Richard planted the forage rye together with westerwolds. He found that they were able to harvest the westerwolds a fortnight earlier due to the ability of the forage rye to get away in the spring creating its own microclimate which Richard believes benefitted the westerwolds.
Finally, we heard about Richard’s problem with persistent perennial ryegrass. In this instance, he introduced an annual ryegrass to outcompete the perennial. “Putting in a bully to outcompete a bully”. It worked and Richard is now able to include it within the arable rotation without generating a loss. This allows a rest period within the rotation to build fertility, stabilise soil structure and generate a bit of extra cash from silage or grazing. Essentially, Richard is maintaining the balance of farming resiliently: optimising soil health and crop yields while sustaining a viable business.
As we’ve all come to realise, we can’t rely on the weather, however, prioritising soil health as perfectly exemplified by Richard, can better equip us to respond and adapt. When we get to know our soils, monitoring how they behave in certain conditions and how they respond to our actions, we are better prepared and forearmed to make decisions that will affect future harvests and pocket.
Through trials and problem solving, Richard together with Steve have implemented more diversity and reduced inputs without damaging profits. A big resistance to straying from our well-known and “safe” rotations is often down to “how will it pay for itself”. Richard and Steve have shown that they’re not radical in their rationale for cover and companion crops, the bottom line is it has to pay. The most exciting take home from the day is they didn’t give up: they’ve found the right species to incorporate, the soil health on farm is improving and crop yields are directly benefiting. It was a truly inspiring day and a masterclass in perseverance. Richard hasn’t made it look easy by any stretch but as he puts it “we’re just learning all the time.”
The calculator just got a little bit bigger and better
This October all calculator users will benefit from an incremental update to The Farm Carbon Calculator. We’re always looking and listening for ways to improve the tool – and in accordance with our annual development cycle we’ve added some as quickly as we can in this update.
The changes described below change our transparent methodology, and are listed in detail in an update note – read it
Calculated emissions adapt to reflect your crop management decisions
We know there are a wide range of practices around how crops are harvested or managed. Whereas before we relied on averages to calculate emissions here, now you can account for the specific way you manage each crop. The more detail you can enter, the more accurate your footprint will be.
The update applies to all crops – here’s some examples and the new ways the calculator estimates related emissions from these:
For agricultural crops like barley you can now choose from options relating to the amount of crop residue – you will see the following options:
Most of the barley straw left in the field
Half of the barley straw removed, half left in field (default)
Wholecrop or most of the barley straw removed from the field.
For your horticultural crops like potatoes you can also indicate what happened to residues:
Most of the crop residues left in field (default)
Most of the residues removed after harvest.
For green manures, temporary grasslands and cut forages select from the following:
Green manure with all residues left in field after mowing (default)
Forage crop with half of the residues foraged in place
Cash crop with all residues removed from the field.
Where you don’t have the detail to enter we revert back to a sensible default which suits the crop in question. So don’t worry – we’ve done this so the Calculator remains easy to use and crops can be entered just as before where needed.
Emissions now calculated from fruit crops
Until now the Calculator has accounted for fruit crops so yields can be recorded. Our research has reached a level of detail where we can confidently indicate emissions associated with this fruit yield – whereas before we could only account for sequestration from perennial fruit crops.
Emissions are now calculated from the growing the fruits alongside detail on their management and their renewal rate where applicable. It is this level of detail that has allowed us to take this step – which we think greatly improves the calculator for fruit farms.
Log in to see emissions for: Blackberries, Blackcurrants, Blueberries, Cranberries, Gooseberries, Raspberries, Redcurrants, Strawberries, Apples, Cherries, Grapes, Hops, Kiwiberries, Nuts, Pears, and Plums.
Better record of the operations and activities on your farm
Accounting for fuel use and farming operations just got even easier. We’ve increased the amount of modelled emissions for different farm operations by working closely with industry professionals.
If you don’t have all your fuel use figures but you know what farming operations you completed or contracted out, we’re confident you will be able to record this. Choose from 47 different activities like drilling, harvesting, soil preparation, bailing and much more. You’ll know the number of different types of operations needed on your farm – it’s likely that if you do it, we can help estimate emissions from it.
Here’s an example of the options now available under the general category of baling:
Running a bale wrapper
Baling by the bale – Small rectangular bales
Baling by the bale – Round bales
Baling by the bale – Heston bales
Baling by area ~250 Small rectangular bales per ha
Baling by area ~15 Round bales per ha
Baling by area ~7.5 Heston bales per ha
Baling by area (general).
More detail to capture your unique farm’s purchases and waste
We listened to feedback and added more options to help record unique purchases on your farm for your carbon footprint report. All farms are different so you may not see all these changes but here are the main additions:
There are more material items accounted for in our already extensive list; things like sheep hurdles; packaging used by dairy producers and in veg boxes; and a range of cleaning products, detergents and disinfectants
More items thrown away or disposed of can be simply accounted for by selecting options from our extensive list
If you produce your own hay and haylage this can be recorded, alongside silage and straw, feed and bedding. Following our updates to crops on-farm, this detail allows more of what you do to be recorded – though it doesn’t necessarily result in emissions calculations. You’ll find full details of what creates emissions within the calculator as you enter each item, and in our methodology and update note.
Better visibility of Greenhouse gas type and scope
When a report is downloaded in CSV or JSON formats you will now receive a more detailed split of greenhouse gas for each item on your report, which is also broken down by emissions scope. We’ve been asked for this from farmers and agricultural professionals using the calculator – often those reporting onward emissions to others in the supply chain looking for this detail.
Your reports won’t change
We know consistent reporting is important to you so we have ensured carbon reports in our system will not automatically change because of this update. This means all your calculated figures will stay the same.
Do note however that if you modify an old report by adding items to it, or if you click ‘recalculate’ then your report will update in the relevant places based on this update. You may want to update it, particularly if you have crops in your report, as you may want to see changes due to the improved accuracies mentioned.
If you want to preserve your old report but also change or build scenarios from it, you can lock your report so it cannot change and create a copy of any report from your dashboard to begin making alterations. Name these reports so you can easily tell them apart. Talk to us if you are not sure and we can advise you.
When is our next update?
These updates are scheduled to take place at least twice per year with an incremental update in Autumn and a larger annual update in Spring.
We are here for farmers and users and our updates like this reflect all our priorities. We engage our farmer network and the Farm Carbon Toolkit team in the update process by gathering feedback on how the current version is working alongside suggested improvements. We order the feedback we receive by quality and what is achievable, and plan our next upgrade in accordance with our ongoing schedule.
We’d love to hear from you
Our friendly team can be reached to help answer your questions – talk to us.
Remember there are a range of resources for users of the Calculator and useful FAQs and videos too.
The FCT Calculator team has released a significant update to the Farm Carbon Calculator, designed to ensure that your reports reflect the latest emissions data and understanding available. This update, which will affect any reports ending after 1st April 2024, encompass a range of improvements aimed at enhancing report accuracy, flexibility and calculator usability. Below are some of the main changes you will see to the calculator.
Updated emissions factors
We want to ensure that your reports align with the most recent scientific research and methodologies, and to that end we have updated our emissions factors across various categories, including:
Updated UK GHG Inventory factors to the latest data (affects fuels, materials, distribution, processing, inventory and waste)
Updated the livestock, cropping and input emissions factors in line with the most recent IPCC standard refinements
Updated woodland sequestration factors in accordance with the latest Woodland Carbon Code
Numerous other emissions factors have been updated across the calculator, and for a more extensive breakdown of these changes, see Table 1 of our “What’s new for April 2024 update” document on the Calculator resources page.
New factor options
In this update we have also expanded the options available when report building to offer more comprehensive coverage of farm businesses. The new factors we have added include:
New fuel options such as alternative diesels and purchased heat and steam
Diverse new material options, such as more fencing materials, piping options, packaging choices, and agricultural consumables.
Expanded imported organic fertility and cropping options, including whole cropping
New fertiliser (including liquid fertilisers) and spray options, with provisions for unlisted items
Inclusion of hay and haylage as livestock feed options
Expanded distribution options, including electric vehicle haulage and various air freight options
Alongside adding new options, we have provided some more refined options for existing factors in the calculator, including:
New managed hedgerow options, to allow reports to reflect the higher biomass accumulation of young hedges
We now have a non-UK electricity option for international users, allowing you to input your emissions using your nation’s specific emissions conversion factor
More options for structures, including new agricultural building size options and various new complete fencing options
A full overview of the new additions and refined items are available in Table 2 of the “What’s new for April 2024 update” document, as well as flagged in the new data collection sheets available on our Calculator resources page.
Accounting for Capital Items
With this update we have provided more flexibility in how capital items (such as farm machinery or agricultural buildings) are accounted for to ensure that your reports are in line with your desired reporting approach. You can choose to account for capital items in two ways:
“Depreciating over 10 years” – The legacy method with emissions “spread” over a 10 year period
“Upfront” – an approach which is compliant with the GHG protocol agricultural guidance. This way embedded emissions from capital items are associated with the year they were purchased, and only the emissions from your reported period will be included in your report
Not all standards require the inclusion of capital items, so if you are producing a report for someone else you should check whether they want capital items included.
You can also switch between inventory reporting options by going to “Edit Farm Details” and you will not lose any data switching between the two.
Reporting waste
A new waste disposal reporting approach has been developed to ensure there is an accurate assessment of emission and these are accounted for in a GHG protocol compliant manner. How waste is reported can be selected on the report information page as with the new inventory options:
“Legacy” is the existing approach which compares emissions from disposing of wastes to what would have been emitted had the waste been sent to landfill (i.e. it includes “avoided emissions”)
“GHG protocol compliant” is the new recommended option as it discounts any “avoided emissions” and accounts just for the emissions resulting from the disposal method selected
New Data Collection Sheets
To facilitate data collection, we provide updated sheets with all new calculator items flagged for easy reference. You can find these on our Calculator resources page.
More information
For a more detailed overview of these changes and the methodologies behind them, please visit our Calculator resources page. Additionally, our website offers various help and guidance to assist you in reporting your farm businesses’ carbon footprint.
We are dedicated to providing an accurate and user-friendly carbon calculator that can help farmers improve their business and environmental resilience. This update has been the product of the hard work from our team in response to contributions and feedback from our users, so if you have any queries or insights for the calculator please email us at calculator@farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk, and we will work to make this the most accessible and informative tool for you.
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