Part of the ONE Agritech Programme series of webinars and recorded in February 2023, this webinar explores the latest tech and tools to improve grassland management and productivity.

An exciting technology project for north east Scotland’s farming sector has attracted strong interest from farms keen to trial new digital solutions.

The ONE Agritech Programme for future farming technology demonstrates the practical application of digital solutions in arable and livestock enterprises of all sizes to improve profits, save time, cope with less labour and meet the challenge of net-zero carbon emissions. The aim of the programme is to demonstrate and validate the benefits and practical application of smart innovative technology to farmers, as a route to improve the productivity and sustainability of Scottish farms.

Agriculture and related land use contribute significantly to UK greenhouse gas emissions. The Scottish Government and UK Climate Change Committee have pledged to support the necessary changes in land ...

James Hutton Ltd (JHL) seeks to integrate 5G Internet of Things (IoT) enabled precision farming systems on the Mylnefield Research Farm located at the James Hutton Institute (JHI) to demonstrate where ...

A farm in Suffolk has stepped up its adoption of precision farming tools as part of a drive to increase production, minimise the environmental footprint, and buffer the loss of direct support.

A farm in Derbyshire has used Terramap to make significant savings on liming through variable rate applications.

We hear a lot about soil health, but where do you begin, what metrics should you be using? By taking a broad-spectrum soil sample you’ll get all the data mentioned before...

Nitrogen applied now is required to grow grass for the last rotation. Applying nitrogen after early October may not be economical...

The focus of this period is to gradually build pre-grazing covers, targeting covers of 3,500kg to 3,700kg DM/ha in mid-September. Be careful not allow covers build beyond 4,000kg DM/ha for grazing...

Average yield response of 0.3t/ha from an application of Brassitrel Pro, both in the autumn and followed up in the spring...

The world is facing a climate emergency and we can see evidence of this all around through increased incidents of flooding, fire, and drought. This is threatening the sustainable production of food itself and puts all our livelihoods at risk. We also know that farming contributes to Greenhouse Gas emissions. UK Agriculture contributed 10% to total greenhouse gas emissions in 2018 – including 70% of nitrous oxide emissions and nearly half of total methane emissions. Thus, farming has a key role in helping the UK meet its Net Zero emissions target by 2050. 

Farmers know their farms, the soil and terrain, and whether a field is better suited to crops or grazing livestock. They understand what works for the piece of land they nurture. And it is a long-term relationship often lasting for generations. 

Here at The Future Forest Company, we carry out award-winning nature first reforestation projects for carbon storage and biodiversity gain. We restore degraded peatlands so that they can play an active role in fighting climate change. We have independently validated carbon units available.

 

Hosted at the James Hutton Institute's Glensaugh research farm in Aberdeenshire, the Centre for Smart Natural Capital - a partnership between JHI and CENSIS - provides a platform to develop the smart sensing, monitoring and advanced computing and analytics needed to inform the growing field of natural capital.

Will the latest proposed bill be different? Based on what we know at the moment, the Scottish Government’s proposals, which were followed by a consultation process (the responses to which were publish ...

I’m often asked where I see the controlled environment agriculture and vertical farming industries being in 10, 20 or even 50 years’ time. This is partly because, as someone who runs an industry assoc ...

Leading soil solutions now available in the UK 

Following on from the successful launch into the UK and Irish market at this year’s LAMMA  and Groundswell shows, Gaiago is encouraged by the trial interest and grower commitment to its sustainable products, kicking off a great start to 2023.

Gaiago’s portfolio harnesses the very latest innovation for revitalising soils, any farmer, grower or land managers biggest asset. The solutions comprise of unique formulations of natural elements, protecting yields and empowering growers to reduce reliance on more traditional synthetic plant protection products. Products are registered as biostimulants under the new European regulation and are now available in the UK.

The current portfolio is supported by a strong R&D pipeline developed both internally and externally, notably through a joint-venture with a renowned Agricultural University, UniLaSalle.

 

Double your yield.
 

Slash your expenses.

 

Increase your output while decreasing overheads.

 

Raise the quality of your product.
 

Everyone has heard these (or similar) demands. None more so than farmers.
 

Brexit is starting to bite, and the UK aims to grow more of its own produce while we expect the population to explode. We must find new ways to increase the quality and quantity of crops.
 

Traditional farming methods are only taking us so far.

At UK Agricultural Finance, we strongly believe in supporting farmers to invest in their agricultural business with farm loans. Many established farm businesses that have been in the family for a long time will require some form of restructuring, and this may require restructuring finance.

UK Agricultural Finance were approached by a family dairy partnership that have been trading for over 115 years. In the case of this dairy farm, restructuring would not only provide improved business structure, but also bring in new productivity improvements and the use of innovative technology.

When we started UK Agricultural Finance, we focused predominantly on pure agricultural loans, such as loans for agricultural properties and the purchase of agricultural land. We now offer loans for a full range of business purposes as long as they have an agricultural connection, alongside our simple land purchase loans.

Agricultural land loans are often not as simple as they may seem on paper, and our personal touch with borrowers allows us to fully understand the story and context of a land purchase. This was the case for a recently completed loan in Scotland, managed by our BDM, Louise. In this case, the purpose of the loan is far less interesting than the story of the borrower and his family.

At UK Agricultural Finance, we are seeing increased demand for recovery and restructure finance. This is across various farming sectors but is particularly prevalent in smaller family farms and traditional hill farming operations. 

Increasing pressures on the farming industry and changes to income levels have meant that many farms are losing their next generation to off-farm employment. This, coupled with the ever-increasing average age of farmers, has led many family farms into financial and emotional struggles. The market conditions over the last two years combined with the impact of Covid has put additional pressure on many of these family farms.