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AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

How trees can enhance and support your farm business

Woodland and forestry experts urged growers at a recent Transition webinar, to look again at the potential benefits of strategic tree planting. Transition Project editor and webinar host Johann Tasker…

ARABLE

Tips on achieving healthy hedgerows on farm

Hedges are a defining feature of our countryside and one of the best habitats for wildlife on any farm.  Far more than being a boundary, they also support farm business…

LIVESTOCK

How feeding methane inhibitors can help cut emissions

Methane inhibitors supplied in feed rations could play a significant role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in ruminants. However, no one size fits all, advises Annie Williams, ruminant nutritionist and…

BUSINESS

Alternative land uses: Woodland creation - key points

Financial support for woodland creation and management in England is at record levels, so it could be the right time to consider this as an option. Talk of reducing sheep…

CARBON

Carbon markets: A beginner's guide

The UK’s carbon markets are growing, but there is confusion around the principles. Farmers Weekly asks CLA adviser Matthew Doran how they work. See also: Mineral rights - what farmers…

BUSINESS

Rural housing: Options to decarbonise and improve efficiency

From period farmhouses to farmworkers’ cottages, rural housing comes in many shapes and sizes, but they all share similar challenges when it comes to energy. Rural properties off the mains…

Case studies

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BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

How sustainable farming is central to Raby Estate's business

Attention to detail has been critical as Raby Estate has changed direction and set about creating a more robust and commercially viable business, with an environmentally sustainable farming enterprise at…

ENVIRONMENT

Award-winner shows ploughing can go alongside sustainability

Cambridgeshire farmer David Felce has been named this year’s winner of the BASF Rawcliffe Bridge Sustainability Award, for his focus on promoting biodiversity. David, who farms with his wife Hayley…

LIVESTOCK

How rotational hedge management is helping store more carbon

Hedgerows managed on a 12- to 15-year laying rotation store six times more carbon than those flailed annually, studies on a Cornish beef farm have shown. Overall carbon emissions at…

LIVESTOCK

How a Portuguese green oasis inspired a move to agroforestry

Mike Adams had never seen the point in growing trees in fields. But visits to farms in southern Europe and Turkey proved transformational; he is now sold on their benefits…

GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT

Benefits of sward lifting for profit and environment

A decade of sward lifting on a Cornish farm has prevented run-off after heavy rainfall, shortened the winter housing period and is helping soils to sequester carbon. A typical field…

CARBON

Pioneering arable farm sells carbon credits to top F1 team

A pioneering arable farm in Leicestershire has become the first farm in the UK to sell measured carbon credits to a range of buyers on the open market, including the…

Insights

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FARM POLICY

How the Ffermio Bro agri-environment scheme is bedding in

The Welsh government’s agri-environmental scheme for its designated landscapes and national parks – called Ffermio Bro – has started in earnest since its launch in April. Aiming to encourage nature-friendly…

ARABLE

What's in the latest capital grants offer for arable farmers?

A new round of capital grants worth £150m has opened in England, with arable farmers welcoming the latest opportunity to apply for funding to make environmental improvements. Against a tight…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Why propyzamide use in OSR and beans remains in the balance

Delivering best practice for successful weed control with propyzamide while preventing it from entering water courses and reservoirs remains a difficult balance. What’s good for weed control frequently increases the…

FARM POLICY

NI farm policy shift creates challenges for livestock sector

Support for farm businesses in Northern Ireland is going through a transition period, away from the old Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) system of support and towards a Farm Sustainability Payment…

ARABLE

How cultivated margins help rare plants and biodiversity

Cultivated margins, or areas of fields that are cultivated annually, but not drilled, are one of the best ways of encouraging rare arable plants and the wildlife that depends on…

FARM POLICY

NVZ review: Welsh farmer frustration continues with rules

Since 2021, farmers in Wales have had to contend with the Water Resources (Control of Agricultural Pollution) (Wales) Regulations. These designated the whole of the country as a nitrate vulnerable…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Why scrapping net zero could help tackle climate change

Farmers want to play their part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions – but net zero is disengaging them, says a report. The finding is just one conclusion reached by a…

Latest environment news

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BROILERS

How litter can be treated on-farm to heat broiler sheds

New technology is offering a novel solution to the environmental and financial challenges associated with manure produced by intensive broiler units. Poultry litter is blamed for polluting rivers and waterways…

PEST MANAGEMENT

Carbon nanodot technology hopes to improve biopesticide use

Carbon nanodot technology, originally developed for the healthcare industry, could make biopesticides more stable and effective, believes a UK tech start-up. Carbon nanodots are ultra-small, biodegradable particles that enable precise,…

ENVIRONMENT

NAP backlash builds as 3,400 respond to ‘unworkable’ plans

DUP MP Carla Lockhart has called on Daera minister Andrew Muir to “go back to the drawing board” on proposed changes to the Nutrients Action Programme (NAP), warning the department…

BIODIVERSITY

Free tools to help farmers monitor habitat and biodiversity

A new freely available app is helping farmers and landowners monitor biodiversity and manage habitat quality. The app, known as e-Surveyor, uses artificial intelligence (AI) to make ecological surveying more…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Know your natural habitat data, Welsh farmers urged

Farmers in Wales have been urged to understand their on-farm natural habitat data after a snapshot of woodland, hedgerow and biodiversity survey revealed a mixed distribution, according to Farming Connect.…

BIODIVERSITY

New habitat mapping tool to baseline biodiversity

A fully automated habitat mapping and site screening tool has been launched this week to deliver rapid ecological assessments in just minutes. Biodiversity mapping data company Gentian announced the launch…

NEWS

Lynx reintroduction gains support but farmers remain wary

A recent survey by the Missing Lynx Project suggests that many residents in Northumberland potentially support the reintroduction of lynx to the area. The idea of bringing back this native…

WILDLIFE

AI monitoring technology helps protect curlew in Wales

Conservation work to detect and protect curlew and other ground-nesting birds in Wales have been given a helping hand by new AI monitoring technology. The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust…

ENVIRONMENT

Nutrient Action Plan to put ‘severe strain’ on NI farmers

Plans to reduce fertiliser use on farmland included in Northern Ireland’s Nutrient Action Programme (NAP) could cost the agri-food sector more than £1.5bn each year, according to industry reports. Analysis…

NEWS

House of Lords demands tighter controls on nitrates

The House of Lords has demanded tighter controls on nitrates, saying that successive governments have failed to tackle the dangerous health, environmental and economic impacts of nitrogen pollution in England.…

ENVIRONMENT

New initiative to recycle silage wrap and feed bags in Wales

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has set up a number of drop-off centres for farm plastics, in a bid to reduce pollution within the rivers Teifi, Tywi, Cleddau and Usk catchment…

ENVIRONMENT

Water reprieve for 150 farmers, but others left waiting

More than 150 farmers across Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire will be able to resume limited water abstraction after the NFU and farmers raised urgent concerns with the Environment Agency (EA)…

Video

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AIR AND WATER

Video: FW Investigates - would dredging reduce flooding?

The past few months of relentless wet weather have again highlighted the pressing issue of how best to manage rivers and watercourses near farmland. Heavy rainfall events are becoming more…

NEWS

Video: Farmer defends his actions on River Lugg

A Herefordshire farmer who was jailed for causing damage to a protected river has defended his actions, insisting they helped prevent flooding to local properties and land. Several homes along…

SHEEP

Video: How a lowland farm is preparing for low-methane sheep

Results from the first UK farm to test methane emissions in sheep using portable accumulation chambers have shown they were producing on average about 20g/day of methane and 1.2kg/day of…