More than £14 million is to be made available to unlock
innovation and develop solutions in the farming sector in two new
research and feasibility competitions under the Farming
Innovation Programme, Defra has announced today.
It is part of the government’s delivery of its commitment to
invest £600 million in innovation and productivity in the sector
over three years, and adds further support to the development and
take-up of innovative practices on farms to boost productivity
and sustainability whilst meeting net zero targets.
The competitions are open to farmers, growers, foresters,
research organisations and businesses involved in agriculture to
collaborate on novel ideas and solutions.
Previous rounds have led to investment in automations to improve
soft fruit yield; a ‘herd’ of lightweight, battery-operated,
asparagus-harvesting robots; and the use of ultraviolet as a
disinfectant in the dairy and poultry sectors.
Farming Minister said:
These competitions are all about encouraging collaborations
between farmers and growers on the one hand, and research
organisations and industry on the other, to help bring ideas from
the planning stage into practice.
The success of the previous competition rounds and the broad
scope of ideas coming forward showcase the range of possibilities
available for driving up productivity and solving some of the
industry’s biggest challenges. I encourage everyone to take a
look at what’s on offer in the latest competitions and apply.
Defra is today publishing guidance for the third
round of the Small R&D Partnerships competition, which seeks
to help businesses develop a new farming product or service and
take it to commercialisation on the open market. Worth
almost £10 million, it has been developed in partnership
with the Transforming Food Production Challenge and is delivered
by Innovate UK.
The second round of the competition has already funded projects
including exploring how to breed sheep with a naturally low
carbon footprint to help sheep farmers contribute to the journey
towards net zero, and a project combining generation of
electricity with growing berries to power operational processes
such as automated picking, sensors and vehicles.
It comes alongside new guidance for a £4.5 million Feasibility
Studies competition which aims to support businesses and
researchers through the difficult testing phase of an idea,
checking whether it works in practice and helping them assess
whether to invest in a project.
It looks for early-stage solutions that have the potential
to substantially improve the overall productivity, sustainability
and resilience of farming, and move existing agricultural sectors
to net zero.
Successful applicants in previous rounds include a study to
identify fungal strains that can help fight against insect and
fungal pests in wheat crops, reducing the costs associated with
multiple applications of chemical pesticides, mechanical damage
from repeated spray applications and crop yield losses.
Farmers, growers, foresters, research organisations and
businesses are encouraged to read the guidance ahead of
applications opening.
Applications for the Small R&D Partnerships competition open
on 14 August and the Feasibility Studies competition window is
open from 18 September.
Dr Katrina Hayter, Executive Director for the Healthy Living and
Agriculture Domain at Innovate UK, said:
We look forward to supporting the next round of applicants and
identifying promising partnerships that hold the potential to
address the sustainability, efficiency, and net zero challenges
confronting the UK’s agrifood industry.
Feasibility studies mark the initial stage in researching an idea
that could improve farming, while small R&D partnerships are
a vital step to empowering businesses to forge novel farming
products and services, paving the way towards successful
commercialisation.
By fostering collaborations between farmers, growers,
agri-businesses and researchers, these partnerships become the
driving force behind transforming innovative solutions into
practical applications.
Since opening in October 2021, 16 competitions have launched
under the government’s £270 million Farming Innovation Programme
and, as of August 2023, more than £123 million in funding to
industry-led research and development in agriculture and
horticulture has been announced.
The importance of innovation in the food and farming sectors was
highlighted at the recent Farm to Fork Summit where the
government announced a package of support for the farming sector,
including new measures to ensure the sector remains at the
forefront of adopting new technologies and techniques.
This included the On-Farm Environmental Resilience competition,
which will see up to £12.5 million awarded to projects driving
the development of new technology and innovative farming methods,
with a focus on practical solutions to make a real difference on
farms. The competition closed at the end of last month and
projects will be notified of the outcome of their applications in
the autumn.
