Farms set to trial new technology for low carbon production
© Tim Scrivener Tesco has announced plans to recruit two low-carbon concept farms in its UK supply chain, in a bid to provide farmers in their network with a practical demonstration of a route to net zero.
The multi-year commitment will see the farms, which are currently being selected, trial new technologies and share learnings to scale the adoption of sustainable approaches on other holdings.
They will also explore innovation in other areas including soil health, grazing management, biodiversity assessment and management, and genetic improvements.
The farms – one in partnership with potato supplier Branston and the other with livestock processor ABP – will explore current and future innovations such as low-carbon fertilisers, alternative fuels, state-of-the-art cold storage, and carbon removal techniques.
It is understood that Tesco will be supporting the farms financially in the initiative.
See also: New £1m fund to reward arable farmers for reducing emissions
Ashwin Prasad, chief commercial officer at Tesco, said: “We’ve already been working with farmers to help them reduce their environmental impact, from providing incentives to farmers to measure their carbon footprint, to rolling out new innovations like low-carbon fertilisers.”
“We’re pleased to be building on this further with our new low-carbon test farms.
“Farmers know the importance of tackling climate change – with most reporting, they are already seeing its effect on their farms.”
Harper Adams University deputy vice-chancellor Prof Michael Lee added: “The challenge of moving our food and farming systems towards net zero and ensuring food security at the same time is huge, and we all need to work together to take it on.”
Commitments
The new farms are the latest in a range of commitments from Tesco to support farmers across the supply chain, following on from its partnership with Lloyd’s Banking Group, the Soil Association and other retailers to support farmers to reduce emissions on farm.
They build on the work of Tesco’s long running sustainable farming groups, which convene industry representatives; share knowledge between farmers, suppliers and Tesco colleagues; and trial innovations that can help reduce on-farm emissions and protect biodiversity.