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Driving sustainability and profitability
Up and down the country, we have seen exemplary cases of trailblazing farms where food production and nature thrive together. Our report demonstrates the power that rigorous farm data, and expert advice has in instigating change.
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With our holistic methodology the sector now has access to a valuable resource for measuring the impact of nature-friendly practices on farms.
685
farms baselined covering nearly 240,000 hectares
3.34%
average Soil Organic Matter across all farms
701
sightings of Skylarks - the most common red list bird spotted
28%
of farms reaching at least 10% space for nature targets
The impact of livestock
With careful management, we can start to see livestock having an impact on soil fertility and Soil Organic Carbon. We also of course see the impact of livestock on emissions and the challenge the industry has in ensuring it can face into a net zero future.
Animal welfare performing well
Our national focus on animal welfare is born out in the dataset, showing good performance in most areas. Antibiotic use good across species, and Dairy in particular having good mortality, mastitis and lameness figures.
Biodiversity varies greatly from farm to farm
Only 28% of farms have at least 10% space for nature, but we do see an encouraging number of sightings of red and amber list birds. We see great opportunity for funding and support for farmers to better manage resources like hedgerows.
