How can we support farmers to adopt best practice?

1. How can we support farmers to adopt best practice? Taking a market lead to tackle the Nitrogen problem Nov 2012 Christine Tacon Living with Environmental Change Business Advisory Board

2. Hypoxic and Eutrophic Coastal Areas

3. Food waste

4. Farmers can improve their nitrogen use • Improved decision making • Crop rotation • Nitrogen type • Application timing • Improved planning • NVZs • Amount required, organic matter, rainfall etc • Soil related efficiency of uptake • Break even calculations

5. Use of N sensors/satellite technology Measurement of run off Measurement of Nitrous oxide emissions Prioritise use of waste sources of N Improve understanding of soils Controlled traffic farming Reduce pressure of equipment Nitrogen friendly farming

6. How to spread best practice • Through farming press, discussion groups, conferences • Ensure farm advisors adequately trained and qualified • Feedback to farmers from water companies of N levels in water • Ensure we have knowledge to communicate how different sources of N work in soils • (Ensure the water companies are tackling the issue too)

7. Or we could be radical • Treat Nitrogen as a hazardous chemical which can only be applied by trained experts • Tax fossil fuel derived N to reduce its use and prioritise waste derived N • Have adequate incentives so “green” fertiliser is commercially justified • Mandate use of biosolids • Just reduce the allowed levels….as the EU are doing

8. How retailers can help • Put pressure on their suppliers to innovate • Low nitrogen bread • Lock in knowledge through decision support tools • iCrop (Pepsico water use tool) • Promote best practice and increased farm efficiency • M&S Producer Exchange website • Plan A awards • Support industry in embedding in existing schemes • LEAF, Red Tractor

9. Potential use of satellite data Use of visible light, other electromagnetic radiation and the electromagnetic spectrum • collecting the radiation that is reflected, emitted or scattered by a target (passive systems) • illuminating a target with a pulse or beam of radiation and collecting the signal that is reflected or diffracted back to the sensor (active systems). • From 2013 satellite data will be available day and night over all EU

10. Marine example • This image shows chlorophyll concentration • Yellow and red in open water indicate high concentrations of phytoplankton at or close to the surface of the water. Closer to the coast they are more likely to indicate sand or mud suspended in the water.

11. In conclusion • Very few farming businesses are doing any research • Most innovation is coming from the supply industry • We have insufficient knowledge of soil and how N is made available to plants • The technology and know-how to optimise use of N is available but only top 10% are using it in the UK • Satellite data could provide much more information • If we don’t work out how to use N efficiently fast, the issue will be a global one