The Source

Growing crops without pesticides is technically and economically feasible under certain conditions. Creating such production systems involves diversifying crop rotations, developing appropriate marketing channels, and determining the economic value of the products from these systems. These are the findings of a study in France on nine cropping systems (agronomic crops and multicrop-livestock systems) designed in conjunction with extension specialists and farmers.

AFBI has been leading research that shows that separating slurry into solid and liquid fractions can help reduce phosphorus, improve nutrient use, protect water quality and even create new income streams.

To find out more about the role currently being played by native equine breeds, the Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) has carried out a survey to examine the extent to which they are being used. The survey was carried out as part of the HBLB-funded RBST Native Equine Project and received 40 responses

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 represents the biggest shake-up of residential tenancy law in a generation. While much of the attention has focused on urban private landlords, the changes are just as important for farmers and rural estates providing accommodation to employees.

This overview summarises the updated carbon footprint assessment completed using the farm carbon toolkit for the Allerton Project’s farming operations for the season 2024/25. It highlights the main contributors to the farm’s low net emissions and explores future risks, particularly those linked to uncertainty around the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme.

The Agricultural Price Index (API) reflects the change in the price farmers have paid for goods and services. After the volatility seen in 2022, prices have been more stable over the last few years.

Results indicate that microalgae, insects, and single-cell proteins exhibit crude protein levels comparable to soybean meal. Moreover, insects, seaweeds, and animal by-products (ABPs) often present superior essential amino acid profiles and high intestinal digestibility. From an environmental perspective, insects, seaweeds and microalgae offer excellent land-use efficiency and significant enteric methane mitigation (17–74.6%), though current economic viability is hindered by high processing costs and emerging supply chains.

Decades of research has shown promise for using microbiome science to solve several problems facing agriculture, but these findings have not yet been translated to practical recommendations for growers, according to a team of scientists in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

We examine technologies such as digital twins, mobile applications, autonomous systems, location-aware technologies, edge computing, and Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) that are revolutionizing agricultural processes.

This paper is an assignment submitted to De Montfort University in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of LLM in Environmental Law by Andrew Brown. It asks whether, despite the much higher levels of fines on water companies for environmental offences imposed[NP1]  recently, there remains an unacceptably [NP2] low level of compliance with the regulations. What can be done?

The autumn block herds had lower total income, lower forage purchases, higher labour costs and lower net profit compared with all-year-round. The spring block herds had higher total income, higher forage purchases, and lower labour and overhead costs compared with all-year round. No differences were found between twin block and all-year-round herds.

This systematic review of precision agriculture reveals that some academics make claims about PA and sustainability without presenting adequate evidence. Of 444 English-language academic publications on PA and sustainability, it found 54 papers with field-trial or modelling evidence, and most evidence exists for variable rate technologies in grain farming.