Tesco is calling for industry, retailers and innovators to work together to help farmers adopt low carbon fertilisers at scale to help improve UK food security and create stability for British farmers.
Speaking at London Tech Week today, UK CEO Ashwin Prasad will discuss how innovations such as UK-produced low carbon fertilisers could play an important role in reducing emissions and helping farmers weather supply chain shocks, while highlighting the barriers many face in adopting new technologies and the need for more targeted support to get innovation onto farms.
The intervention comes amid further pressure to global fertiliser supply chains, with disruption and price increases heightening uncertainty for farmers. Low carbon fertilisers can offer a more price-stable, domestically produced alternative; as conventional fertiliser prices have risen in recent months, the price gap between low carbon fertilisers and conventional options has narrowed.
Yet while they can produce comparable yields with lower environmental impact, many farmers cite a lack of widespread supply and difficulty in accessing funding for trials as key barriers to making the switch.
Trials on the Tesco Low Carbon Concept Farm in Lincolnshire have already delivered promising results. Using a combination of low carbon growing techniques, locking in CO2 as part of the process, Tesco’s potato supplier, Branston recorded a 50% reduction in carbon emissions, with no effect on yield or quality. The resulting 500 tonnes of potatoes went on sale in Tesco stores earlier this year.
Drawing on this experience, Tesco is calling on other across the food industry to scale low carbon fertiliser production and availability, so products can move from small-scale or pilot use into mainstream adoption.
Ashwin Prasad, Tesco UK CEO, said: “We want to support our British farmers in rolling out innovation – it can help increase economic growth, build resilience and improve efficiencies on farm. But too often promising technologies struggle to move from trial to everyday use on farms.
“Low carbon fertilisers are a clear example. They have real potential to reduce environmental impact, strengthen the resilience of UK food production, and keep a reliable supply of British products on our shelves, but scaling them will require greater availability, clarity on price and the confidence that farmers can plan their use over the long term.
“We want to share what we have learned from our work so far on projects such as our low carbon concept farm, and help shape the conditions needed for wider adoption. That’s also why we’re pleased to be running the Tesco Agri-tech Challenge to help find the promising innovations that will help shield farmers from the supply shocks of tomorrow.”
Tesco has also re-launched its worldwide innovation competition, the Tesco Agri-tech Challenge, to help accelerate the development of innovation on farms. The competition is seeking to identify start-ups and innovators with practical solutions to help farmers improve sustainability, resilience and productivity. Applications are open until 3 July and winners will have the opportunity to work with Tesco and its supplier partners, including trials on real supplier farms, and a year’s Agri-TechE membership.
Further information on the Tesco Agri-Tech Challenge, including how to apply, is available here.
