More funding of scientist-farmer collaborative research at the farm-level is key to delivering sustainable UK food system

13 March, 2025

A new call for research funding to prioritise scientists and livestock farmers working more closely together on co-designed, co-delivered farm-level research projects has been issued today by Rothamsted Research and Pasture for Life, a membership Community Interest Company focused on the benefits of grazing animals on pasture.

The joint brief says that evaluation of what constitutes the best use of land for sustainable food production requires farm-level research based on the place-particular conditions prevalent in the UK. The brief offers a vision and practical measures that take forward place-based research, which is a key priority for UKRI, the UK’s main government funding agency for science.

“We are calling for the further promotion and development by policy-makers and funders of the place-based collaborative research model,” said Rothamsted’s Dr Steve Emery. “Our studies at Rothamsted have shown that many of the broad assumptions made about the sustainability and productiveness of livestock farming do not always hold true, and in particular contexts, livestock farming is not only a viable form of high-quality food production but compares favourably with other forms of agriculture in terms of environmental impact.” 

The authors point to research carried out by Rothamsted which has shown that where land is unsuited to growing arable crops, pasture-based beef and sheep farming can deliver the most efficient and sustainable use of land and produce highly nutrient-dense food. 100% pasture-fed beef and lamb has been found to have a better nutritional profile than grain-fed counterparts and can have an overall lower carbon footprint than some intensively grain-fed livestock systems. Rothamsted’s research on grazing management techniques, has also found that ‘mob’ grazing can significantly increase the productive efficiency of pasture-based livestock farming with reduced environmental trade-offs. From an animal welfare viewpoint, pasture-based management systems - where animals are outside grazing pasture for much of the year - can have better mental and physical wellbeing outcomes for livestock than for those in permanently housed systems. 

However, to better evaluate the benefits and trade-offs of pasture-based livestock farming in the UK context, the brief calls for the advancement of a research funding model that can deliver long-term relationship-based and co-designed, co-delivered projects with equal status for famers and scientists as research partners. 

A good example of the co-designed, farm-level approach is the Devon Silvopasture Project which is co-ordinated by The Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG South West) in partnership supported by The Woodland Trust, Innovative Farmers, Rothamsted Research and the Organic Research Centre (ORC). Comprising six commercial farms and Rothamsted’s own North Wyke research farm in Devon, the Network sees farmers and researchers collaborating to explore the impact of different silvopasture designs on a range of factors including biodiversity, soil carbon and animal health and welfare; research priorities identified by the farmers in the trial. Whilst there is research on this management practice from systems in other parts of the world, there is a lack of reliable evidence of the efficacy of this management approach for farmers in the UK’s main grassland livestock regions which this project aims to address. 

Dr Catherine Broomfield of Pasture for Life said, “Many farmers are really keen to innovate and want to be able to collaborate with scientists in practice-based research. But the current research funding environment can often act as a barrier because farmers are not rewarded as equal partners in the research process. That’s why we are calling for a change to research funding that allows farmers to be listed as co-researchers and pays them fairly for their expert, practice-based contribution.”

“We also need to see more research where collaboration involves the farmer not only at the data collection stage but throughout the research process including at the earliest stages of designing the research study,” she added.

Read the full policy brief here