Category: Carbon Farmer of the Year

Farm Carbon Toolkit – Carbon Farmer of the Year Winners announced!

Posted on September 21, 2023 by - Carbon Farmer of the Year

The winners of our inaugural Carbon Farmer of the Year competition are:

Overall winner:

Doug Christie from Durie Farms, Leven, Fife, Scotland

Finalists:

  • Anthony Ellis from Pensipple Farm, Liskeard, Cornwall
  • Craig Livingstone and Matt Bloor from Lockerley Estate and Preston Farms, Broughton, Stockbridge, Hampshire
  • Thomas Gent from Oakley Farm, Tydd St Giles, Cambridgeshire

Photo above: Winner Doug Christie (left) with judges Emily Norton, Liz Bowles and Adam Twine with his Angus cattle.

Our judges Adam Twine (FCT Founder and non-executive director), David Cope (Duchy of Cornwall), Emily Norton (Chair of Soil Association Exchange), and Liz Bowles (FCT CEO) were very impressed with the commitment and innovation shown by all the finalists in identifying sources of GHG emissions and developing strategies to reduce emissions and increase the rate of carbon removal into soils and non-crop biomass.

This year’s winner stood out to the judges for his dogged determination in identifying how best to reduce emissions, whilst reducing reliance on those external inputs which he realised long ago came with unintended consequences. When Doug started his journey towards a low emission, regenerative farming system, it was far from popular.

All our finalists have made great strides in reducing business reliance on fossil-fuel based fertilisers and fossil fuels through changes to their farming practices and careful soil management to reduce GHG emissions.

The long-term objective of this competition is to create a network of alumni who are changing their management practices to better manage emission and carbon storage on farmland who will inspire others through activity, practical demonstrations, and advocacy for changing management practices.

Network creation is of paramount importance and this competition will raise the profile of the many effective ways in which on-farm emissions can be reduced and increased carbon storage can be achieved.

Emily Norton, Farmer and chair of the Advisory Board for Soil Association Exchange, says

“I was interested to see the range of approaches being taken by the finalists and was delighted that so many businesses were brave enough to put themselves forward to be judged on something which is a relatively new concept for Agriculture”

About the Farm Carbon Toolkit and the Carbon Farmer of the Year Competition

Farm Carbon Toolkit is an independent, farmer-led Community Interest Company, supporting farmers to measure, understand and act on their greenhouse gas emissions, while improving their business resilience for the future.

For over a decade, Farm Carbon Toolkit has delivered a range of practical projects, tools and services that have inspired real action on the ground. Organisations they work with include the Duchy of Cornwall, First Milk, Dartmoor National Park, Tesco, Yeo Valley and WWF. The Farm Carbon Calculator is a leading on-farm carbon audit tool, used by over 7,000 farmers in the UK and beyond. To find out more visit www.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk

The Carbon Farmer of the Year Competition aims to recognise and champion farmers, sector
organisations and businesses who are leading the way in adopting farming practices and developing new technologies which are helping to reduce farm emissions whilst optimising output.

This new competition will allow for discussions on carbon emissions and sinks on farms to be framed in a very practical way to allow for maximum engagement with the issue. Farm Carbon Toolkit facilitates discussion and information sharing between farmers and other actors which ultimately leads to changes in on-farm practice.

Next year’s competition will be launched in February 2024.

Press release: 2024 CFOTY finalists announced!

Posted on September 11, 2024 by - Carbon Farmer of the Year, News

Farm Carbon Toolkit announces shortlisted farms for the 2024 Carbon  Farmer of the Year competition 

Four farmers from across the UK – including three dairy farms – have been shortlisted for this year’s Carbon Farmer of the Year competition in recognition of their efforts to reduce their business’s climate impact.

The 2024 Carbon Farmer of the Year Shortlist:

  • Andrew Brewer from Ennis Barton, Fraddon, Cornwall (Arla supplier)
  • Jason Mitchell, Gary Logue and Adam Moore from Greenville Dairies Ltd, Newton Stewart, Northern Ireland  (Lakeland supplier)
  • Tom Burge from Oaremead Farm, Lynton, Devon 
  • Wesley Semple from Derryduff Farm, Dungiven, Northern Ireland  (Lakeland supplier)

Now in its second year, the annual Carbon Farmer of the Year competition is organised by the Farm Carbon Toolkit and generously sponsored by HSBC Agriculture UK.

The competition aims to find farmers and growers who are engaged with, and passionate about reducing their business’s climate impact through changing management practice to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their businesses. 

As part of the competition, the top three farmers will host free farm walks that bring farmers together to share good practice and innovations that result in reduced emissions, as well as improving carbon removal into soils, trees, hedges and non-crop biomass. The competition is becoming widely recognised by organisations working to reduce the emissions from UK agriculture, with many promoting it to their networks to increase participation.

Rob Purdew, Farm Carbon and Soil Advisor with Farm Carbon Toolkit, says 

“We’ve been blown away by the quality of the entries for this year’s Carbon Farmer of the Year competition The sheer variety of entries for this year’s competition highlights the fact that, despite differences in farming systems and locations, many farmers are finding truly innovative ways to reduce their business greenhouse gas emissions.

It is particularly positive to see three dairy farmers in this year’s shortlist, given that dairy farming is often in the media spotlight in terms of its environmental impact. We are working with numerous dairy farmers and dairy industry projects that are already showcasing that this doesn’t need to be the case, and that farmers can make simple management changes to significantly improve their carbon and environmental footprints. We’re grateful to everyone who took the time and effort to enter.

Steve Dunkley, HSBC Agriculture, says 

HSBC UK Agriculture is pleased to support the 2024 Carbon Farmer of the Year competition and  the quality of entries has been superb and hugely inspiring. As a business, we’re very keen to support the industry in transitioning towards net zero. While that will take many forms, we have the ambition to help farmers fund investment in the new practices and technologies needed to evolve. The Carbon Farmer of the Year competition is a great way of showcasing how farmers are already achieving these changes and encouraging others to follow their lead.

The judging process now involves visiting each of the four finalists to learn more about their farming practices before selecting the winners.

The winners of the 2024 Carbon Farmer of the Year competition will be announced at the Farm Carbon Toolkit Annual Field Day on the 26th September 2024, this year kindly hosted by 2023 Soil Farmer of the Year winner Billy Lewis at Boycefield Farm, Dilwyn, Herefordshire. A day for farmers, by farmers, the FCT Annual Field Day is about sharing practical experiences for improving performance and resilience in a challenging environment with this year’s event focusing on the value of mixed farming.

Open farm walks at the top three farms will be scheduled to take place in November and December 2024.

For further details about the 2024 Carbon Farmer of the Year competition, contact Rob Purdew, Carbon and Soil Advisor with the Farm Carbon Toolkit, at [email protected]

For more information, visit www.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk/carbon-farmer-of-the-year/

Notes to Editors

Farm Carbon Toolkit is an independent, farmer-led Community Interest Company, supporting farmers to measure, understand and act on their greenhouse gas emissions, while improving their business resilience for the future.

The Farm Carbon Calculator uses the IPCC 2019 and UK GHG Inventory methodologies and is aligned with the GHG protocol agricultural guidance.  Recent development has allowed us to provide greater interoperability with other data platforms through our Report Export API and Carbon Calculation Engine API. This represents a step-change in the industry’s ability to provide trustworthy carbon footprints with transparent methodologies on platforms where farmers already collect data, thus reducing the data inputting onus on farmers. This new functionality has been warmly welcomed by supply chain businesses who are now using our Calculation Engine to support their customers without need for further data entry.

The Farm Carbon Calculator is used across the UK and on four continents with  global usage growing at around 20% per year.

For over a decade, Farm Carbon Toolkit has delivered a range of practical projects, tools and services that have inspired real action on the ground. Organisations they work with include the Duchy of Cornwall, First Milk, Tesco, Yeo Valley and WWF. The Farm Carbon Calculator is a leading on-farm carbon audit tool, used by over 8,000 farmers in the UK and beyond. To find out more visit www.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk  

Carbon Farmer of the Year competition -update

Posted on May 25, 2023 by - Carbon Farmer of the Year

Earlier this year we at the Farm Carbon Toolkit launched our Carbon Farmer of the Year (CFOTY) competition. With this competition we will be recognising and championing farmers, sector organisations and businesses who are leading the way in adopting farming practices and developing new technologies which are helping to reduce farm emissions whilst optimising output. 

Back in 2015 we launched our Soil Farmer of the Year (SFOTY) competition which recognises those farmers who are going above and beyond to support improved soil health on their farms and to showcase all the good things which flow from that enhanced soil quality. This competition has been highly successful at celebrating incredibly forward thinking farmers and through it we have been able to share their methods, spreading their knowledge and normalising practices that may have previously seemed intangible to many farmers. The approaches these farmers have been demonstrating through the highly popular SFOTY farm walks have been a great opportunity to show to others that increasing soil health to safeguard our soils for future generations and future food production can be achieved whilst maintaining profit and production. 

We are confident that our new Carbon Farmer of the Year competition will do the same as the SFOTY, but with a focus on carbon reduction and carbon sequestration.

We are looking for those farmers and other businesses who are doing great things to reduce farm emissions and to store carbon in soil and non-crop biomass within resilient, biodiverse businesses. We believe the more we celebrate and recognise those farmers that are leading the way with regards to reducing emissions, increasing carbon capture and minimising reliance on imported energy the more we can spread this knowledge, create a new norm and share best practice across the industry. 

All the details to make nominations/apply and the entry form are available on our website here. Or you can go straight to the nomination/application form here.

Entries close on the 4th July and we will be announcing the winners at our annual Farm Carbon Toolkit Field Day on the 21st September.

Please note – the Soil Farmer of the Year competition will still be running alongside this new competition, and as always we will be announcing the winners at Groundswell in late June. 

Press Release: Launch of new Carbon Farmer of the Year Awards

Posted on February 8, 2023 by - Carbon Farmer of the Year, News

Farm Carbon Toolkit launches the first competition of its kind at the Low Carbon Agriculture Show this February. 

The annual Carbon Farmer of the Year Competition aims to recognise and champion farmers, sector organisations and businesses who are leading the way in adopting farming practices and developing new technologies that are helping to reduce farm emissions while optimising output. 

Launched today at the Low Carbon Agriculture Show at NAEC Stoneleigh, this is the only competition of its kind to identify and reward farmers, sector organisations, and businesses that are working hard to manage emissions and carbon storage. The competition will allow stakeholders to frame discussions on carbon emissions and carbon sinks on farms in a very practical way, thereby encouraging maximum engagement with the issues.

The winners of this year’s Carbon Farmer of the Year competition will be announced at the Farm Carbon Toolkit’s annual autumn conference, which is being held at the Hendred Estate, Oxfordshire.

Farm Carbon Toolkit was established to facilitate discussion and information sharing between farmers and other actors, ultimately leading to changes in on-farm practice. With many years of experience of working with farmers, landowners and the wider agricultural community, Farm Carbon Toolkit understands that network creation is of paramount importance. 

Together with the wider work of the Farm Carbon Toolkit, the new competition will help to increase levels of carbon literacy among farmers and land managers by bringing them together at a number of dedicated events and workshops to share what they are doing, discuss new innovations in machinery and techniques, as well as learn more about new research and link with related projects. 

Adam Twine, Co-Founder and Non-Executive Direct at Farm Carbon Toolkit, says 

“The new Carbon Farmer of the Year competition will help to create a network of respected alumni who are not only changing their practices to better manage emissions and carbon storage on farmland, but will help to inspire others through activity, practical demonstrations, and advocacy for changing management practices.”

By showcasing the good practices that are taking place on farms across the UK, the Carbon Farmer of the Year competition will encourage more farmers to appreciate what is possible for their own businesses, specifically around changing practices to reduce emissions, improve soil organic matter levels, water holding capacity, soil life and soil structure, and the many other positive consequences associated with these changes.  

Liz Bowles, Chief Executive Officer at Farm Carbon Toolkit says, 

“I am delighted to announce the new Carbon Farmer of the Year competition, which will reward those individuals and organisations in the farming sector who are pioneering practices and adopting new technologies to reduce the GHG emissions from agriculture. Our ambition with this competition is to showcase best practices and effective mitigation mechanisms that are realistic and practicable on every farm, and help everyone to increase their carbon literacy.”

For more information about the Carbon Farmer of the Year Competition, and for details on how to apply, visit www.carbonfarmeroftheyear.com

Notes for editors

About the Farm Carbon Toolkit

Farm Carbon Toolkit is an independent, farmer-led Community Interest Company, supporting farmers to measure, understand and act on their greenhouse gas emissions, while improving their business resilience for the future.

For over a decade, Farm Carbon Toolkit has delivered a range of practical projects, tools and services that have inspired real action on the ground. Organisations they work with include the Duchy of Cornwall, First Milk, Tesco, Yeo Valley and WWF.  Their Farm Carbon Calculator is a leading on-farm carbon audit tool, used by over seven thousand farmers in the UK and beyond. To find out more visit www.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk