20 June

Full figures from last week’s government spending review show that the farming budget in England will be cut by £100m a year. Despite the decrease, the budget has been cautiously welcomed by nature and farming groups, as there were fears the Treasury had wanted to reduce the funding further. Going forward, the government has promised an average of £2.3bn a year up to 2028-29 for the farming budget.

A farmer-led lobby called the European Alliance for Regenerative Agriculture (EARA) has just launched its first major report and is stepping up its advocacy efforts in Brussels. The lobby is pushing for the inclusion of regenerative agricultural practices aimed at restoring soil health and boosting ecosystems in EU agri-policy.

Waitrose has pledged £500,000 to support its farmer suppliers with low-carbon farming initiatives, including fertiliser recycling and wildflower planting. The Net Zero Farm Fund will back nine projects designed to cut agricultural emissions while boosting soil health and resilience on farms.

Researchers from York University have found that out of the 32 UK rivers  they analysed, only one did not contain ‘forever chemicals’. A likely cause for the presence of these chemicals in rivers is their use in pesticides, which run off from farms and contaminate local water sources.

A recent study has found that staple crops production is projected to fall by as much as 120 calories per person per day for every 1°C of temperature increase caused by climate change. This would indicate that in a high-warming scenario, caloric productivity losses could amount to 25% of current crop production.

The Royal Highland Show, Scotland’s biggest annual agricultural show, is taking place this week. The show acts as a showcase for the latest developments in rural and agricultural products and produce, including exhibitions centred on soil health and resilience.

‘Our Living Soils', a children's illustrated book by Emma Rosen and Rhiannon Thomas commissioned by Natural England to teach young children about soil has been published. The book highlights just how much is going on in our soil and focuses on the creatures that make it their home.