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Agriculture, resilient agri-food systems and the environment

Agriculture is vital for human survival globally. It is a relatively small but important industry in the UK.

Farmers' impact on landscape and environment

It not only provides us with food and related products. It has shaped our rural landscapes over thousands of years. The ways in which farmers use the land have profound implications for the:

  • environment
  • animal welfare
  • rural livelihoods
  • trading relationships across the world

It affects the natural ecosystem services we all rely on such as:

  • clean water
  • beautiful landscapes
  • carbon storage

In the UK, Brexit means farmers will have to reconsider many of their management plans. Climate change provides a backdrop which the industry has to keep in mind.

Farmers harvesting wheat from a field during late summer

Our research

CRE research informs policymakers and practitioners so they can plan for the future.

It helps support producers to make agriculture more economically and environmentally efficient. It also helps to make our food production systems more sustainable and resilient.

Projects

Developing SUstainable PERmanent Grassland systems and policies (SUPER-G) - Funding from EU Horizon 2020 (2019-2024) - CRE input: Prof Lynn Frewer (Work Package leader), Prof Mark Reed (Co-Investigator)

Resilient dairy: socio-technical innovation for dairy resilience and sustainability - Funding from BBSRC (2017-2021) - CRE input: Prof Mark Reed (Principal Investigator), Prof Lynn Frewer (Co-Investigator and Work Package co-leader)

Brexit: how might UK agriculture survive or thrive? - Funders: ESRC (April 2017-September 2018) - CRE input: Dr Carmen Hubbard PI, Prof David Harvey, Anne Liddon, Charles Scott, Dr Michael Wallace

Evaluation of ‘Going for Growth’, Friends of the Earth (January 2016 – March 2017) - Funding from Friends of the Earth - CRE input: Dr Ruth MacAreavey

Understanding ecosystem stocks and tipping points in UK blanket peatlands - Funding from NERC Valuing Nature Programme (2016-2018) - CRE input: Prof Mark Reed (Principal Investigator)

Soil Care for profitable and sustainable crop production in Europe - Funding from EU Horizon 2020 (2015-2020) - CRE input: Prof Mark Reed (Work Package leader)

STFC Food Security Network+ - Funding from STFC (2017-2019) - CRE input: Prof Mark Reed (Co-Investigator)

Yorkshire Integrated Catchment Solutions Programme - Funding from NERC (2017-2022) - CRE input: Prof Mark Reed (Co-Investigator and Impact Evaluation Group Chair)

Feed-a-gene - Adapting animal and the feeding techniques to improve efficiency and sustainability of livestock production systems - Funding from EU (2015-2020) CRE input: Guy Garrod, Dr Carmen Hubbard, Marion Raley

SusPigSys - Sustainability in pig production systems - Funding from ERA-NET (2017-2020) CRE input: Project Leader: Carmen Hubbard

The energy climate food security NEXUS: Developing a multi stakeholder deliberative governance model in Northern Ireland - Funding from ESRC (Sept 2016-Sept 2017) CRE input: Professor Sally Shortall (PI)

PROHEALTH – Sustainable pig and poultry production: WP7: Socioeconomic evaluation of controls of production diseases - Funding from European Union Seventh Framework (2013-2018) CRE input: Prof Lynn Frewer (PI)

Assessing Rural Landscapes in Chile - Funding from British Council – Institutional Links. (2015-2016) CRE input: Dr Menelaos Gkartzios (Principal Investigator), Guy Garrod (Co-Investigator), Dr Liz Oughton (Co-Investigator), Marian Raley (RA)