Nature-friendly Farming

This approach involves imitating the natural processes that exist in wider ecosystems, within agricultural landscapes. Introducing a wide variety of crop species and rotating between them; using cover crops to avoid bare soil; and including structural diversity with shrubs, trees and hedgerows all support food production whilst allowing for biodiversity enhancement through habitat creation and restoration, ultimately contributing to the creation of a range of ecosystem services.

The list of sustainable farming practices is ever-increasing, but should only be applied in a bespoke manner and one which suits the needs of a specific area. Examples include no-till agriculture and precision planting, reducing or entirely stopping use of chemicals and/or becoming organic certified, applying integrated pest management amongst others can all help to reduce the impact of more intensive farming techniques.

A key part of nature-friendly farming is the creation of space for nature. By designating areas on-farm for natural habitats like wetlands, grassland and woodlands, food sources and vital refuges are created for wildlife. Along field margins, buffer zones and hedgerows can be created to act as wildlife corridors which enhance the connectivity between habitats across the landscape.

Planning agricultural landscapes to include biodiversity-friendly elements like hedgerows, field margins, and wetlands can provide habitats for pollinators and other beneficial organisms.

So-called because of its ability to protect existing ecosystem health, this technique encourages farms to disturb the soil as little as possible. This helps to retain root structure and reduce erosion, simultaneously supporting greater carbon storage and creating healthier soils which in turn generate greater yields and quality of outputs.

Real Wild Estates work with partners to provide advice on rotational grazing, how to ensure and improve animal welfare. We strongly advise the removal of worming chemicals and that managers minimise use of antibiotics and hormones to make livestock farming more sustainable while reducing its ecological footprint.

When produced for agricultural land, our strategies look to support local food production and distribution systems as these help to support local economies and to reduce the environmental impact from transportation. For example, we recommend grazing with rare-breed livestock which can also be used to produce high quality meat for distribution to local restaurants.

Key to the success of implementing nature-friendly farming techniques is raising awareness amongst the farming sector, with policymakers, and with consumers about the role that farming plays beyond food production in biodiversity conservation, sustainable land management and the production of vital ecosystem services.

Real Wild Estates take a hard line when it comes to nature restoration, and call for Government to step up its approach to supporting custodians of 70% of British land in the UK. This includes fairer policy, better incentives and subsidies, and proportional and realistic regulations which encourage farmers to adopt nature-friendly practices.