NFU Deputy President Paul Tompkins welcomed the spur, which he said came at a time when a swifter roll-out of tools to boost resilience had “never been more important”, due to the wars in Ukraine and Iran.
The cache of projects spans robotics, AI, crop protection and forestry and will be supported by £8m of Farming Innovation Programme money, delivered through the Farming Innovation Investor Partnerships mechanism, and £40m of private investment from an Innovate UK ‘partner pool’.
Responding to the news, Paul added: “British farmers have always embraced new technologies, so the NFU welcomes commitment from government on their plans to help speed up new agri-tech ideas through the pipeline into real world use on our farms.
“We will continue to work with government to help farming in Britain thrive and will be watching closely as the details of these projects develop.”
Which projects will be eligible?
Speaking at the Agricultural Engineers Association Conference, Dame Angela said the focus would be on practical, nature-based solutions and technologies that cut labour, energy and fertiliser use.
Two projects were made public in April.
FA Bio is developing a biopesticide that uses beneficial fungi to protect wheat and oilseed rape from pests like aphids and cabbage stem flea beetle. The approach is seen as an alternative to repeated chemical interventions, and the team behind it says an application at planting could provide season-long protection.
“The NFU welcomes commitment from government on their plans to help speed up new agri-tech ideas through the pipeline into real world use on our farms.”
NFU Deputy President Paul Tompkins
Meanwhile, the Rhizopellet, developed by Rhizocore Technologies Ltd, contains locally-sourced fungi tailored to each tree planting site. It helps young trees establish stronger roots and to thrive in the long term.
The minister also confirmed a further £5m government ‘springboard’ funding round for 2026 to 2027, aimed at driving more private investment into agri-tech.
Stay up to date with Farming Innovation Programme competitions on our essential information page.
