Environment Baselining Pilot

A pioneering pilot aiming to assess the environmental impact of farms across Great Britain.

Since the end of 2024 we, with support from Quality Meat Scotland and Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC), have been delivering an Environment Baselining Pilot across the beef and lamb, cereals and oilseeds, dairy and pork sectors in England, Scotland and Wales.

Working with 178 farms, the five-year pilot aims to build a robust baseline of environmental data to improve how we understand, account for and manage greenhouse emissions and carbon on farm.

Insights from the initial 170 pilot farms are encouraging and in some cases challenge assumptions, particularly around where carbon is stored in agricultural systems.

What we're seeing so far:

• Around 95% of estimated carbon stocks are found in the soil, with the remainder in woody features*
• 30% or more of soil carbon stock sits below 30cm deep, which isn’t typically captured in standard carbon accounting methods. 
• Soil organic carbon stocks vary hugely across land use and soil type

Data findings continue to be analysed and focus will then shift to understanding what drives differences between farms.

*The pilot is measuring and estimating the carbon stocks on farms. It did not set out to measure carbon stocks in forests, although some of the farms do have areas of woodland that have been covered by the pilot’s measurements. 

Using a combination of direct measurement and modelling, the pilot will:

• Calculate carbon stocks above and below ground; measuring woody biomass to estimate carbon stocks in trees, hedges and roots, including woodland and non-farmed areas
• Estimate  greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and carbon removals for each farm
• Create a run-off risk map for each farm

These will give a baseline of each farm’s environmental credentials and a starting point to track change over time.

We aim to collect carbon stock data again after five years to show and recognise improvements.

If you have any questions email environment@ahdb.org.uk

You can find out more about the work we do for levy payers by visiting our environment page.