Farming Innovation: find out about funding
The Farming Innovation Programme is part of Defra’s investment in innovation, research and development.
Defra is partnering with UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to fund projects that benefit farmers, growers and foresters in England.
All funding will be awarded through competitions. This means applications for each competition will be judged, and only the successful ones will be funded.
The programme’s aims are to:
- help farmers, growers and foresters increase productivity, sustainability and resilience
- reduce the environmental impact of agriculture and horticulture
- apply agricultural research to provide real benefits for farmers, growers and foresters
- use science to develop solutions for the practical challenges in agriculture and horticulture
To get funding, you must work in collaboration with a team.
Once the competition is open, Innovate UK KTN can help you find the right people to work with (opens in new window) on your project.
Which competition to apply for
You should consider the type of work you want to do and the amount of funding available.
| You want to | Competition name | Project size | Length (up to) | Who can lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Explore an idea and develop a team | Research Starter | £28-56K | 1 year | UK Businesses |
| Check if an idea works in practice | Feasibility Studies | £200-500K | 2 years | UK Businesses |
| Develop a new product or service | Small R&D partnerships Large R&D partnerships | £1-3 million £3-5 million | 3 years 4 years | UK Businesses UK Businesses |
| Work on longer-term innovations | Farming Futures R&D | £3-6 million | 4 years | Research organisations or UK businesses |
Plan ahead – competition schedule
Competitions will be published on the Innovation Funding Service (opens in new window) as they open, with full eligibility and application information for each one.
You can find early information here to help you plan ahead.
| Competition name | Opens | Closes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Large R&D partnerships (round 1) | 30 March 2022 | 29 June 2022 | Details available |
| Research Starter (round 2) | 23 May 2022 | 6 July 2022 | Details available |
| Farming Futures (theme 2: sustainable proteins) | Summer 2022 | TBC | Upcoming |
| Feasibility Studies (round 2) | Autumn 2022 | TBC | Upcoming |
| Small R&D partnerships (round 2) | Autumn 2022 | TBC | Upcoming |
More about the Farming Innovation Programme
Funding will be awarded through a range of competitions from 2021 for a number of years.
This is part of Defra’s Future Farming and Countryside Programme (opens in new window).
All the competitions in the programme have been developed so that insights from science and business can be applied to challenges in agriculture and horticulture.
We want to encourage this collaboration to develop solutions and improvements that can meet real environmental and industry challenges.
Previous competitions
You can check dates for previous competition rounds.
| Competition name | Opened | Closed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farming Futures (theme 1: climate smart farming) | 30 March 22 | 18 May 22 | Closed |
| Research Starter (round 1) | 20 Oct 21 | 24 Nov 21 | Closed |
| Feasibility (round 1) | 20 Oct 21 | 1 Dec 21 | Closed |
| Small R&D partnerships (round 1) | 20 Oct 21 | 1 Dec 21 | Closed |
Further information
The Farming Innovation Programme will help the UK achieve its net zero ambitions and drive a green recovery.
Find out more about the changes to agricultural policy in England in Defra’s ‘Agricultural Transition Plan’ (opens in new window).
A summary of the transition plan, for farmers and land managers, is given in ‘Farming is Changing’ (opens in new window).