Abstract
AbstractSustainable intensification is a process by which agricultural productivity is enhanced whilst also creating environmental and social benefits. We aimed to identify practices likely to deliver sustainable intensification, currently available for UK farms but not yet widely adopted. We compiled a list of 18 farm management practices with the greatest potential to deliver sustainable intensification in the UK, following a well‐developed stepwise methodology for identifying priority solutions, using a group decision‐making technique with key agricultural experts. The list of priority management practices can provide the focal point of efforts to achieve sustainable intensification of agriculture, as the UK develops post‐Brexit agricultural policy, and pursues the second Sustainable Development Goal, which aims to end hunger and promote sustainable agriculture. The practices largely reflect a technological, production‐focused view of sustainable intensification, including for example, precision farming and animal health diagnostics, with less emphasis on the social and environmental aspects of sustainability. However, they do reflect an integrated approach to farming, covering many different aspects, from business organization and planning, to soil and crop management, to landscape and nature conservation. For a subset of 10 of the priority practices, we gathered data on the level of existing uptake in English and Welsh farms through a stratified survey in seven focal regions. We find substantial existing uptake of most of the priority practices, indicating that UK farming is an innovative sector. The data identify two specific practices for which uptake is relatively low, but which some UK farmers find appealing and would consider adopting. These practices are: prediction of pest and disease outbreaks, especially for livestock farms; staff training on environmental issues, especially on arable farms.
Highlights
Sustainable Intensification (SI) is generally considered a process by which agricultural productivity is enhanced without negatively impacting the environment, preferably creating social and environmental benefits (Gunton, Firbank, Inman, & Winter, 2016; Struik & Kuyper, 2017; Weltin et al, 2018)
We describe three stages as follows: Stage 1: An initial long list of specific practices was drawn up collectively by 45 members of the Sustainable Intensification Research Platform (Defra SIP: www.siplatform.org.uk/)
The practices differ in their applicability to different farm types, so we summarise the data separately for Classification for practices uptake data Number of farms
Summary
Sustainable Intensification (SI) is generally considered a process by which agricultural productivity is enhanced without negatively impacting the environment, preferably creating social and environmental benefits (Gunton, Firbank, Inman, & Winter, 2016; Struik & Kuyper, 2017; Weltin et al, 2018). Mahon, Crute, Simmons, and Islam (2017) have assessed the prominence of different SI discourses over time Both reviews highlight the prominence of a productivist lens, in other words, SI aims to increase agricultural production in order to feed a rapidly growing global population. This productivist lens, often described in combination with a desire to increase food security, is noticeable in scientific reports and journal articles, as well as in policy documents released in the last decade (Elliott & Firbank, 2013; Foresight 2011; Franks, 2014; Garnett et al, 2013; Lal, 2016; The Royal Society 2009; Tilman, Balzer, Hill, & Befort, 2011). Major policy initiatives, such as Defra’s Sustainable Intensification Research Platform (www.siplatform.org.uk), and a wider Sustainable Intensification Research Network (https://sirn. org.uk) funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, have recently explored the potential for SI in the UK and elsewhere
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