Crops
Plants and crops underpin the health, wellbeing and food security of our growing population. We depend on them through direct consumption or indirectly via livestock consumption.

Plants and crops play a key role through ecosystem services that improve our quality of life. The economic, social and environmental value of crops, forests and horticulture is estimated to around £9bn per year.
The UK is home of some of the highest crop yields in the world, where 1 ha of land in the UK is equivalent to 2 ha elsewhere in the world. That’s down to the UK’s favourable climate, knowledgeable farmers and agronomists, its world leading universities and R&D organisations, and companies. New and old challenges make innovation in the sector an increasingly important matter. The agriculture land is under pressure due to urbanisation for a growing population, the ban of pesticides by the EU in recent years has been putting entire crops at risk of failure, a pressure to decrease the use of chemical fertilisers that are the leading cause of pollution in the production of plants and crops, unpredictable and extreme weather events due to climate change, combined with a decrease of seasonal workers in agriculture due to Brexit and more recently COVID-19. This means increasing land productivity in a sustainable manner is key for the future of agriculture in the UK.
We’ve got expertise across the plant and crop industry and research. The plants and crops team has key connections with many stakeholders within industry, academia, government and others to enable consortia building and provide clear direction to those looking to innovate in this area of AgriFood. Our experience includes but isn’t limited to crop breeding, integrated pest management, precision and smart agriculture, vertical farming, biostimulants, biopesticides, helping to improve crop productivity and sustainability.
Related Opportunities
Innovate UK BridgeAI: AI Solutions to improve productivity in key sectors
Opens: 27/09/2023 Closes: 08/11/2023
Apply for a share of up to £32m for innovation projects that can improve productivity in key sectors through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
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Farming Innovation Programme - feasibility round 3
Opens: 18/09/2023 Closes: 15/11/2023
UK businesses can apply for a share of up to £4.5m for feasibility projects to benefit farmers, growers or foresters in England.
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Farming Innovation Programme Small R&D Partnership Projects Round 3
Opens: 14/08/2023 Closes: 25/10/2023
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £9.8 million for Small R&D Partnership Projects in farming innovation.
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SBRI: Innovative farming practices to reduce carbon emissions and increase yield
Opens: 28/08/2023 Closes: 09/10/2023
Cardiff and Monmouthshire Councils are looking for ways to reduce carbon emissions and increase yield on farms in South Wales.
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SBRI: Maximising renewable energy generation and local utilisation from farm (and growing) assets whilst maintaining agricultural yields
Opens: 29/08/2023 Closes: 09/10/2023
Cardiff and Monmouthshire Councils are looking for ways to incorporate green energy into the food supply chain.
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Canada-UK: Plant-based Protein Innovation
Opens: 18/09/2023 Closes: 01/11/2023
UK registered organisations, in collaboration with Canadian organisations, can apply for a share of up to £6.5m for plant-based protein projects.