On 14 April, IEEP UK hosted a webinar – ‘Growing private investment in sustainable farming’ – which focused on the role that different models of private investment can play in supporting farmers to adopt and maintain sustainable farming practices.

The webinar was chaired by IEEP UK Honorary Fellow David Baldock, who in his opening remarks highlighted the important role that farming can play in nature restoration, water management, and soil restoration. Holly Tomlinson, Senior Policy Analyst for Farming and Land Use at IEEP UK then launched IEEP UK’s latest report – Leveraging private investment in sustainable agriculture in the UK – giving an overview of the different forms of private investment available to farmers. Holly then went on to look at some key policies to grow investment via the food supply chain before summarising the reports key recommendations, including that the UK government reviews the uptake and success of voluntary environmental standards and strengthens the nature value of Biodiversity Net Gain.

Isabella Wedl, Senior Associate, Nature & Food at IEEP highlighted the fragmentation in the current private finance landscape, the different motivations of potential actors in this space and the related challenges, before discussing the numerous benefits of coordination and alignment. Presenting some of the key findings of IEEP’s Financing the transition to sustainable agriculture: the case for improved coordination and alignment report, Isabella also considered the different strategies for coordinating public and private finance.

Martin Lines, CEO of the Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN), highlighted the challenges of rewarding farmers who are already operating in an environmentally conscious way to ensure they receive investment to continue their sustainable activities.  Martin underscored the need for the UK to work closely with Europe to ensure wider adoption of sustainable practices and food production, and to prevent cheaper, less sustainable food products entering the UK and EU markets. Martin also discussed the importance of distinguishing between which ‘assets’ are to be funded publicly and which are available to private markets. Concerns were also raised around potential transparency issues related to private investment and the possible associated reputational risks from poor management.

Jayne Wilkinson, Nature-based Solutions Project Manager at National Parks Partnerships (NPP) provided an overview of how NPP works with farmers to develop projects that are suitable for investment and ensure the harnessing of opportunities from emerging nature markets. Jane focused on a current project between NPP and the Lake District National Park Authority to improve water quality and resilience in Lake Windemere, highlighting the lack of a clear route to market to raise investment for water management. Longer project lengths were noted as a positive when seeking funding given the increased security offered for landowners and nature restoration, though it was noted that it can be challenging to align this with private sector planning cycles to secure long-term investment.

During the panel discussion, the speakers touched upon the fact that private sector interest is often driven by supply chain resilience and companies are increasingly investing in better farming practices (e.g., soil, water, pest management) to secure more stable and resilient supply chains. Concerns were raised around the barriers faced by smaller farmers and the support needed to help them to adopt new approaches and participate in emerging opportunities. Aggregation models were highlighted as a potential solution to help spread risk and make projects more viable for both farmers and corporate partners.

You can watch the full recording of the webinar below, or by following this link.