WP2: Participatory clusters – exploring mitigation measures on farms in four regions

Research Question: Do existing agroecological innovations provide viable and effective strategies for achieving net zero outcomes on grassland farms?

This research focuses on evaluating whether existing agroecological innovations provide viable and effective strategies for achieving net zero outcomes on grassland farms. The project begins by setting up net zero farm clusters through workshops with project partners and practitioners. These workshops will confirm participants in six Land Use Clusters for Agroecology (LUCAs) across the UK and identify the agroecological practices to be focused on. 

Data collection on 50 System cluster farms across the six LUCAs will utilize two on-farm self-assessment tools: the Global Farm Metric research tool (GFM RT) and the PAS2050 compliant Agrecalc carbon calculator. Additional research assessments will include soil samples, field plant diversity, and forage quality data. This comprehensive data collection will enable comparisons between expert assessments and self-assessment approaches, ensuring a holistic evaluation of sustainability and carbon footprinting.

The collected data will be analyzed to assess the impacts of different systems and practices on net zero outcomes. This analysis will consider farm scores across diverse sustainability indicators within the GFM RT and explore correlations between datasets to uncover mechanisms behind observed trade-offs and complementarities. The findings will be shared and discussed in practice cluster workshops to understand practical constraints and solutions.