New Defra funding for farmers and growers available
Farmers and growers across England currently have a new opportunity to secure funding for practical, farmer-led innovation, with up to £4.5 million available for on-farm trials and farm experiment projects.
This funding forms part of the Farming Innovation Programme and is being delivered in partnership with Innovate UK.
The focus is firmly on real-world testing, helping farmers and growers prove whether new ideas genuinely work in practice and can be adopted more widely across the sector.
However, time is running out as the competition closes at 11:00am on 4 February 2026.
What is the Farming Innovation Programme?
The Farming Innovation Programme is a Government-backed initiative designed to support research, development and adoption of new ideas in agriculture.
It is made up of three separate funds:
- Industry led R&D Partnerships Fund
- Farming Futures R&D Fund
- ADOPT Fund
This particular competition sits within the ADOPT Fund, which is specifically aimed at farmer-led, on-farm innovation.
The ADOPT Fund is designed to go beyond theory and research papers. Its objectives include:
- Supporting collaborative, farmer-led on-farm trials that generate, test and demonstrate practical solutions to farming challenges
- Creating new routes for peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchange between farmers, growers and foresters
- Driving profitability, productivity and sustainability by increasing the adoption of new technologies, processes and practices across the sector
- Enhancing skills and capabilities around innovation and research and development
- Raising awareness of how innovation can benefit farms and encouraging the sharing of results from both successful and unsuccessful projects
Importantly, projects must show how the learning and outcomes will benefit other English farmers, growers or foresters, not just those directly involved.
Projects must have the potential to significantly improve at least one of the following areas:
- Productivity
- Resilience
- Sustainability and progression towards net zero farming
The emphasis is on practical, testable ideas that address major on-farm or immediate post-farmgate challenges or opportunities.
How much funding is available?
Projects must fall within a defined cost range, with the total cost sitting between £50,000 and £100,000
As this is a competitive process with a capped funding pot, not all applications can be funded. Even high-scoring projects may miss out if demand exceeds available funding.
Depending on your experience and support needs, ADOPT offers two routes into funding:
- A Support Grant, which provides funding to access professional assistance from an industry expert to help develop an application for the Full ADOPT Grant. This is particularly useful for applicants who are less familiar with Innovate UK systems. You do not need to apply for a Support Grant in order to apply for the Full ADOPT Grant.
- A Full ADOPT Grant, which supports collaborative, farmer-led on-farm trials or experiments.
Things to consider before applying
Funding decisions are made competitively and take into account several factors, including:
- How well the project meets the competition objectives
- The quality and credibility of the proposal
- Prior conduct, such as any outstanding payments owed to Innovate UK or UK Research and Innovation
In some cases, funding may be refused or awarded subject to additional scrutiny.
Funding allocations may also be adjusted in response to changes in policy or wider Government funding decisions.
How Moore Thompson can support your application
Preparing a strong grant application takes time, financial clarity and a clear understanding of eligibility and compliance requirements.
If you are considering an on-farm trial or experimental project and want to understand whether this ADOPT funding could work for you, early advice can make a meaningful difference.
To discuss this opportunity and how Moore Thompson’s grant funding services can help, please get in touch with the team today.