The Papley Grove farm in Cambridgeshire, England has a rich past. Martin Lines, the third generation of his family to run the farm, sees regenerative agriculture as one of the keys to ensuring it has a viable future.
Lines, whose grandparents moved to the farm in 1936, is among a growing number of farmers in the UK and beyond who are adopting regenerative agricultural practices to help boost the resilience of their businesses and mitigate the effects of climate change. But they need support to introduce these methods, which can improve soil health, advance biodiversity and curb greenhouse gas emissions.
“We can’t do this alone,” Lines says. “To create a farming system that not only feeds the nation but also stands up to climate change, everyone needs to play their part – farmers, businesses, and policymakers alike. Without that collective effort, the future of our farms, and our food, is at serious risk.”
That’s where companies like ADM play an important role. ADM’s regenerative agriculture program, which expanded from North America to Europe last year, is seeking to spur the widespread adoption of regenerative agriculture practices, such as planting cover crops and reducing tillage to keep more carbon in the soil, and verifying the practices using the latest technology.
Lines, whose farm dates back to at least the 11th century, says joining ADM’s program is allowing him to expand the use of sustainable practices that he has been relying on for more than a decade. Financial incentives help reduce the risks associated with adopting these practices at scale, while advances in data and technology are helping to measure their impact, giving farmers crucial insights.
Moving to regenerative practices is rejuvenating our food system, our soil system and my farm system, Lines says.
Food and agriculture systems are transforming to feed a growing population and respond to the rising threat of climate change. Last year saw the second-wettest winter on record in England, impacting farmers all over the country and illustrating the importance of resilience. Healthy soils can better absorb heavy rainfall and lock up more carbon, and they’re also able to hold much more water during droughts.
“Today, the extremes are worse, whether it is the dry, hot summers or the excessive rainfall we’ve seen,” says James Daw, who oversees about 3,000 acres of farmland in England’s West Midlands, north of Birmingham. “At the same time, the costs are high and the financial risks therefore in planting some of these crops are significant.”
The Staffordshire farmer, who grows oats, wheat, barley, beans and oilseed rape, says he is encouraged by the increasing support he sees for regenerative agriculture among companies across the food, agriculture and water sectors. Those industry contributions are key to scaling up regenerative agriculture and maximizing its impact.
“We’re doing this for the next generation,” according to Daw, who runs Woodhouse Farm and Thorpe Estate. “If we don’t do this everywhere, not just on our own farm, these soils won’t be there to grow crops and provide food in the future.”
Few companies touch every part of the value chain like ADM, giving the company a critical role to play in uniting the key partners, connecting farmers across the world to major customers. While talking to farmers every day, ADM is also partnering with customers such as PepsiCo, Nestlé, Mars, Carlsberg and Bayer to scale up its regenerative agriculture. The company’s regenerative agriculture program earlier this year increased its 2025 goal to 5 million acres globally.
In June 2024, ADM announced a partnership with Bayer in Poland, working with oilseed rape farmers covering about 9,000 hectares. A preliminary assessment showed that emissions from the hectares relying on at least one regenerative agricultural practice were 15% lower than those on conventional farms. The assessment also suggests that emissions could drop by 40% for farmers comprehensively adopting multiple regenerative agriculture practices. As part of the next stage of the collaboration, the program will expand into a broader range of crops such as corn, wheat and barley, and geographically across Eastern Europe.
Financial support is vital, but so are data collection, third-party technical expertise and peer-to-peer networks. In the UK, Map of Agriculture, one of our partners, is assessing emissions and metrics such as nitrogen use efficiency, soil health and biodiversity to give farmers a deeper understanding of their carbon footprint and sustainability performance. ADM has also partnered with Ceres Rural to provide technical support to growers, alongside farmer workshops to exchange knowledge. Online data collection and benchmarking will allow farmers to evaluate what is working for their peers, and what isn’t, helping to speed the shift to regenerative agriculture.
The strong enrollment of UK farmers in the program in recent months is a positive sign for the global effort as countries look at accelerating these initiatives. In some cases,
farmers are resurrecting methods their grandparents used. The difference today is that modern technology and data can optimize their impact.
While Lines is embracing the past, he’s also preparing to hand the reins to his children, including his son who now oversees the farm day to day.
“When I walk around the farm I often think about my parents and my grandparents, as well as all the generations before them,” he says. “I also think about my children. I want to empower them to see their future within this farm and within this landscape.”
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