ABP announces £1.5 million investment in beef & lamb sustainability programme

ABP has today announced an investment of £1.5 million in a unique sustainability programme which will support 350 of its farmer suppliers, and share wider learnings across the UK beef and sheep sectors.

The new programme, called PRISM 2030, will provide farmers with a support framework initially over 2-3 years. The aim of the programme is to help participants to improve their carbon footprint and sustainability across the entirety of the farm. The detailed programme will include assessment of carbon footprint, soil health, water use and support biodiversity creation and resource efficiency.

Support from Harper Adams University and The Andersons Centre will ensure that farmers have direct and ongoing access to, and feedback from, the very latest environmental innovations and methodologies. A sustainability grant will also be available, alongside peer-to-peer learning and expert advice throughout.

Commenting, Dean Holroyd, Group Technical and Sustainability Director for ABP, said; “British red meat production is amongst the most sustainable in the world, but we can and must do more because as an industry, we are well placed to be part of the climate solution.”

“So we want to build on this position of strength, and while

PRISM will mean direct support for those in our supply base who qualify for the programme, all of the outcomes will be made available to the wider industry.

“In this way, it’s our hope that this initiative will play a part in helping beef and sheep farmers across the country become the global leaders in sustainable meat production – with lower emissions, lower costs and improved productivity.”

Improving animal health and welfare will also be key to the process, as this can be linked to up to a 10% reduction in emissions, according to the Acting on Methane report launched in April 2022 by Ruminant Health & Welfare.

Chair of Ruminant Health & Welfare and former president of NFUS, Nigel Miller, commented on the new programme: “Having a net zero goal means we must all contribute carbon savings and be prepared to change, and this ABP initiative, working with farming partners, has the potential to identify the value of effective health management and be a signpost for the whole industry.

“Management of livestock health is a key component of all viable low carbon production systems,” continued Nigel Miller, who is a beef and sheep farmer based in Galashiels. “Focusing herd or flock health programmes on diseases that impact growth rates and/or food conversion efficiency can directly reduce methane emissions; countering conditions that cause involuntary culling, including reproductive failure and lameness, can eliminate a significant carbon cost from breeding systems.”

The collaboration with Andersons is led by partner and Senior Research Consultant

Michael Haverty, who, with his team, will focus on carbon assessments as well as other sustainability benchmarking. Professor Jude Capper leads the input from Harper Adams, and will be indicating what areas each producer could be focusing on over the duration of the project to achieve most gains.