England Opens £5 Million Farm Trial Fund for Projects Costing Up to £200,000

Farmers, growers and forestry businesses in England can apply for a share of up to £5 million to test new ideas in working farm conditions after the latest ADOPT grant round opened on October 8, 2026.

The programme, funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and delivered with Innovate UK, is aimed at practical experiments rather than laboratory research alone. Successful projects need to show other producers how a new method or technology could improve productivity, resilience or environmental performance.

How much funding is available

The competition offers up to £5 million in total, subject to receiving enough high-quality applications. Eligible projects must have total costs from £50,000 to £200,000 and run for between six and 24 months. This cost band describes the overall eligible project budget, not a guaranteed grant payment to every applicant.

Applications close at 11 a.m. UK time on December 2, 2026. Funded projects must start by April 1, 2027 and finish by March 31, 2029. Innovate UK will assess applications competitively, and meeting the technical criteria does not guarantee an award.

Who can lead a project

An established commercial farming, growing or forestry business in England must lead. The lead needs to collaborate with at least one other farming, growing or forestry business in the UK. Other partners, such as universities, technology businesses and research organisations, may also take part.

The rules say no single organisation can claim more than 70% of total project costs. This requirement is designed to make the experiments collaborative and to help the results spread beyond one farm.

Academic institutions cannot lead on their own, and charities or non-commercial organisations cannot serve as lead applicants. A proposed project must also show how its findings can be useful to other English producers.

Why on-farm testing matters

A new sensor, growing technique or piece of equipment may work in a demonstration but produce a different result when faced with changing soils, farm schedules, weather and commercial cost pressures. Field trials can reveal those weaknesses before farmers invest heavily.

The ADOPT structure focuses on that final practical test: whether an innovation can be adopted in real operations and whether the benefits are repeatable. Projects can target higher yields or efficiency, stronger resilience to adverse conditions, lower emissions and other sustainability outcomes.

The new round is not evidence that any particular technology already works. Applicants still have to present a credible problem, testing method and pathway for sharing the results.

What applicants should do next

Potential applicants should first confirm they meet the farming-business and partnership requirements. They then need a project budget inside the stated range, a realistic six- to 24-month testing plan and a clear explanation of why other producers would benefit.

The competition also points to separate facilitator support and a support hub for applicants who need help preparing a collaborative proposal. Because the closing time is fixed, late applications should not be assumed to receive consideration.

Primary source and image rights

Primary source: Innovate UK Innovation Funding Service, Full ADOPT Grant Round 10, competition opens October 8, 2026, https://apply-for-innovation-funding.service.gov.uk/competition/2596/overview/31f0a768-2a9a-405d-b0a4-83a8c5b395c0

Editorial photograph: S.C Calde, farm field in the South Downs, https://unsplash.com/photos/YzpNSzglYHM . Reused under the Unsplash License. Contextual photograph, not a named grant recipient.