The Innovation Platform spoke with Ellie Vinnicombe, Head of Crop Protection and Agronomy at the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC), about their commitment to sustainable farming practices, focusing on crop protection strategies, integrated farming techniques, and advocating for responsible plant protection product (PPP) use to bolster agricultural resilience and food security
With the growing global population and increasing demands for food, crop protection and agronomy contribute to the development of resilient farming systems that can withstand climate change and other challenges. Crop protection safeguards crop from pests and diseases, while agronomy focuses on soil management and improving crop yields. Together, they enhance productivity, promote environmental stewardship, and develop resilient farming systems to meet the growing global food demands.
Representing and supporting a vast network across the agricultural sector, the Agricultural Industries Confederation is dedicated to promoting sustainable farming practices and ensuring that farmers have access to the essential tools and knowledge they need to thrive in a competitive market.
The Innovation Platform spoke with AIC about its efforts in enhancing crop protection strategies and their proactive approach to fostering sustainable practices, promoting integrated farming techniques, and emphasising responsible pesticide use.
Can you provide an overview of AIC’s role in crop protection and the specific ways you support farmers within the sector?
The Crop Protection and Agronomy Sector within AIC represents qualified agronomists specialising in crop health, crop production and soil management. Agronomists employed by distributor businesses work closely with farmers and growers every day, providing practical, expert advice to help them produce productive and sustainable crops.
AIC Members also invest significantly in near-market research and development, including trials on dedicated sites and commercial farms. This generates practical evidence to support informed agronomic decisions and helps farmers adopt effective and sustainable approaches.
AIC supports its Members through technical expertise, representation and the development of best practice in the responsible use of crop protection products. Through engagement with Government, regulators and other stakeholders, AIC ensures that the practical needs of farmers and agronomists are reflected in policy and regulatory discussions.
Furthermore, the sector promotes the high standards upheld by AIC Members and helps ensure that UK farmers have access to the products, expertise and advice they need to remain productive, sustainable and competitive.
What are the most pressing challenges faced by farmers in the UK concerning crop protection, and how are these impacting their operations?
UK farmers are facing a significantly reduced crop protection toolbox, with fewer active substances and products available to manage pests, diseases and weeds. This limits the options available to farmers and their agronomists, increasing the risk of impacts on yield, crop quality and farm profitability.
Climate change is adding further pressure, with changing weather patterns and more extreme conditions altering pest and disease pressures and making their timing and severity harder to predict. Farmers therefore need access to a broad range of effective crop protection tools, alongside non-chemical approaches, to maintain productive, resilient and sustainable farming systems.
The EU Reset and potential UK-EU regulatory re-alignment will also be important. Given the divergence that has developed between GB and EU, any move towards alignment must be carefully managed. A managed transition to alignment is essential to give farmers and businesses certainty, avoid unnecessary disruption to crop protection programmes, and ensure alternative solutions are available before existing tools are lost.
Could you elaborate on the benefits of integrated farming and how this approach enhances overall agricultural sustainability?
Integrated Farming (IF) is a whole-farm management approach that aims to balance productive agriculture with environmental protection, economic viability and high standards of animal welfare. It promotes the efficient use of inputs, reduces environmental impacts and conserves biodiversity, supporting the long-term sustainability of farming businesses.
Unlike a prescriptive farming system, IF is based on a set of decision-making principles that can be adapted to the specific conditions of each farm. This flexibility means there is no single definition of IF. Instead, it provides a framework that encourages farmers to manage their businesses holistically, taking into account local environmental and economic conditions.
By improving resource efficiency and working with natural ecological processes, IF enhances the sustainability of UK agriculture. It helps farms remain productive and resilient while reducing environmental impacts, making it an important approach to achieving sustainable food production in the face of climate and economic challenges.
Can you provide specific examples of best practices in PPP storage, distribution, and usage that AIC advocates for, and explain how these practices contribute to sustainable agriculture?
AIC promotes best practice throughout the PPP supply chain to ensure products are stored, handled and used safely, responsibly and in compliance with legal requirements. This includes secure and well-maintained PPP stores, appropriate segregation of products, effective stock management, staff training, emergency planning, and measures to prevent environmental contamination.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides detailed guidance on PPP storage for farmers and other professionals.
The Voluntary Initiative (VI), an industry-led programme that promotes the responsible use of PPPs through an integrated pest management (IPM) approach, also provides a Best Practice Guide for pesticide storage. This guidance includes a practical checklist to help assess PPP stores and storage practices, supporting compliance, safe handling and effective stewardship.
Collectively, these measures help protect people, wildlife and water resources, minimise unnecessary PPP use, and contribute to productive and sustainable agricultural systems.
What is integrated pest management, and how does it support effective crop protection strategies?
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a sustainable, evidence-based approach to crop protection that combines a range of cultural, biological, physical and chemical control measures to manage pests, weeds and diseases effectively while minimising risks to people and the environment.
AIC and its Members supports IPM as a key component of responsible crop production. It encourages growers to prevent pest problems where possible, monitor crops regularly, use action thresholds to inform treatment decisions, and only apply PPPs when they are necessary and appropriate.
By promoting targeted and responsible PPP use alongside other control methods, IPM helps maintain effective crop protection while reducing the potential for resistance. It also supports biodiversity and contributes to the long-term sustainability of agricultural production. Through a balanced and preventative approach, IPM helps farmers maintain productive and resilient cropping systems while minimising environmental impacts.
What role do emerging technologies, such as precision agriculture and data analytics, play in improving crop protection efforts in the UK? Which advancements do you find most promising for the future?
Emerging technologies are becoming increasingly important as the range of available crop protection products continues to shrink, helping growers adopt more targeted and efficient farming practices. Precision agriculture tools, including Global Positioning System (GPS)-guided application equipment, remote sensing, drones and field mapping, have the potential to ensure crop protection products are applied only where and when they are needed, improving efficacy while reducing unnecessary use. However, the adoption of some digital and precision application technologies in the UK is currently constrained by regulatory limitations, which can restrict their wider deployment.
Alongside these technologies, data analytics, weather forecasting, pest and disease modelling, and digital decision-support tools are enabling growers to identify risks earlier and make more informed crop management decisions. These technologies can help improve the timing and targeting of interventions, supporting both productivity and environmental stewardship.
From an AIC perspective, some of the most promising developments include advances in precision application technology, improved predictive modelling, and the integration of farm data to support integrated pest management (IPM). Together, these innovations have the potential to improve productivity, strengthen environmental stewardship and enhance the resilience of UK agriculture, while supporting the responsible and sustainable use of crop protection products.
Can you share any upcoming initiatives or projects in this area?
AIC works with government, regulators and industry partners to encourage and support the uptake of precision agriculture technologies. The industry, including AIC Members, invests in research into new application technologies, digital decision-support tools and biological crop protection products.
Looking ahead, continued collaboration between industry, government and regulators will be essential to support innovation and the adoption of new technologies. A regulatory framework that enables innovation while maintaining high standards of safety and environmental protection will be key to ensuring UK agriculture remains productive, resilient and sustainable.
From an AIC perspective, advances in precision application technology, improved digital decision support tools and the development of biological crop protection products offer significant opportunities to support more targeted and efficient crop management in the future.
