The Prince of Wales has called for small family farmers in the UK and across the world to come together in a cooperative movement using sustainable farming methods, and for their plight to be at the centre of environmental action.

Small farmers, in the UK and EU, are facing their biggest upheavals in more than a generation, with the loss of farm subsidies and new post-Brexit trade deals in the UK, and sweeping reforms to the EU’s common agricultural policy to be announced this week in Brussels.

Plant breeding has a pivotal contribution to make for sustainable agriculture across Europe in the coming years as pressure ramps up to reduce chemical inputs, a major new report has claimed.

The 327-page report, released in Brussels by independent scientific consultancy HFFA Research, concludes that innovation in European plant breeding has also contributed significantly to wider socio-economic and environmental goals such as improved farm incomes, food price stability, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and conservation of key natural resources such as land, water and biodiversity.

Researchers in the UK have applied to the government for a licence to carry out field trials of gene edited (GE) wheat. The plan is for a five-year project ending in 2026, with plants being sown in September or October each year and harvested the following September.

This application follows previous GM wheat and camelina trials carried out by Rothamsted Research across two sites in Hertfordshire and Suffolk over the last 10 years.

The new project involves wheat in which the concentration of an amino acid called asparagine has been reduced in the grain using CRISPR, a GE technique

British scientists have engineered beans that could use up to 40% less water and are able to grow better in droughty conditions.

The team of researchers working at the University of Sheffield’s Institute for Sustainable Food said it was a “huge step forward” in the search for climate-resilient crops.

The Pod Yield Project examined the differences between the common bean and the tepary bean, a variety which has been naturally grown in Mesoamerica and Mexico for thousands of years.

New genomic techniques (NGTs) can contribute to sustainable food systems with crops more resistant to diseases and climate change, a long-awaited EU study concludes. The European Commission said the techniques - which alter the genome of plants and animals - also had the potential to make farming more climate-friendly.

At the same time, the study found that the current bloc's GMO legislation, adopted in 2001, 'is not fit for purpose for these innovative technologies'. The Commission will now start a consultation process to discuss the design of a new legal framework for the biotechnologies.

British plant breeders have welcomed the findings of the study, with crop science organisation NIAB calling it 'great news' for farmers and growers.

The European Commission launched a review of EU rules on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on Thursday, opening the door to a possible loosening of restrictions for plants resulting from gene-editing technology.

Prompted by a 2018 ruling from the European Union's top court that techniques to alter the genome of an organism should be governed by existing EU rules, the Commission concluded that its 2001 legislation was "not fit for purpose".

A 117-page Commission study found that new genomic techniques (NGTs) had the potential to contribute to sustainable food, while acknowledging there were concerns about safety, the environmental impact and the issue of labelling.

Sheep farmers have welcomed a new report that says grasslands have a significant role to play in achieving the UK's net zero target. Natural England's study looked at how UK landscapes can contribute to carbon management, while also offering landscape diversity and opportunities for nature.

The newly-released report identified peatlands and native woodlands as habitats with the greatest capacity to store carbon. But it also recognised that many other habitats, including grasslands, can play a major role towards the UK reaching its net zero target by 2050.

A novel form of protein feed made from waste carbon dioxide could provide livestock farmers with an alternative to existing sources like fishmeal and soya that are coming under environmental pressure.

Deep Branch has produced the protein feed, which is called Proton, using a gas fermentation system which converts carbon dioxide and molecular hydrogen into to protein using bacteria.

The resulting protein-rich material can then be used as an ingredient in formulated animal feeds, and will soon be tested in feed trials for broiler chickens and salmon.

RAGT and Bayer have entered an exclusive collaboration to jointly develop state-of-the-art hybrid wheat varieties suitable for UK and Ireland markets.

The new partnership aims to provide arable farmers in the UK and Europe with new high-potential wheat varieties to enhance sustainable agricultural practices and climate-friendly farming.

Securing the wheat harvests through hybrid wheat production systems that help increase yield and robustness of the crop “will help meet the expected increase in food consumption to feed a growing world population”, said Bayer and RAGT, announcing the collaboration.

Farming mealworms to produce animal feed in the UK could be a sustainable and nutritionally valuable answer to environmentally damaging imports of soya.

Packing more protein than steak, mealworms are rich in amino acids, minerals, fats, vitamins and energy. This means they have the potential to be a valuable feed source for livestock, particularly poultry, according to Entec Nutrition.

Mealworms can be fed on organic food waste and can be reared using less land and water, the firm says, making them a more sustainable option.