Grasses are able to bend the rules of evolution by borrowing genes from their neighbours, a process which scientists say could improve crop productivity. This process gives some grasses an evolutionary advantage allowing them to grow bigger, taller and stronger, according to the new study.

Harnessing this exact process could improve UK crop productivity, making them more resilient to climate change while boosting food security. The research, led by the University of Sheffield, is the first to show the process - known as lateral gene transfer - is widespread across the entire grass family.

A strong indication that the SNP is changing its policy on the use of gene editing (GE) was flushed out at an NFU Scotland (NFUS) hustings ahead of the Scottish Parliamentary elections.

Until now the SNP has publicly branded GE a form of genetic modification (GM), but Fergus Ewing – who hopes to be re-elected and resume his role as Rural Economy Secretary – told the meeting he accepted there was a difference between the technologies and “we should keep a watching brief on science”.

He added: “This is moving very rapidly in the EU so we shouldn’t shut our ears or eyes to scientific advancement which is taking forward matters which could be beneficial, but we have stressed our policy is to keep Scotland GM-free and have the reputation which comes from that.”

Governments should invest in gene editing research to avoid profiteering by large multinationals at the expense of farmers, Farmers Union of Wales (FUW) head of policy Dr Nick Fenwick has said.

Dr Fenwick suggested the issues of genetic modification (GM) and gene editing had traditionally divided farmers and the union’s members, with many of the latter raising concerns that the technologies concentrate power in the hands of very few big companies.

He went on to say the FUW was not opposed to gene editing in principle, but would be against any produce being released prematurely into the environment before thorough testing, or the introduction of crops which are reliant on certain chemicals.

New research from HSBC UK has called on farmers to take action now in order to achieve Net Zero in the agriculture sector by 2050.

The report, UK Agriculture: Pathways to Net Zero which was undertaken by UCL and led by Dr Carole Dalin, examined the importance of reducing net agriculture emissions of greenhouse gases and how farmers can achieve this through changes to farm management.

It found that a long-term focus on sustainability matters is vital and farmers must gain a better understanding of their farm’s performance, including greenhouse gas (methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide) emissions and carbon capture accounting.

Plant more bean-like crops in Europe and consider ‘healthy diet transition’ to beat climate crisis, say scientists

Adding the likes of peas, lentils, beans, and chickpeas to your diet, and farming more of them, could result in more nutritious and effective food production with large environmental benefits, scientists have found.

Researchers calculated a “nutritional density” unit for different types of crops. They found that swapping cereals for leguminous plants in European crop rotations provided more nutrient-rich produce for both animal and human consumption. Thanks to the way that legumes grow, it also reduced synthetic fertiliser use and pollution.

A survey across the UK and 7 other European countries asked people about the use of veterinary medicines for the treatment and prevention of diseases in pets and farm animals.

The survey, commissioned by NOAH’s European animal health association AnimalhealthEurope, found good awareness of the benefits of medicines for the health and welfare of pets and farm animals, and of their role in helping farmers produce food more sustainably. However, some people were not aware of the strict rules already governing the authorisation and use of veterinary medicines.

Gene-edited sugar beet with built-in resistance to virus yellows disease could be grown commercially in the UK by the mid-2020s, says British Sugar.

The company is investigating gene-edited beet seed as a long-term solution to the disease, which devastated crops across eastern England during the 2020-21 season.

If government ministers give the green light, British farmers could be growing sugar beet crops gene edited to be resistant to virus yellows in three to five years, said British Sugar agriculture director Peter Watson.

Using genome editing technologies in plants could help the EU ensure food security and reduce the impact of current agriculture practice on the climate, according to new report by the European Group on Ethics in science and new technologies (EGE).

Allowing gene editing for precision breeding would help the EU achieve goals stated in its Farm to Fork strategy, of reducing use of fertilisers by 30 per cent and turning 25% of agricultural land over to organic farming by 2030.

“There is a need to ensure food security, provide renewable resources for fuel, feed and fibre, safeguard the retention of biodiversity and protect the environment,” the report says. “Current forms of agriculture contribute significantly to the anthropogenic climate crisis.”

Arable crops are now more vulnerable to weeds than before the advent of herbicides, according to a new study. Herbicide resistance, fertiliser, crop height and climate change mean weeds pose an unprecedented threat to food security, according to scientists at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire.

Data from the world’s longest-running experiment – the Rothamsted Broadbalk wheat trial – suggests less than one-third of the harvest was lost to weeds during the 1960s. But this had risen to more than half by 2005-2014.

Rothamsted Research scientist Jonathan Storkey said this was due to weeds doing better than crops in a warming climate, coupled with a shift towards shorter crop varieties that are shaded out by taller weeds.

The first crop of Dyson Farming’s strawberries from its new six-hectare glasshouse in Carrington, Lincolnshire will hit supermarket shelves this week. This marks the start of the season for the new venture, which will produce around 750 tonnes of strawberries each year in the giant greenhouse powered by renewable electricity and surplus heat from Dyson Farming’s anaerobic digester.

The company, which is owned by home appliances inventor Sir James Dyson and recently rebranded as Dyson Farming from Beeswax Dyson, says the project supports the advancement of high-tech, sustainable farming in the UK, and avoids unnecessary food miles that come from imported strawberries at this time of year.