Category: News

Our Senior Livestock Researcher Lindsay Whistance wrestles with the arguments for and against Veganuary in this blog On Boxing Day evening, at the slowing down of festive indulgences, I began to speculate about what should…

A new survey led by ORC hopes that through improving understanding of the impact of crop diversification on workload and quality of life we can provide recommendations for policy makers, training and education providers and…

As the dust settles on the huge global phenomenon that was the 12th Oxford Real Farming Conference we highlight on some of the sessions ORC were involved with (directly or indirectly). All sessions were recorded…

On the 8th January a request by British Sugar and the NFU to get an emergency derogation to use neonicotinoids in sugar beet was approved. Given the evidence of unacceptable harm to wildlife (especially bees)…

ORC welcomes the launch of the Terra Carta from HRH The Prince of Wales’ Sustainable Markets Initiative. The Terra Carta provides a roadmap to 2030 for businesses to move towards an ambitious and sustainable future;…

Is it a realistic option? We are interested in your views If we want to develop more sustainable agricultural systems for the UK then we need to focus on their sustainability, their impact on the…

Today (January 11th 2021), RABI launches the largest ever research project relating to wellbeing of farming people. This wide-ranging survey will consider for the first time the relationship between physical health, mental wellbeing and health…

Plans to consult on gene editing, which according to Defra 'could unlock substantial benefits to nature, the environment and help farmers with crops resistant to pests, disease or extreme weather and to produce healthier, more…

This report led by the Organic Policy, Business and Research Consultancy, with ORC, SRUC and IEEP on the future public good agricultural policy options for Scotland including organic farming, agroforestry and rewilding has now been…

This week we say goodbye to the wonderful Sally Westaway. Sally has worked within the ORC’s agroforestry team on a range of projects since 2013. The last 7 years have been so much fun and…

ORC is pleased to be partners in two projects funded by Farming the Future's Year 2 Grant-pool. A National Network of Agroforestry Farms and Influencing Policy to Support Farm Woodland and Agroforestry from the Ground-up…

Oxfordshire organic farmer Philip Day, is conducting a survey of UK organic arable farmers, as part of his MSc in Organic Farming at SRUC, Aberdeen, to assess how they manage weeds in their crops.  The…

https://youtu.be/tuNQK77SROg Our Chief Executive Officer Lucy MacLennan with a Christmas message for our friends and supporters

Woodchip can increase soil organic matter, water holding capacity and nutrient levels of soils. Senior Agroforestry Researcher Sally Westaway reflects on the conclusions and outputs of the WOOdchip for Fertile Soils (WOOFS) project. Contractor spreading…

ORC welcomes the recognition by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) of the benefits of agroforestry with new guidance on how agroforestry can be compatible with the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). This is a major breakthrough…

Agroforestry webinar, led by the Soil Association, as part of the WRFFC Conference which was held from 16-19th Nov 2020. Speakers include Tim Pagella (Bangor University), Dr Lindsay Whistance (Organic Research Centre) and Gareth Davies…

ORC welcomes Defra's roadmap for a transition to deliver a better, fairer farming system in England. We strongly support the participatory approach and are involved in three of Defra's Environmental Land Management 'Test and Trials'.…

The EU Commission has approved a regulation to recognise all six of the UK organic Control Bodies as certifying to an equivalent EU standard until 31 December 2021, for the purpose of trade in organics.…

Complete our survey and win a bottle of wine! At the ORC, we are always looking at ways to strengthen our communication and make sure you as a reader receive the most interesting and relevant…

New paper published in ‘Livestock Science’ this month. The article assesses how Flock Health Clubs improve farmer-vet relationships and measures of flock health & welfare. The paper's authors include ORC's Marion Johnson and Nicola Noble…

The Organic Research Centre (ORC) has announced the appointment of Dr Will Simonson as the new Head of Research.  Dr Simonson replaces Dr Bruce Pearce, who stepped down from the role last month after 21…

Charity’s evolving strategy aims to reach more farming people http://www.rabi.org.uk/kooth With 2020 bringing ever greater levels of uncertainty and unexpected changes, pressures on the farming community continue to grow. As part of a new package…

This week we sadly bid farewell to two long-serving members of our team - Bruce Pearce and Anja Vieweger - with more than thirty years of service between them! Dr Bruce Pearce joined Elm Farm…

ORC researchers and advisors are now at the halfway point of one of their Environmental Land Management scheme: Test &Trials (ELMs T&T). Led by the Soil Association, this project is looking at the capacity of…