Massive increases in biomass farming, which involves growing crops to produce cleaner energy than fossil fuels, will be needed to support the UK’s net zero targets. A new event showcased the exciting cutting-edge technologies and innovations that will help achieve this, bringing together scientists, farmers, growers, agricultural suppliers, government officials and inventors from across the UK to discuss how to transform the biomass industry.
'Harnessing Innovation and the Future of Biomass’, held at the University of Warwick, was organised by Biomass Connect, a government-funded project involving research and industry partners that has field sites in the four nations, demonstrating best practice and innovation in production as well as sharing knowledge.
New technologies
The innovations showcased at the event on 7-8 November included:
- Apps to help farmers decide which biomass crops – usually herbaceous or woody plants – are best for their land.
- AI methods and drones to monitor the growth of these crops, which grow up to 4m tall.
- A robotic tracked vehicle that can drive on muddy, soft ground so the inclement British weather does not delay planting and harvesting.
- Breeding of new pest and disease resistant crop varieties which will thrive in our changing climate.
- Vertical farming methods, which do not use soil, for growing planting material much faster and in a smaller land area.
There were also panel sessions and workshops, featuring a wide range of experts from the UK, USA and Italy to discuss the latest laboratory breakthroughs and real-world applications on farms.
Ambitious target
The Climate Change Committee recommends that the land set aside for biomass production increases from 10,000 hectares currently to 700,000 hectares by 2050 to help meet Government net zero targets,
Professor Jeanette Whitaker of the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), who leads Biomass Connect, says: “Through efficient agricultural practices and alternative methods such as vertical farming, we can achieve the enormous required increase in biomass production and our net zero goals, while maintaining national food production.”
“The showcase provided an excellent platform for bringing together people from the research, agriculture, industry and government sectors, and we were all excited about the various innovations on show that will increase the quality and quantity of biomass crops in the UK.”
Carbon negative future
Biomass refers to any animal or plant matter, though in terms of energy production, it usually involves growing herbaceous or woody plants such as willow and miscanthus with very high growth rates, which have limited requirements for nutrients.
Greenhouse gas is removed from the atmosphere via photosynthesis, and then later released during combustion to produce electricity, making very low carbon energy which is cleaner than fossil fuels. In future, technological innovations could capture and store the carbon making this process carbon negative.
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About Biomass Connect
The project has set up eight demonstration sites across the four nations of the UK, in Ceredigion, South Ayrshire, Berkshire, Devon, Edinburgh, County Down, Tyne & Wear and Yorkshire.
The partners are: the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), Rothamsted Research, Aberystwyth University, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), Crops for Energy, Newcastle University, NIAB and Bio-Global Industries.
The project is part of the government-funded Biomass Feedstocks Innovation (BFI) programme, which is funded by the UK Government.
For more information, visit biomassconnect.org
