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The Week in Soil

Our weekly blog features the main scientific, political and cultural soil-related stories of interest from across the web over the previous seven days, available on our website and through our Twitter account every Friday morning.

22 December 2023
  • Scotland’s rural budget cuts 
  • Extra £4 billion required for agricultural budget  
  • Soil missing from COP28 declaration  
  • Welsh government's objection to energy park
  • Bristol contaminated soil  

 

15 December 2023
  • Private investment in nature scheme  
  • Soil Nutrient Health Scheme 
  • Reaction to EFRA report  
  • Regenerative funding framework 
  • Champion soil farmer 

 

08 December 2023
  • EFRA committee soil health report 
  • World Soil Day 
  • COP28
  • Agricarbon investment 
  • Bristol Living Soil
01 December 2023
  • COP28
  • Government support for nature 
  • WWF report 
  • Soils’ role in natural flood management 
  • Ecosystem Marketplace report
24 November 2023
  • UK Chancellor’s Autumn statement
  • Greener Farms Commitment
  • New woodlands and soils
  • European Mission Soil Week
  • Soil relocation
17 November 2023
  • New UK Environment Secretary
  • False soil samples
  • Soil monitoring market
  • Regenerative flour
  • Lunar soils
10 November 2023
  • Sustainable horticulture  
  • King’s speech 
  • FAO report
  • ‘Big Soils Stocktake’
  • Wildfires and soils  
03 November 2023
  • Government nature commitment 
  • Red Tractor update 
  • #COPsoil 
  • Impact of flooding 
  • Soil organic carbon  
27 October 2023
  • SFI payments 
  • Storm Babel 
  • World Food Forum 
  • Future crops 
  • Soil microbes and diamonds
20 October 2023
  • Red tractor criticism  
  • Nature credit markets 
  • New regenerative programmes 
  • Peat-free soil blocks 
  • #WorldWormDay 

 

13 October 2023
  • Labour’s green agenda 
  • UK Soils Awareness Week 
  • Soil monitoring technology 
  • Ancient genetic pathways 
  • Carbon credit markets 

 

06 October 2023
  • Scotland’s Agriculture bill
  • Value of earthworms
  • Soil monitoring technology 
  • Monoculture tree planting 
  • Human connections to soil
22 September 2023
  • SFI applications open
  • Unsubstantiated regenerative claims
  • Maize harvest
  • Nitrogen use efficiency

 

15 September 2023
  • Support for buying British produce 
  • Multinationals trialling regenerative agriculture
  • Benefits of cover cropping 
  • Lady Eve Balfour 
  • #IGrowYourFood day 
08 September 2023
  • ‘Urgent action’ needed on soil health policy 
  • Soil health’s relation to human health 
  • Agroforestry show
  • Survey reveals farmers’ concerns 
  • Circular dining
01 September 2023
  • SFI applications
  • Peatland projects
  • Resilient blackcurrants
  • Agroecology for Africa
  • Soil microbes affected by heat
25 August 2023
  • SFI applications
  • Peatland projects
  • Resilient blackcurrants
  • Agroecology for Africa
  • Soil microbes affected by heat
14 August 2023
  • Wet weather impacts 
  • England Ecosystem Project
  • Soil species-rich habitat
  • Soil in climate strategies
  • Managing an allotment
04 August 2023
  • House of Lords protecting land
  • Climate adaptation plan
  • Reduced fertiliser increasing crops
  • Supermarket environmental pricing
  • Organic farming
28 July 2023
  • NFU on Wales farm scheme
  • COP28 on land-use
  • Quarry and ancient soils
  • Pesticides and soil biodiversity
  • Livestock emissions and net zero
21 July 2023
  • Defra report on UK agriculture
  • Farming industrial strategy
  • Welsh views on new farming scheme
  • US invests in global soil scheme
  • EU drought
14 July 2023
  • Polluter pays fines
  • Farming Rules for Water
  • SFI economic benefits
  • EU audit of soil policies
  • Declining insect populations
07 July 2023
  • Local Nature Recovery Strategies
  • Farming Innovation Competition
  • River campaign 
  • EU Soil Law
  • EU Sustainable Food Law
30 June 2023
  • Defra measures for peat
  • £4.4bn for nature-friendly farming
  • Slow decarbonising farming
  • Scottish farm subsidies to include soil testing
  • Groundswell 2023
23 June 2023
  • Defra’s updated SFI 
  • Court review of food strategy
  • EU Nature Law progress
  • Food systems and climate
  • Warming soils store less carbon
16 June 2023
  • Defra new SFI standards 
  • England’s biodiversity targets
  • Drought, the next pandemic
  • Businesses want EU nature law
  • Framework for England’s soil health
09 June 2023
  • Global Farm Metric
  • NFU backs new global warming measure
  • EU concern over pesticides
  • Regenerative agriculture measure
  • Less insects on farm soils
02 June 2023
  • Decline in farm incomes
  • Defra funds farm resilience
  • Job losses for livestock farms
  • EU votes down nature law
  • Conservation Basic Income
26 May 2023
  • Defra support tenant farms
  • Scottish govt food security 
  • Daera ammonia emissions
  • Bioenergy research
  • Accessible soil data
19 May 2023
  • Farm to Fork Summit
  • Farmer confidence
  • Potential soil import ban
  • Soil health app
  • Pesticides and bird decline
12 May 2023
  • Govt invests in fertiliser
  • Unfair funding for Scottish farms
  • Soil Health Inquiry
  • Spanish drought 
  • Soil health benchmarks
05 May 2023
  • WWF agriculture emissions plan
  • River pollution election issue
  • Horticulture strategy scrapped
  • Livestock profits
  • Biden backs climate-smart agriculture
28 April 2023
  • Climate activists protest
  • Calls for Natural England overhaul
  • Govt supporting biochar
  • Banned pesticides sold to Brazil
  • Regulating natural capital markets
21 April 2023
  • Systemic problems with ELMS
  • Fenland soils
  • Low soil moisture in Spain
  • Critical minerals in UK soil
  • Sustainable fashion
14 April 2023
  • Microplastics in UK soils
  • Environment Agency strike
  • UK soils nutrient deficiencies
  • Potato innovation programme
  • Sounds of soil research
07 April 2023
  • Green Finance Strategy
  • LEAF certification for Aldi UK
  • Soil Health Industry Platform
  • Compost benefits
  • Acidic UK soils
31 March 2023
  • Peat-ban delay
  • Green Finance for farming
  • Funds for farming tech
  • Farming impact on air pollution
  • Moon soil
24 March 2023
  • UN IPCC climate report
  • Nature charities call for action
  • Ukraine war impacting soils
  • Drought in France affecting farms
  • Soil health computer game
17 March 2023
  • Phosphorus shortages
  • Contaminated soil fine
  • Dutch farmers protest
  • Wildfarmed regenerative tour
  • Pavements for soil
10 March 2023
  • Businesses support environmental protections
  • Europe winter drought
  • EU pesticide reductions stalled
  • Farm environmental data
  • Small-holdings and post-Brexit farm
03 March 2023
  • Businesses support environmental protections
  • Europe winter drought
  • EU pesticide reductions stalled
  • Farm environmental data
  • Small-holdings and post-Brexit farm
24 February 2023
  • NFU Conference
  • Greenwashing business claims
  • Coffee and climate change
  • Biochar supports soil carbon
  • Soil carbon sequestration
17 February 2023
  • Soil emissions in Northern Ireland
  • EU soil BENCHMARKS project
  • Nextdoor Nature programme
  • Global grassland Soil Organic Carbon
  • EU pesticide reduction targets
10 February 2023
  • Farmers' opinion
  • Sustainable Management
  • EU Farm to Fork division
  • EU organic farming 
  • Car pollutions reduces soil carbon
03 February 2023
  • Defra reduce soil target 
  • Royal Society on land-use
  • New soil amendments
  • Heritage cereals research
  • Soil board game
27 January 2023
  • Clarity on Defra farm subsidies
  • Food, farming and nature consensus
  • Fungi biotechnology
  • Raise the pulse
  • Soil organisms in parks
20 January 2023
  • England Envt Targets
  • EU soil indicator
  • Soil and gut health
  • Soil carbon calculations
  • Soil microbes and climate change

 

13 January 2023
  • Global Farm Metric framework
  • Soil biodiversity policies
  • London rewilding with horses
  • Crop mixtures help soils
  • First Food Diversity Day
06 January 2023
  • New SFI payment
  • Low SFI uptake
  • Soil Health Action Plan
  • Dead bodies used in compost
  • Organic matter helps soils hold nitrogen