The Allerton Project

Since the Allerton Project started in 1992, agricultural Bumble -Bee -wwwdavidmasonimagescomobjectives have shifted toward combining the need for food security with environmental objectives. The project has played a key role in influencing this policy through its own farm business and research activities.

Boosting biodiversity and improving habitats

Game management has been shown to have beneficial effects on other wildlife through habitat management, predator control and supplementary feeding in winter. For example, abundance of many bird species has soared.

Habitats have been developed and created in the noncropped area to benefit a range of terrestrial wildlife, while measures to improve water quality and aquatic wildlife have been developed within and outside the cropped area.

Creating multiple benefits

Wherever possible, we identify management practices that have multiple benefits, such as woodland management for game, wildlife, carbon sequestration and wood fuel for our own buildings. Reduced tillage of soil improves soil moisture retention and soil structure for crops, and reduces crop establishment costs and carbon emissions, as well as improving water quality.

Much of our research is carried out in collaboration with other research organisations and through co-supervised PhD and MSc studentships.

Influencing policy and practice

"The Allerton Project has shown that ordinary farms can make a profit while still doing extraordinary work for wildlife. Many farmers and landowners have visited it over the past 20 years and have left inspired to do more for wildlife on their own land."

Helen Woolley,
Director General, CLA

The results of our research are used to influence agri-environmental policy at national level, and practice at the individual farm level through our demonstration work.

Visitors to the project include policy makers, regulators, farmers, advisors, students and increasingly schools. We have a number of initiatives that involve the local community in improving our shared understanding of agri-environmental issues and wider community impacts on the agricultural environment.

The Allerton Project is a combination of commercial farming, research, demonstration and community engagement. This provides an exceptional opportunity to integrate agricultural and environmental objectives that are scientifically sound and practically grounded.

Support The Allerton Project

Please donate to our Allerton Project team to help them continue their vital farming research. All payment cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal accepted: