M&S teams up with Agrisound to boost pollinator activity on British farms

M&S announces a three-year collaboration with agri-tech start up AgriSound, designed to help farmers better manage pollinators and increase crop yields.

The collaboration will see two M&S Select Farms, Plumford in Kent and G’s Growers in Cambridgeshire, install in-field sensors for three years, allowing them to track the number of pollinators visiting their farm in real-time and target specific interventions for improving numbers.

AgriSound are biodiversity experts, based in York, that have developed specialist listening devices, which combine acoustic technology and environmental sensors to monitor the density of key pollinators, including bumblebees and honeybees, as well as the wider insect community remotely. The devices collect and send data via mobile data, with users able to see results via a smartphone or web app.

At Plumford in Kent, the sensors will be located in a new orchard, to help assess the effectiveness of different densities of wildflowers in attracting pollinators. Meanwhile, G’s Growers in Cambridgeshire will be placing the sensors in a range of different agri-environment habitats, such as hedgerows, pollen and nectar mix and wild bird seed mix.

Chris Elworthy, Director, Plumford Farm Ltd, said: “Pollinators play a vital role in helping us to deliver the best quality fruit we can at the farm – so we’re keen to see the impact of different wildflower densities in the orchard alleys on activity.”

The collaboration is part of M&S five-year Farming with Nature programme, launched last year, to support the retailer’s Select Farmers to become more resilient to environmental challenges spanning climate change and biodiversity loss.

As part of the programme, M&S has partnered with specialist industry partner LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) to strengthen pollinator-friendly farming practices across M&S’s grower base in the UK.

M&S has also collaborated with the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, FERA and Kings Frontier to test different wildflower seed mixes on a number of M&S Select Farms aiming to enhance yield and reduce costs through pollination and reduced pests. As part of the partnership with Kings Frontier, wildflower seed is offered to all M&S British growers at a discounted rate.

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