Description
In this keynote talk, Professor John Gilliland explains why the greatest opportunity in farming today is being able to deliver multiple public goods simultaneously from the farm gate with the data to prove it - integrating landscape, optimising soil health, biodiversity, water quality alongside high animal welfare in way that's profitable for farmers and creates benefits for all. His initial pioneering research on Devenish Lands at Dowth, Northern Ireland with multi-species swards and integrated livestock grazing delivered measurable gains within 1–3 years including:
79% increase in profits
17% increase in daily LWG (liveweight gain) for beef
300% increase in earthworms
65% less synthetic nitrogen
14x faster water infiltration
45% decrease in land needed for constant output
32% lower carbon emissions
100% reduction in anthelmintic use
Find out more about the data, details and how this has now scaled to a 178-farm, 36,000ha 'Environmental Baselining Pilot' across Northern Ireland, Scotland & Wales, commissioned by AHDB and QMS Scotland.
