ADOPT Facilitator Support Grant Programme (Round 1) – UK

This competition is designed for farmers, growers and foresters based in England who are keen to test and trial new ideas or solutions on-farm and require support to develop a Full ADOPT Grant application.

Aims

• The aim of this competition is to:
  • improve the quality of Full ADOPT Grant applications
  • make ADOPT funding accessible to a wider range of applicants
  • enhance the skills and expertise of the farming eco-system to engage with innovation funding

Specific Themes

• Your project must address a significant industry challenge or opportunity in at least one or more of the following sectors:
  • agriculture
  • horticulture
  • agro-forestry

Funding Information

• The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has allocated up to £100,000, to provide support through the ADOPT Facilitator Support Grants. Funding will be in the form of a grant of £2,500 per successful applicant.
• You can get 100% funding for your eligible project costs if you are an active farmer, grower or forester based in England.

Ineligible Projects

• They are not funding projects that:
  • do not benefit farmers, growers or foresters in England
  • are based on equine systems ​
  • involve wild caught fisheries
  • are for the production of crops or plants for medicinal or pharmaceutical use
  • are based on funded crop variety plot trials
  • are based on existing demonstration trials or projects
  • include aquaculture, such as algae and seaweed, for human consumption
  • fermentation systems for bacteria, yeast or fungi​ or cultivated meat
• They cannot fund projects that are:
  • dependent on export performance, for example, giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it exports a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example, giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it uses 50% UK flour in their product

Eligibility Criteria

• Your project
  • If you are successful, any awards given to primary agricultural producers are subject to the green box exemption under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture.
  • Applicants receiving this type of support must ensure that there is minimal to no distortion of trade and comply with the requirements of Annex 2 of the Agriculture Agreement.
  • To be eligible to apply for this competition, you must:
    • engage with an external Project Facilitator that is registered in the Innovate UK Business Connect database
    • work with the facilitator to develop and submit an eligible application for a Full ADOPT Grant competition
  • If you are successful in this competition you will need to provide evidence within six months of the funding being awarded that your Full ADOPT Grant application has been sent for assessment.
• Lead organisation
  • To lead a project your organisation must:
    • be an active farming, growing or forestry business of any size based in England
    • be able to evidence that you are an established commercial business, including sole traders and partnerships
    • have a UK bank account

For more information, visit GOV.UK.