66.1%
of farmers said they agree or strongly agree that financial and business risks are barriers to transitioning to farming systems that prioritise climate and nature.
55.9%
said they agree or strongly agree that they lack the financial flexibility needed for experimentation and learning during the transition process.
75.7%
of farmers ranked improving soil health among their top five reasons for transitioning.
63.1%
pointed to the visible return of nature as a key advantage among their top five reasons for transitioning, and second to soil health.
Nature Transition Finance
The report strongly calls on the need for the development of 'Nature Transition Finance' products that recognise the financial risks of the transition and are designed to support farmers with features such as preferential lending terms. Farmers were clear that it was essential these products also went hand in hand with financial and farm business advice.
"The transition phase
is the financially
risky phase. Even an
experiment on a 10 acre
field, on a mid sized farm,
can have a significant
financial impact."
Farmer Interview
Farmer led research
The qualitative and quantitative research, which was undertaken between May and July of 2024, responds to the question: How might mainstream banks and UK development finance better support agriculture to respond to climate change and nature degradation by transitioning to farming systems that prioritise climate and nature outcomes?
Report partners
The ‘Addressing Financial Risk as a Barrier to Farm Transition’ research was initiated through collaboration between Soil Association Exchange (Exchange), led by Tamara Giltsoff and Joseph Gridley, with oversight from Green Finance Institute (GFI Hive), led by Helen Avery and Amy Allen. The British Business Bank has supported this research in the interests of improving market insights into the finance needs of small businesses in the food and farming sectors.
