Agriculture is becoming increasingly data-led, with growers, retailers and supply chain partners using insights into carbon, soil health and crop performance to support better decision-making. At the recent ‘Growers to Brands’ event hosted by Bartholomews, speakers from a range of retail, agronomy and agricultural technology companies shared updates on how they are using soil analysis and digital tools across their supply chains.
From lower-carbon wheat and oat programmes with Marks & Spencer (M&S), to Lancrop’s soil benchmarking and the Met Office’s satellite-supported climate analytics, the discussions highlighted the different ways data is being used to understand performance and support future agricultural decisions.
Managing Risk and Creating Value Across the Supply Chain
Opening the event, Sue Taylor, Managing Director of Bartholomews, highlighted the importance of acknowledging and managing both climate and price risk within agriculture. Sue also noted that technology is not a silver bullet, but can be an important enabler of change.
M&S’s Wheat and Oats Programme
The event highlighted the work taking place between retailers and farmers to develop lower-carbon consumer options at scale. Vivienne Harris, Agricultural Manager at M&S, shared some great insights into the retailer’s wheat and oats programmes and its continued work with British agriculture.
M&S continue to back British farming through their Plan A for Farming commitment. The company has been able to build trust and drive change with its suppliers by offering longer-term contracts with farmers, some of which now extend to a decade. .
Through M&S’s Plan A programme, soil health, biodiversity, water and carbon are measured alongside yield. Vivienne also noted that 72% of M&S’s emissions come from agriculture and processing, meaning that a solution-driven approach to reducing farm-level emissions is critical to lowering the retailer’s overall emissions.
M&S’s lower-carbon milling wheat programme is now in its second year. Wheat production volumes have increased from 2,500 tonnes in 2025 to 6,500 tonnes in 2026, all of which will be used in M&S products. Oats are a new addition to the programme. There are also plans to include other cereals, including feed wheat and malting barley, as M&S develops a whole-rotation approach with farmers.
Connecting Farm Production with Consumer Products
But how do lower-carbon crops end up with the consumer? Mark Waples, Specialist Technical Manager at M&S, shared the story behind the first segregated low-carbon wheat being used within the retailer’s Food on the Go range.
The wheat produced through the programme is being used in selected bread products that will feature in M&S sandwich ranges. These sandwiches will include 20% wheat from Select Farms, which produce lower-carbon wheat and oats while prioritising soil health and biodiversity. Waples explained that working with long-term supplier Marriages Milling, alongside segregation of the wheat supply, is critical for product traceability and marketing, as M&S has visibility on every stage of the production process from field to shelf.
Measuring Carbon and Understanding Business Value
Beyond individual crop programmes, the event also explored how carbon measurement can support better business decisions. Richard Bonn, of Aethr Associates, discussed how sustainability initiatives can create commercial value. He commented that he is seeing a shift from sustainability commitments towards meaningful action across the market.
Richard explained that emissions are often concentrated where value is lost within a system, meaning carbon can be treated as an efficiency metric. He also highlighted that many people are unaware of the carbon footprint of agricultural products, referencing that a loaf of white bread has a carbon footprint of approximately 1.16 kg per kilogram of product. In a room of growers, brands, sustainability consultants and more, it was surprising that relatively few attendees were familiar with this figure.
Building a Better Understanding of Soil Health
While carbon measurement and technological innovation are becoming increasingly important, the event also highlighted the importance of understanding the fundamentals of soil health.
John Telfer’s presentation on the fundamentals of soil health, and the extent to which key soil characteristics are often overlooked by growers was particularly eye-opening.
Lancrop processed 500,000 samples in 2025 alone, some of which were from Bartholomews. Although basic soil testing is required for all UK agricultural schemes, John highlighted that many important soil indicators are still overlooked. For example, soil pH has a significant influence on biological activity and nutrient uptake.
One particularly notable statistic was that the average UK soil pH has declined from 6.7 in 1994 to 6.4 in 2020, meaning that we are moving further away from optimum soil pH levels, despite all of the scientific innovation now available. Ultimately, if soil parameters are out of balance, valuable inputs can be wasted. For example, fertiliser efficiency can be wasted when applied to soils with a low pH. The fact that one in seven soil samples currently shows excessive phosphorus levels, and that this figure is increasing, will be a statistic that everyone in the room will remember.
Turning Agricultural Data into Action
Across the event, a recurring theme was the importance of the role of data in supporting understanding and decision-making across agriculture. From carbon measurement and crop programmes to soil analysis and satellite technology, the presentations demonstrated how different sources of information are being used across the supply chain to improve performance and inform better decisions.
At Senus, we help businesses bring together data from across their operations to support analysis, reporting and decision-making. To learn more about how Senus supports the agricultural sector, contact us today.
