There is a case for financial intervention to accelerate the food and farming transitions.

UK farming needs to transform urgently towards approaches that enhance environmental services, restore natural capital, contribute to a low carbon transition, and produce healthy food whilst supporting rural livelihoods. In this context, we ask: is our existing financial system sufficient to support the sector at the required scale and pace?

We are exploring and examining the case for a new financial institution – an Agroecology Development Bank – to accelerate a socially just and low carbon transition by providing sustainable finance for innovative UK food and farming systems. This builds upon one of the recommendations in Our Future in the Land report and forms part of our wider farming transition work.

Our goals:

• To explore the barriers that impede the adoption of farming approaches that enhance ecological and social benefits
• To further scope the feasibility and design of a new financial institution, and to identify or resolve any legal or regulatory issues
• To develop regional pilots, which, if successful, we will aim to roll out nationally

What we are doing now:

• Soon publishing a paper outlining the case for an Agroecology Development Bank
• Building on our initial work, we are convening a coalition to develop the scoping and testing phases
• Convening national partners and regional organisations to lead the work and get start-up capital for a regional pilot

For more information on this strand of work, or if you'd like to be involved, please email hello@ffcc.co.uk