TOMORROW IS GROWN
FROM OUR COLLABORATION TODAY
The loss of biodiversity in the UK is placing increasing pressure on the UK farming industry, threatening the health of the land, the longevity of farming businesses and the stability of supply chains that need nature to thrive.
Join the growing number of farmers and producers working to address the biodiversity and climate crises.
Fair to Nature is a certification scheme, supply chain partner and advisory service run by the RSPB, the UK’s largest wildlife and conservation charity. Working with people across the supply chain, its ambition is to help protect and restore nature on farmland, make it easier for people to recognise sustainable products and to support businesses that are committed to making a genuine difference.
How does Fair to Nature work?
Conservation advice
The RSPB works with farmers to share practical nature-friendly farming techniques based on the Fair to Nature standard. A framework, which is rooted in scientific research, to show you can produce food in ways which work for farmers, for wildlife and for us.
Certified farms
Fair to Nature certified farms dedicate at least 10% of their farmed land, including areas difficult to farm productively, to a range of high-quality habitats, which have been scientifically proven to reverse wildlife declines, whilst managing their soils and inputs in more sustainable ways that are supportive of nature.
By supporting nature and increasing biodiversity on your farm, reap the benefits of the scheme, with increased pollinator numbers, reduced need for chemicals and improvements in the quality of your soil.
What are the Fair to Nature habitat requirements?
What are the Fair to Nature habitat requirements?
The type and number of habitats required by Fair to Nature to make up the 10% area are based on scientific research and the six key elements advocated by the Farm Wildlife partnership:
- Semi-natural habitats in good ecological order (no minimum percentage but counts towards the 10%)
- Flower-rich habitats (minimum of 4%)
- Seed-rich habitats (minimum of 2%, unless farm has less than 10& cropped land)
- Wildlife-rich field boundaries and margins (minimum of 1%)
- Wet features (1 per 100 ha, with an average size of 25 m2)
- Other in-field habitats (no minimum)
Applicable across the UK farming sector
Working with the Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN), our partners at Farm Wildlife and with farmers like you, the Fair to Nature Standard has been updated and extended. Fair to Nature began as an arable initiative but can now be used across the wider UK farming sector. It covers conventional and organic systems and can be applied on all farm types: livestock, dairy, cereals, mixed cropping, horticultural and many more.
The nature crisis is serious, but farmers like you can make a difference.
How is Fair to Nature valuable for farmers?
- We help nature thrive on your farm while you receive recognition for doing this.
- Sign-posting to stewardship actions to maxmise the benefits for nature and farm productivity
- We help you reduce the hidden cost of biodiversity loss.
- We are owned and operated by the RSPB, backed by robust science and are an organisation that the public trust.
THRIFT FARM
Case Study
Thrift Farm in Hertfordshire has been in the Fair to Nature scheme since it started in the mid 1980’s. Robert Law is a first-generation farmer and when he took over the farm a lot of the hedgerows had been removed over the years to make way for larger machinery and more food production areas. Gradually he has been putting those hedgerows back, and much more besides.