We are investing in renewable energy such as solar panels and we work closely with the anaerobic digester unit which utilises cattle slurry to produce energy which in turn produces digestate, a by-product.  This is an organic fertiliser containing the nutrients necessary for modern farming, making it better for crop productivity, yield and enhancement of soil health.

We have several sites (SSI) on our estates which we protect alongside the wildlife. We are involved in a four year countryside stewardship scheme where we have developed numerous wildlife habitats and environment enhancing areas. The stewardship aims to increase biodiversity on our estates which includes taking farmland out of production and creating wild flower margins. We also manage hedgerows and provide supplementary winter feed for farmland birds.

We have an abundance of wildlife on our estates, including owls, dippers, red kites, otters, hares, bats and foxes. Ringing of song birds and small birds is carried out at our sites with recording of species to help with conservation. We also install a range of species specific nest boxes. Numerous bee hives are situated on our farms to help with pollination. Our bees benefit from our stewardships.

A large proportion of our woodland is mature broadleaved woodland dominated by oak, beech, sycamore, horse and sweet chestnut and ash. There are also areas of coniferous plantation.

We manage our woodlands with the help of a woodland management contractor. This involves an ongoing programme of maintenance, thinning, felling and replanting. As the trees reach 10-15 years old, they begin to compete for space, light and nutrients and growth starts to slow. Thinning is the removal of some trees or parts of trees within woodland.

We also manage invasive non-native species such as Laurel.

We have engaged in an assessment of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of our arable production. To date, we have conducted soil samples assessing for soil organic matter, bulk density, active carbon and soil organic carbon. We used data from fuel use, chemicals, fertiliser, and crop management practices to calculate the carbon footprint of each of the crops in rotation.

This allows us to engage with other farms who are making practice changes to reduce their emissions and learn from those who have already made significant changes to their farming practices.