The ADOPT Facilitator Support Grant: Round 10 provides a £2,500 grant for farming, growing, or forestry businesses based in England to engage an external Project Facilitator. This support is intended to help develop a Full ADOPT Grant application for on-farm trials and experiments.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) will invest up to £100,000 to support the development of applications for on-farm trials and farm experiment projects, subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications being received. This funding is part of Defra’s Farming Innovation Programme, delivered in partnership with Innovate UK.
The competition is designed for farmers, growers and foresters based in England who are keen to test and trial new ideas or solutions on-farm and require support to develop a Full ADOPT Grant application. The aim is to provide a £2,500 grant to engage an external Project Facilitator, improve the quality of Full ADOPT Grant applications, make ADOPT funding accessible to a wider range of applicants, and enhance the skills and expertise of the farming ecosystem to engage with innovation funding.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has allocated up to £100,000 for this competition, subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications being received. Funding is in the form of a grant of £2,500 per successful applicant. Successful applicants can receive 100% funding for eligible project costs.
Payment is made after the Full ADOPT Grant application has been sent for assessment. Successful applicants must provide evidence of this within three months of receiving a Grant Offer Letter (GOL) and submit a claim. The grant of £2,500 is awarded per successful participant once the claim and evidence are submitted.
Lead organisation: To apply, the organisation must be an active farming, growing or forestry business of any size based in England. Applicants must be able to evidence that they are an established commercial business, including sole traders and partnerships, and must have a UK bank account. Organisations that are not profit driven or do not have a commercial focus, including Community Interest Companies (CICs) and charities, are not allowed to participate.
Project Facilitator: Applicants must engage with an external Project Facilitator who is registered in the Innovate UK Business Connect database. The facilitator will work with the applicant to develop and submit an eligible Full ADOPT Grant application.
Number of applications: A farmer, grower or forester can only submit one application per competition round and receive a maximum of two Facilitator Support Grants in total.
Previous applications: Applicants who have previously submitted an application that reached the assessment stage may re-apply once more with the same proposal. Funding will not be awarded to applicants who have failed to exploit a previously funded project, have an overdue independent accountant’s report, or have failed to comply with grant terms and conditions.
The project to be developed for a Full ADOPT Grant application must be for an on-farm trial or experiment to test new ideas and solutions in real on-farm conditions. Projects must address major on-farm or immediate post farmgate challenges or opportunities and have the potential to significantly improve productivity, resilience, or sustainability and progression towards net zero farming.
Proposals must demonstrate how the idea or solution will benefit other farmers, growers, or foresters in England. Projects must focus on testing and trialling ideas or solutions that are either new or not yet widely used. The project must address a significant industry challenge or opportunity in at least one of the following sectors: agriculture, horticulture, or agro-forestry.
Projects that will not be funded include those that do not benefit farmers, growers or foresters in England; are based on funded crop variety plot trials; are based on existing demonstration trials or projects; are for the production of crops or plants for medicinal or pharmaceutical use; are for cultivated meat; are based on equine systems; involve wild caught fisheries; involve aquaculture such as algae and seaweed for human consumption; or involve fermentation systems for bacteria, yeast or fungi for human consumption.
The application is split into three sections: Project details, Application questions, and Finances. The Project Facilitator must be registered in the Innovate UK Business Connect database. In the ‘other costs’ column of the finance section, applicants must enter the name of the Project Facilitator and the maximum grant amount of £2,500. The facilitator’s name must also be included in Question 10 of the application.
Applicants must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before starting. The lead applicant is responsible for ensuring all information is correct, that the proposal meets eligibility and scope criteria, and that all sections of the application are marked as complete. Applications can be reopened and resubmitted up until the competition deadline.
Recorded briefings on scope and process are available, and briefing slides can be downloaded from the Supporting Information section.
For more information on how to apply, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357. Phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).
For support with questions around scope or eligibility, contact the ADOPT Support Hub at adoptsupport@adas.co.uk or call 0800 987 8006. The Support Hub line is open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday.
Analyze this opportunity instantly
Ensure you have all required documents before starting your application.
Submission Deadline
Aug 12, 2026
Award Announcement
Sep 11, 2026
Project Duration
3 Months
Questions about this grant?
Log in to create free customized alerts based on your prefernces