The ADOPT Facilitator Support Grant: Round 9 provides a £2,500 grant for farming, growing, or forestry businesses based in England to engage an external Project Facilitator. This grant supports the development of a Full ADOPT Grant application for on-farm trials and farm experiment projects. The funding is part of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Farming Innovation Programme, delivered in partnership with Innovate UK.

Overview

This competition is designed for farmers, growers, and foresters based in England who wish to test and trial new ideas or solutions on-farm and require support to develop a Full ADOPT Grant application. The programme aims to 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. Successful applicants receive a grant of £2,500 to engage an external Project Facilitator registered in the Innovate UK Business Connect database.

Funding and Benefits

Grant Amount: £2,500 per successful applicant.

Total Fund: Defra has allocated up to £100,000, subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications.

Funding Type: Grant. Eligible applicants can receive 100% funding for eligible project costs.

Payment: The grant is awarded after the applicant provides evidence that their Full ADOPT Grant application has been sent for assessment. A claim must be submitted within three months of receiving the Grant Offer Letter (GOL).

Eligibility

Lead Organisation: To apply, the organisation must:

• be an active farming, growing or forestry business of any size based in England
• be able to evidence that it is an established commercial business, including sole traders and partnerships
• 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 eligible.

Project Facilitator: Applicants must engage an external Project Facilitator registered in the Innovate UK Business Connect database and work with them to develop and submit an eligible Full ADOPT Grant application. The name of the Project Facilitator must be included in the finance section of the application and in Question 10 of the application form.

Number of Applications: A farmer, grower or forester can submit only one application per competition round and may 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.

Research Areas and Activities

The project must address a significant industry challenge or opportunity in at least one of the following sectors: agriculture, horticulture, or agro-forestry. The proposed Full ADOPT Grant project must focus on an on-farm trial or experiment to test new ideas and solutions that are either new or not yet widely used. Projects must 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 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 or existing demonstration trials
• involve crops or plants for medicinal or pharmaceutical use, cultivated meat, equine systems, wild caught fisheries, aquaculture for human consumption, or fermentation systems for human consumption
• are dependent on export performance or domestic inputs usage

Application Process

Applications are submitted via the Innovation Funding Service (IFS). The application is split into three sections: Project Details, Application Questions, and Finances.

Project Details: Applicants must provide a Support Grant title, start date, and duration of three months, along with a project summary and scope description.

Application Questions: Ten questions must be answered, covering the applicant’s business, the idea or solution to be trialled, benefits to other farmers, the Project Facilitator and team, and compliance-related topics. Questions 1 to 7 are not scored; the remaining questions are scored by an independent assessor.

Finances: Applicants must enter the name of the Project Facilitator and the total grant amount of £2,500 in the 'other costs' section.

Applications can be reopened and resubmitted up until the competition deadline. All sections must be marked as complete before submission.

Deadline and Timeline

• Competition opens: Friday 29 May 2026
• Competition closes: Wednesday 8 July 2026 at 11:00am
• Applicants notified: 11 August 2026
• Support Grant starts by: 1 October 2026

Successful applicants must provide evidence within six months of funding being awarded that their Full ADOPT Grant application has been sent for assessment. A claim must be submitted within three months of receiving the Grant Offer Letter.

Contact Information

Innovate UK: Phone 0300 321 4357, lines open 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays). Email: support@iuk.ukri.org

ADOPT Support Hub (run by ADAS): Phone 0800 987 8006, lines open 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. Email: adoptsupport@adas.co.uk. The Support Hub provides advice on scope, suitability, and on-farm trial practicalities, and helps form connections with expertise and partners.

Project Facilitator Database: The Innovate UK Business Connect database lists registered facilitators. Visit: https://iuk-business-connect.org.uk/adopt-project-facilitators/

Applicants requiring reasonable adjustments for disabilities or long-term conditions should contact Innovate UK at least 15 working days before the competition closing date.