Productive Supply Chains

Improving the efficiency of our food system through smarter supply chains, reduced waste, and resilient infrastructure that responds to future challenges.

Sustainability and Productivity

We're pioneering new technologies and innovations to transform how fresh produce moves through the food system value chain to reduce waste and improve productivity.

We waste 10.2 million tonnes of food each year across the UK. That’s food lost from farms, households, restaurants, manufacturing, retail and hospitality.

Our food system accounts for 22% of the UK’s carbon footprint, driven by energy-intensive refrigeration, transportation, production processes, and inputs like fertilisers on farms.

By reducing waste, improving resource use efficiency, and finding innovative uses for surplus produce, we can create a more productive and resilient food system.

Logistics Innovation

Advances in technology and innovation are improving productivity and reducing waste across all stages of the food supply chain.

Automation and Robotics

Precision harvesting and yield predictions to streamline production and reduce waste.

Digital and Technology

Real-time data to improve the flow of goods through the value chain.

Sustainable Packaging

Reducing plastic, increasing recycling and extending shelf-life to reduce waste.

Optimised Storage

Smart storage solutions to reduce food waste and cut energy use.

Energy Efficiency

Renewable energy sources and smart supply systems.

Decarbonised Transport

Electrification and data to improve logistic efficiencies and cut emissions.

Supply Chain Case Studies

Yellow and red raspberries in clear containers on a blue tablecloth. White mesh cover partially visible in the background.

Searching for Natural Resistance to the UK’s Biggest Soft Fruit Pest with Asplins

Asplins Producer Organisation and Niab utilised our R&D support to investigate whether specific strawberry and raspberry varieties could naturally resist spotted wing drosophila (SWD). While the project ultimately proved that varietal selection alone does not resist the pest, the research provided the industry with vital data, redirecting focus toward other essential control strategies.

Growing Kent & Medway

4 min read

Woman with long hair stands in a vineyard with bare vines, wearing a dark jacket. Sunny day, grass and vine rows in the background.

Detecting Vineyard Disease from Space Using AI Satellite Imagery with Deep Planet

Deep Planet, in collaboration with Niab and leading UK vineyards, utilised our support to develop an AI-driven disease monitoring system. By analysing satellite imagery, the project successfully demonstrated a cost-effective solution to predict fungal infections, protecting the UK's growing wine sector from yield losses.

Growing Kent & Medway

4 min read

Hands holding and sifting dark brown recycled coir outdoors, with a blurred background. The scene suggests gardening or farming.

Cutting Strawberry Carbon Emissions by 40% using Recycled Coir with Overland

British soft fruit growers could cut their carbon footprint by up to 40% by switching to recycled coconut coir. A large R&D grant project, supported by Growing Kent & Medway, enabled Kent-based Overland and Niab to scientifically validate a new recycling process. The trials proved the recycled material performs as well as virgin coir, cuts water use, and tackles the industry's massive waste problem.

Growing Kent & Medway

4 min read