Fossil Free Farm

Aim: Can global agriculture ever be truly sustainable and remove all fossil fuels? The Fossil Free Farm project is making it happen

The Fossil Free Farm project is bringing together technologies, techniques, policies and ideas to remove our reliance on fossil fuels for our food, fibre and energy production.

The founder of the project, Stuart Oates, is also currently completing a Nuffield Farming Scholarship, looking into Fossil Free Farming. Through this research, technologies, ideas, policies and farming practices are being brought together to create a global food system which is positive for our environment rather than extractive.

Our farm at Rosuick in Cornwall, is now an exemplar and pilot farm for all manner of projects and research studies to help find a fossil free future.

Where your donations will go:  

We have loads of plans to help make fossil free farming a reality. Your help and support will help us spread the word. Throughout 2025 and 2026 we have a series of events we'd like to put on and attend. We need to get farmers, innovators and policy makers together, so that we can get this huge shift to happen now. 

Why us? 

This has to be a farmer-led movement. We are 7th generation mixed farmers here on the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall. Stuart is also an Environmental journalist and TV and radio producer, so we're ideally placed to create a groundswell to make it happen.

Fossil Free Farming Day

Our first big project will be hosting the world's first ever Fossil Free Farming day on the 30th June 2025.

We'll be exploring the future of farming with internationally renowned speakers, machinery and technology demonstrations, practical workshops and discussion groups.

We want everyone to attend, but farmers are the ones who will have to drive the change to a fossil-free future, so we've committed to offering FREE farmer tickets this year.

We also know that fresh perspectives and ideas are needed to make sure we’re really achieving our goals, so student tickets are also FREE.

Follow us @farmfornature on Instagram, or keep an eye on our website to keep up to date on attendees, but we already have a stellar lineup confirmed including:

New Holland - Methane tractor demo

Bennemann - Talk and discussion of methane capture from slurry

Tama - demo of their new EZ-web recyclable bale net replacement

Polaris - Lithium electric Ranger UTV demo

Mitchell and Webber - HVO discussion and demo tractor

Farm Carbon Toolkit - Hannah Jones will talk about soil carbon, microbiology and the potential for carbon uptake, alongside reporting on our combined innovative farmers' field trial of homebrew seaweed bio-stimulant

Nuffield Scholar, Stuart Oates - Discussion and demo of innovative farmers' trial using sisal twine for round bales. Also covering his global research into the potential Fossil Free Farming

Brazilian Nuffield scholar, João Lopes - Global biofuel production and the role of Brazil in a fossil-free future

Brazilian Nuffield Scholar, Alex Melotto - Reduction of inputs, nitrogen balance, cover crops and the development of biological controls in mass-scale agriculture

Nuffield scholar, Dave Oates - stacking land uses for profitability and sustainability. Focussing on inter-cropping, rotations, agroforestry, the potential for agri-solar and maximising profits without damaging nature

Greengen - discussion on on-farm solar, battery storage and heating pump options

Forest for Cornwall - discussion and farm walk on agro-forestry

We'll also be talking about environmental auditing, future government policy, geothermal, and fossil-free production of ammonia fertilisers.

Lunch and dinner will be available - freshly made from our organic farm and seasonal local produce

Discussions will carry on into the evening over a drink and home-cooked food, so camping is encouraged.

If you have a technology you'd like to display, or a topic you'd like to talk or hear about, applications are now open. Just email [email protected]

More info can be found at fossilfreefarm.com