For thirteen years, the British Farming Awards has shone a light on the best in British Farming. During this annual event, Britain's farming industry comes together to celebrate the achievements of its contemporaries.
The entrants may not have an agricultural background but their innovative technologies are helping farmers and industry professionals find solutions, whether that be increasing crop yields, streamlining data, improving animal health or lowering carbon footprints for the farming sector. Each of these finalists have highlighted a specific industry issue and created exciting pieces of technology to tackle it.
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Finalists
Soil Benchmark - North Yorkshire
Soil Benchmark, co-founded by North Yorkshire farmer's son and 2024 Nuffield Scholar Tom Scrope, has rapidly emerged as a game-changer in agri-tech. Launched in November 2023, the cloud-based platform helps farmers and agronomists create compliant, practical soil, nutrient, and manure management plans, unlocking Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) payments while slashing paperwork. In just months, it has mapped over 809,000 hectares, representing 9.2% of England's farmland, and reached profitability unusually early for a start-up.
By integrating geospatial data, policy rules, and automation, Soil Benchmark turns complex compliance processes into a 10-minute job, freeing advisers to focus on decision-making. Its freemium model and intuitive design have driven organic growth, fuelled by agronomist referrals. Already expanding into Wales and Scotland with new modules like Manure Maestro, the company's vision is to become the go-to global platform for sustainable farm management, marrying technology with on-the-ground practicality.
JRH Water Management - Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire-based JRH Water Management, led by company director Michael Jorden, specialises in designing and installing rainwater harvesting systems tailored to UK farms. With over a decade of expertise, the company helps reduce reliance on mains or borehole water, boosting drought resilience and cutting costs.
The idea began in 2012, when Jorden saw vast amounts of rainwater going to waste from agricultural roofs. Through hands-on development and farmer feedback, he created a robust, low-maintenance system that filters, stores, and pumps clean water for uses from livestock drinking to crop spraying.
Benefits go beyond savings: spraying efficiency improves, livestock welfare increases, and farms gain greater control over their supply. Growth has come largely through word of mouth, farm talks, and events like LAMMA and Groundswell.
With a focus on practical refinements, JRH continues to future-proof the sector, ensuring farms can turn every drop into an asset.
Martin Lishman - Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire-based Martin Lishman Ltd has long been at the forefront of agricultural innovation, and its Barn Owl Wireless system is transforming crop storage management. Designed to optimise efficiency, sustainability, and productivity, the technology combines wireless sensors, real-time monitoring, and fully automatic fan control to maintain ideal storage conditions while cutting energy use by up to 40%.
First developed in the early 2000s and refined over decades, Barn Owl Wireless now operates through a newly redesigned web app, giving users remote access to live temperature, humidity, and CO₂ data from any device. Automated algorithms decide when to run fans for maximum cooling or drying, while new features such as shared notes and custom alerts improve communication and accountability.
By reducing waste, streamlining compliance, and safeguarding crop quality, Martin Lishman's system delivers measurable savings and peace of mind, making it a standout contender for Agri-Tech Innovator of the Year.
Herdwatch - Shropshire
Herdwatch, based in Shropshire, is transforming livestock management for over 22,000 farmers across the UK and Ireland. The mobile-first platform replaces paperwork with real-time recording of herd events, from treatments and breeding to grass growth and compliance, while integrating seamlessly with statutory databases, parlour software, weighing systems, and animal health sensors.
In 2025, Herdwatch launched Herdi, agriculture's first context-aware AI assistant, designed to turn complex, siloed data into right-time, practical advice. Built directly into the app, Herdi combines a farmer's own records with external factors like weather, regulations, and market conditions to give tailored, reference-backed answers in seconds, whether identifying underperforming cows or advising on fertiliser timing.
By saving hours each week, simplifying compliance, and supporting better decision-making, Herdwatch and Herdi are making precision farming accessible to beef, dairy, and sheep producers of all sizes, helping boost profitability, sustainability, and welfare across the sector.
GreenStalk - Norfolk
GreenStalk, based in Norfolk, is transforming how farms integrate and manage technology. Led by CTO and CEO David Aarons, the company was born from a chance conversation with a farmer about the high costs of upgrading equipment. Aarons saw an opportunity to retrofit older machinery with simple monitors, making it ‘smart' and capable of feeding data into one integrated dashboard, without the expense of replacement.
Working closely with farms in Norfolk and Suffolk, GreenStalk's platform connects, monitors, and controls everything from grain stores to irrigation pumps, using modular technology that integrates with both existing and third-party equipment. Farmers benefit from real-time data, remote control, and AI-driven features like geo-fencing and predictive maintenance.
By focusing on interoperability, cost savings, and practical solutions, GreenStalk helps farmers future-proof operations, improve efficiency, and make informed decisions, proving that innovation doesn't have to come with a hefty price tag.
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O2 Agri - Shropshire
O2 Agri, based in Shropshire, is making waves in livestock and crop production with its patented "super water" technology, a veterinary-approved, chemical-free system that hyper-oxygenates water to transform animal health and farm efficiency. By introducing nanoscopic gas particles directly into cells, the system boosts oxygen delivery far beyond conventional limits, improving feed conversion rates, halving mortality, reducing antibiotics, and cutting ammonia emissions.
The idea was sparked in 2021, when a local poultry farmer asked if there was a better alternative to chemical disinfectants. Since then, O2 Agri has installed systems on seven poultry farms, benefiting over 10 million birds, and expanded into horticulture, where it has eliminated chemical use and boosted yields.
Fully automatic, low-maintenance, and remotely monitored, O2 Agri's innovation offers sustainability gains alongside profitability, aligning with agriculture's growing need to cut carbon and improve welfare. Trials with pigs and cattle are set to broaden its impact even further.
KEENAN - Lincolnshire
For over four decades, Lincolnshire-based KEENAN has been at the forefront of agri-tech innovation, transforming how livestock are fed. Founded in the 1970s by farmer-engineer Richard Keenan, the company pioneered the paddle-mixing system, a gentler, more consistent way to blend feed, with the launch of the Easi-Feeder in 1983. This design principle lives on in KEENAN's latest innovation, the MechFiber+ range, which integrates the InTouch feed-management platform for real-time precision feeding.
The MechFiber+ produces a consistent, rumen-friendly ration that improves feed efficiency, supports animal health, and lowers farming's carbon footprint. Enhanced engineering, advanced telematics, and farmer-led refinements have made the machine more efficient, durable, and user-friendly.
Backed by the Carbon Trust, KEENAN technology has delivered measurable gains for farmers, from increased milk yields to reduced feed costs. With new developments in automation and bespoke industrial mixing, KEENAN continues to shape the future of sustainable livestock farming.
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Fireward - Essex
With combine harvester fires an increasing threat to farming businesses, Essex-based Fireward has brought cutting-edge fire suppression technology to the agricultural sector. The company was born out of necessity when founders Sam Malins and Ed Barnes, both from the waste and recycling industry, saw the shortcomings of existing systems and developed a more reliable solution through their sister company, Reacton.
Manufactured in Chelmsford, Fireward's market-leading Dual Agent system uses dry powder and wet chemical agents to detect and extinguish fires in seconds, protecting high-risk areas such as engine bays, hydraulics, and turbochargers. This rapid response minimises downtime, prevents costly machinery loss, and can even earn NFU Mutual customers a 15% insurance discount.
Operating nationwide, Fireward has already safeguarded millions of pounds' worth of assets in 2025 alone, giving farm managers, contractors, and dealers an effective, proven defence against one of agriculture's most damaging risks.
Taking place on 16 October at The VOX in Birmingham, the event will welcome industry professionals from across the country to celebrate British agriculture and the successes it has had this year.
Get your tickets here to celebrate with the finalists at The British Farming Awards: https://www.britishfarmingawards.co.uk/britishfarmingawards/en/page/table-packages
