Innocent Unveils Recipients of £1 Million Fund Backing Regenerative Farming Innovation

Innocent Drinks, widely recognised for its smoothies and juices, has announced that it will be funding nine organisations working across its global fruit and vegetable supply chains. The goal? To help them adopt regenerative agriculture practices that are better for the planet and more resilient in the face of growing environmental challenges. The initiative is part of its Farmer Innovation Fund, which will distribute £1 million in grants for the 2025 cycle.

These projects span countries across Europe and South America, and all share a common mission: to build resilience against climate extremes while also improving environmental outcomes. This includes everything from healthier soil and greater biodiversity to improved water efficiency and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

The judging process was a collaborative one. Innocent’s internal Steering Committee teamed up with a group of external experts to form an Advisory Board, which then selected the winning projects from a pool of applicants.

innocent Drinks’ CEO Nick Canney said: “I’m proud of our continued investment in building meaningful partnerships with our suppliers. This year’s Farmer Innovation Fund winners are tackling some of agriculture’s key challenges, and it’s inspiring to see our suppliers at the forefront of the transition to more sustainable farming practices.”

Of the nine chosen initiatives, six are returning recipients that have already received backing from the Fund in the past. The other three are newcomers. Here's what each of them is doing:

Returning projects:

Time 4 Bee, a Polish apple grower, is using microbiological soil testing and experimenting with microbiome-friendly farming methods. The aim is to reduce inputs and increase yields.

Pixley Berries, based in the UK and known for blackcurrants, is testing biostimulants, microbial soil boosters, and an advanced nutrient delivery tech called R-Leaf. Their focus is on improving both plant and soil health.

GNT Group, which supplies carrots and pumpkins, is creating flower meadows on its farms. With the funding, it will ramp up its biodiversity monitoring efforts.

SVZ, which provides strawberries grown in Spain, is expanding its on-demand irrigation system. This tech uses real-time sensor data to help farmers water crops more efficiently.

Sensus is piloting no-till farming techniques across chicory farms in Belgium and the Netherlands. The team expects a 20 per cent increase in yields, along with improved soil quality and reduced emissions.

Florida Products, a pineapple producer in Costa Rica, is rolling out rainwater harvesting systems to irrigate crops more sustainably.

New projects:

Zuvamesa is testing pesticide alternatives made from citrus byproducts, particularly d-limonene, at its citrus farms in Spain.

Chiquita, the well-known banana supplier in Costa Rica, is working on developing disease-resistant banana varieties. The goal is to move away from exclusive dependence on the Cavendish banana.

Konfrut, a pomegranate supplier based in Türkiye, is bringing sustainable practices to three smallholder farms. The farmers will receive training, access to modern irrigation, low-carbon fertilisers, and digital tools for tracking their progress.

This type of funding is becoming increasingly common in the agri-food sector. Just recently, Waitrose announced it would allocate £500,000 to support farmers working on environmental projects, one example being fertiliser made from recycled chicken litter.

Marks & Spencer followed suit earlier this month, setting aside £1 million to help farms cut their carbon emissions. Among the supported initiatives is a project that uses AI-powered precision pollination on strawberry farms.