Wales Pilot Success Sets the Stage for Regional Landscape Enterprise Networks Roll-out

The collaborative funding framework has been successful in demonstrating a solution-based approach to supply chain and environmental challenges, paving the way for a full-scale roll-out in spring 2026.

Founded by Puffin Produce and Pembrokeshire Creamery with support from Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, and developed by 3Keel, the initiative is the first of its kind in Wales. LENs has successfully demonstrated that by funding technology, innovation, and nature-based solutions, it can de-risk management changes and enable land managers to enhance landscape resilience. This, in turn, benefits supply chain profitability, environmental outcomes and the wider local community.

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water has been a key stakeholder, giving valuable support and guidance throughout the pilot, which focussed initially on the Special Area of Conservation Western Cleddau river catchment.

Landscape Enterprise Networks are a framework for stakeholders and organisations to co-fund nature-based solutions and on-farm innovation to deliver water quality management, resilient supply of agricultural products, carbon reduction, and biodiversity outcomes.

LENs brings private and public sector organisations together with a common interest in improving the resilience of the landscape and brokers deals between these ‘demand-side’ partners and farmers who are in a position to deliver them on the ground.

The measures delivered through LENs are both agile and flexible, giving greater ownership to land managers on how to deliver solutions to local challenges. Depending on what is to be implemented, agreements can be annual for options such as enhanced cover cropping or longer-term, such as the establishment of hedgerows.

• Dudwell Farm (Potato and Arable): Implemented over 150 acres of measures, including a transition from granular to foliar fertilisers reducing nitrogen application on average by 27 kg/hectare. This led to a 16.85% reduction in the kg / CO2e per tonne of potatoes and a 25% total benefit across key wildlife species groups.
• Hendrewen Farm (Dairy): Utilised over 133 acres for intercropping, forage diversification and herbal leys, resulting in a 29% uplift in Small Habitats Score and a reduction of over 34 tonnes of CO2e, averaging a 82 kg/hectare reduction in applied nitrogen across the farm system.

Results suggest that if this success was replicated across Puffin’s Welsh potato tonnage and around 20% of the Pembrokeshire Creamery supply chain, over 76 tonnes of nitrogen could be removed from the Western Cleddau catchment in one year.

Emma Adams, Head of Sustainability for Puffin Produce and Pembrokeshire Creamery, said:

“The pilot has proven that LENs is a pragmatic, tried-and-tested approach for delivering multiple environmental benefits on-farm. We are dealing with complex, interconnected systems, but this collaborative, inclusive approach has shown we can deliver both for nature and our food-producing businesses.

 

“By sharing the successes from our pilot farms, we hope that other stakeholders in the catchment area will join us to work on a range of positive outcomes, including water quality, biodiversity and decarbonisation. If we can build the programme to include more public and private sector partners, and more farms, we can significantly scale-up the beneficial impacts.

 

“By funding nature-based interventions, partners can materially improve water quality, enhance biodiversity, and secure the long-term resilience of Wales' agriculture.”

Wales LENs stakeholder workshops take place throughout the year. To express an interest in the initiative or attending contact freya.chambers@3keel.com.