Growing UK rice ‘a novel idea to beat climate change’

Posted 14/10/2025

A unique experiment could change Britain’s eating habits at the same time as protecting farming and food supplies from climate change.

That’s the view of Midlands green energy expert Ron Fox who said: “I would never have expected to see paddy fields in the UK and rice being cultivated in this country. But it could be a very novel and effective solution.”

Nine varieties of rice, including risotto, basmati and sushi, are being grown in four small specially constructed mini fields on a farm near Ely in the Cambridgeshire Fens. They are due to be harvested later this month.

Scientists from the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) are working with local farmers Craig and Sarah Taylor and Nadine Mitschunas, the UK’s first and only rice-grower, as part of an ambitious trial to see if Britain can produce enough food while protecting agricultural livelihoods in a time of climate change. As well as rice, the team are trialling other crops, including lettuce and hybrid willow that grow in waterlogged conditions.

The government is watching the results with interest, and officials from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs have already visited the site.

The rice trials research is part of the AgZero+ project, which is jointly funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).

The Cambridgeshire Fens are some of the most productive farming lands in the UK, producing a third of the fresh vegetables grown in Britain worth around £1.2 billion per year.

However, this has required draining these wetlands, resulting in the loss of large amounts of peat, which is now slowly drying out every year.

The effect is that carbon dioxide, which has been stored in these wetland soils over thousands of years, is being released into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.

The Fens originally held around 150,000 hectares of peatland, but now only 24,000 hectares of peat are thought to remain, and this figure is decreasing year by year.

But by flooding the peat soils and growing rice, greenhouse gases could stay locked in the wet soil.

However, one problem is that growing rice produces methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas. However, initial results from the trials so far suggest the rice crop is not producing any more emissions than it helps lock away.

The rice plants did well in the hot, sunny weather this year, which the Met Office says was the hottest in the UK since records began in 1884.

“It is interesting,” said Ron, of Noreus Ltd on the University of Keele Science and Innovation Park, “that growing rice ten years ago in the UK would not have been viable. But in ten years’ time it could be if average temperatures warm by between 2 and 4C compared to pre-industrial levels, a scenario that many scientists say is likely.

“It could be a radical breakthrough in the problem of how to protect the UK farming and food supplies, while also addressing the huge impacts they have on the environment and climate.”

The UK food system, including imports, accounts for 38 per cent of UK greenhouse gas emissions, and agriculture 11.7 per cent.

For those wanting more advice about dealing with climate change call Ron on 0845 474 6641 or contact us here

Caption: Rice one! A paddy field in the UK. Picture supplied by UKCEH