From weathering the storm to planning ahead: Turning climate challenge into on-farm action

Climate change is already reshaping UK farming and the Climate Change Committee (CCC) is calling for change. To support whole-business resilience, we have developed new climate resilience on‑farm action planners to help farmers move from awareness to practical, proportionate action. Alice Sin, AHDB’s Environmental Specialist, explains more.

The CCC recently published A Well-Adapted UK – an independent assessment of how prepared the UK is for the impacts of climate change. The message for farming is clear: climate risks are already being felt, and without faster, better‑supported adaptation, those risks will intensify.

Farming has always been shaped by the weather. But what many farmers are experiencing now feels different.

Seasons are less predictable, extremes are more frequent, and the margin for error is shrinking. Hotter, drier summers, warmer, wetter winters and more intense rainfall are no longer abstract projections; they are already affecting productivity, animal welfare, crop establishment and business resilience across the UK.

When the unpredictable becomes predictable

For Tim May, a fourth-generation dairy farmer at the Kingsclere Estate in Hampshire, the shift has been impossible to ignore. He said: 

“Weather patterns are changing, with longer periods of wet and longer periods of dry. Now it’s no surprise to be short of moisture - it’s the norm.

"The unpredictable weather has now become predictable, so the challenge is to have enough food for the cows in these droughts and to change the way we farm to adapt to these changes.”

With wetter springs, earlier, longer summer droughts and thin, flinty and chalky soils, what once felt like occasional challenges were becoming the default. The farm’s traditional system was no longer fit for the future.

Rather than firefighting year after year, Tim chose to step back and rethink how his farm worked with a changing climate, not against it.

Redesigning a system for resilience

Tim farms more than 1,000 hectares, split between cereals and forage, supporting a 420‑cow dairy herd.

Historically, the business followed a conventional arable rotation, with beef and sheep grazing temporary grasses and a small area of permanent pasture. On the farm’s light soils, yields were modest and increasingly vulnerable to weather extremes.

In 2017, Tim undertook a whole‑system rethink. The farm converted to organic production, beef and sheep enterprises were replaced with a first‑generation dairy system, and the land was split between drought‑tolerant oats and four‑year multi‑species herbal leys to support grazing cows year‑round.

As conditions continued to change, the system continued to adapt:

• Westerwolds ryegrass was added to establish quickly in cold springs and protect slower‑growing species
• Lucerne was introduced for its deep rooting and drought tolerance
• Ley mixes were refined to balance early growth, resilience and feed quality

These changes stabilised forage supply and improved performance under increasingly variable conditions. You can read his story in full. 

Moving from awareness to action

It’s this kind of structured reflection that helped Tim identify where incremental tweaks wouldn’t be enough and where more fundamental change could deliver long‑term resilience.

The new CCC findings go beyond warnings. They point to a more fundamental challenge: while expectations on farmers to adapt are increasing, the practical support needed to turn ambition into action is not yet keeping pace.

Understanding the risk is one thing. Knowing where to start is another.

That’s why we developed the climate resilience on‑farm action planners – practical, farmer‑friendly decision support tools designed to help turn climate awareness into informed, proportionate action.

Rather than telling farmers what to do, the planners support structured thinking about:

• Which climate‑related hazards matter most to a specific farm
• Where the key vulnerabilities sit today
• What actions are already in place
• What short, medium and longer‑term steps could strengthen resilience

Why planning now matters

Extreme weather events in recent years have shown how quickly conditions can disrupt even well‑run systems.

Drought has forced early use of winter feed, heat stress has reduced livestock performance, and prolonged wet conditions have damaged soils, delayed drilling and increased disease pressure.

What the on‑farm action planners encourage is not wholesale change overnight, but structured, forward‑looking thinking:

• Spotting vulnerabilities before they become problems
• Prioritising actions that deliver multiple benefits
• Embedding climate considerations into wider business planning

Importantly, the planners also capture what farmers are already doing well, from soil management and forage choice to infrastructure and livestock strategies, ensuring good practice is recognised, not overlooked.

Supporting better business conversations

Building climate resilience isn’t just about managing risk on farm. It’s increasingly part of wider conversations with advisers, supply chains and lenders.

There is growing interest from the financial sector in how farms assess and manage climate risk, with some financial institutions beginning to integrate climate risk into lending decisions.

Being able to evidence actions through a clear, structured planner can support future discussions and decision‑making.

Used alongside existing business resilience tools, the Climate resilience on‑farm action planners provide a common framework for these conversations, grounded in the realities of UK farming.

A practical starting point

Climate change can feel overwhelming, particularly when impacts vary from farm to farm and year to year. The action planners are not about predicting the future with certainty – they are about being better prepared.

Bridging the gap between national risk assessments and day‑to‑day farm decisions will be essential if the UK is to become truly climate resilient and deliver food security.

The task now is to ensure that farmers are not only being asked to adapt but are being equipped to do so with confidence.

Start your plan now

Climate Resilience On‑Farm Action Planners are available for: