A crop is only as good as the soil it is grown from

Maintaining and enhancing soil quality is vital in providing customers with the finest fresh produce. Considering the current environmental and financial climate, the challenge is ensuring natural and financial resources are used most efficiently to achieve this. Fortunately, techniques that improve soil structure and fertility are often also sustainable (but there are associated extra input costs).

A few techniques could include:
1. Cover cropping - replenishes the soil with organic matter and naturally increases essential nutrients.
2. Reducing cultivation - fuel usage is reduced, less carbon will be released into the atmosphere, and soil structure will be improved.
3. Replacing chemical fertilisers with compost or farmyard manure can increase soil organic matter. Unfortunately, it is much more difficult to precisely balance nutrients by this method and improvements in application methods are needed.