Case studies | Fera Science

Maize Lethal Necrosis was spreading through East African farms at alarming speed — but standard diagnostic methods kept returning negative results. Fera applied next generation sequencing to find out why.

Through the implementation of HorizonScan, the organisation unlocked the capability to conduct precise, structured assessments across various parameters, such as risk categories, geographic regions, and specific hazards.

Award-winning Lincolnshire vegetable grower, AH Worth, has been striving to improve soil health, cut chemical use and protect biodiversity with support from Fera. Farm manager, Simon Day, and Senior Plant Nematologist at Fera's, Bex Lawson, explain how they have been working in partnership to assess regenerative agriculture practices using nematodes as biological soil health indicators.

The British Beet Research Organisation (BBRO) is a non-profit-making company set up jointly by British Sugar plc (BS) and the National Farmers’ Union (NFU). BBRO’s aims are to develop research to solely benefit the UK’s home-grown sugar beet crop.

Fera worked with industry to define and validate food safety approaches for vertical farming systems. The project established a consistent framework aligned to the specific risks and operating conditions of controlled environment production.This project delivered species-level identification, improved monitoring, and predictive modelling to understand risk and support Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The result: clear insight into which species are causing damage, when and where risk is highest, and how to respond with targeted, sustainable strategies.

Fera's experts explore the scale of the food waste crisis, the challenges businesses face in managing organic waste streams, and why insect bioconversion sits at the top of the food waste hierarchy as the most value-recovering solution available.

Fera investigated combined biopesticide and insecticide approaches to manage cabbage stem flea beetle in oilseed rape. The project demonstrated restored efficacy of pyrethroids and identified practical strategies to improve pest control and crop yield. The result: clear insight into which species are causing damage, when and where risk is highest, and how to respond with targeted, sustainable strategies.

Wireworm damage is increasing across UK crops, with earlier impact and wider distribution limiting both yield and regenerative practices. This project delivered species-level identification, improved monitoring, and predictive modelling to understand risk and support Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The result: clear insight into which species are causing damage, when and where risk is highest, and how to respond with targeted, sustainable strategies.

Castle Howard Estate in Yorkshire worked with Fera's LAND360 team to map the biodiversity and carbon footprint of its 9,000-acre mixed-use estate covering farmland, woodland and parkland. The project created the natural capital baseline the Estate needed to plan its long-term land management future.

Wireworm remains one of the most difficult soil pests to predict and manage in UK agriculture. Wireworm II builds on a three-year collaborative project completed in 2025, moving from research into real-world application.

We partnered with one of the UK's leading housing developers to design and implement an effective BNG plan — from initial habitat baseline through to monitoring and reporting. Download the case study to find out how.