Sainsbury's On-Farm Practice Verification and Risk Identification Platform

Overview

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Sainsbury’s, the UK’s second-biggest retailer, is running an open innovation challenge on the Leading Edge Only platform for an on-farm practice verification and risk identification platform. Many farmers already follow strong water stewardship practices, but audits and paperwork cannot evidence this at scale or capture real-world, event-driven risks. Sainsbury’s wants a solution that brings fragmented farm and environmental data into a single platform to verify practices, identify risk proactively, and support data-driven decisions across its supply chains. Solutions at all stages are welcome, with particular interest in those ready to pilot; applications close 25 September 2026.

Focus Areas

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• Verifying on-farm activities and behaviours, including flagging high-risk actions such as slurry spreading during unsuitable weather or soil conditions
• Integrating and analysing environmental data streams such as weather, soil characteristics and moisture, satellite imagery, farm management data, and water quality
• Providing a clear, real-time picture of how on-farm decisions and environmental conditions contribute to water quality risk

Benefits

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• Pilot with a major UK retailer
• Opportunity to scale if the pilot succeeds
• Contribution to an approach focused on proving good practice rather than catching farmers out

How to Apply

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• Submit a solution through the challenge page on the Leading Edge Only platform by 25 September 2026.