Major new study shows the long-term impact of regenerative farming

The results of a new landmark study, conducted by the European Alliance for Regenerative Agriculture (EARA), and funded by EIT Food, have been revealed.

Benchmarking 78 regenerative farms in 14 countries against neighbouring and national average conventional farmers, the study, they say, demonstrates that Europe’s food security is not dependent on high-input chemical systems, but on a more holistic approach, working with nature.

Changing our global approach to farming, the researchers add, is increasingly important in the face of myriad crises impacting the industry. Already in 2025, they reveal, the European Commission has estimated the loss in agricultural revenue and therefore food security to be €60 billion in Europe, predicted to grow to a loss of €90 billion by 2050.

EARA’s study was undertaken by 11 researchers, supported by several top institutions and pioneering farmers. It shows, they say, that climate resilience, food security, and improved economic returns for farmers and for the food supply chain as a whole, are not only possible through regenerating forms of agriculture, but achievable, while also supplying the crucial foundations of climate adaptation for the whole of the European society (with regards to flood, heat and drought mitigation). 

Those practising agroecology, conservation agriculture, organic agriculture, market gardening, holistic planned grazing and other methods of farming, the study shows, exceeded in input reduction, biological improvements and yield resilience, while achieving regenerative outcomes in their particular context. 

The study introduced a new Regenerating Full Productivity Index (RFP) to describe all productivity factors for regenerating forms of agriculture. It also reports that a future common agriculture policy rewarding farmers based on agroecological performance could be designed and efficiently operationalised.

And it provides essential data for those within the farming industry.

Key takeaways include:

- Between 2020 and 2023 regenerative farmers achieved, on average, only 1% lower yields in terms of kilocalories and proteins, while using 62% less synthetic nitrogen fertilisers and 76% less pesticides per hectare.

- In comparison to average farmers in Europe who import more than 30% of livestock feed from outside the EU, those farmers in the study adopting regenerative practices, achieved yields using no feed from outside their bioregion.

- Those within the study (between 2018 and 2024) achieved more than 15% higher photosynthesis, soil cover and plant diversity compared to neighbouring fields.

- Surface temperatures on the farms studied were 0.3% cooler in summer months than surrounding agroecosystems.

- Between 2020 and 2023, participating farms delivered more than 27% higher Regenerating Full Productivity (RFP) than the average European farmer, with gains ranging from 24% to 38%.

It’s estimated within the study that a transition to regenerative farming in Europe could mitigate 141.3 million metric tonnes of CO2 per year – they say around 84% of the net greenhouse gas emissions within the EU agricultural sector. After three to seven years of transition, they predict the sector could become nature and climate positive.

Farmers within the study included Peter Fröhlich, who is producing 90 to 105 tonnes of sugar beet per hectare in Switzerland (more than his region’s average) using 78% less pesticide, 67% less synthetic nitrogen, and 33% less phosphorus. He is pioneering precision cover cropping and bio-fertilisation strategies alongside strip tilling.

Greek farmer, Sheila Darmos, is growing olives, oranges, lemons and limes with an average of 280% more yield per hectare without fertiliser or pesticide inputs, and 78% less fuel than average farmers on the same crops. She is pioneering organic syntropic agroforestry, thereby also reducing surface temperature in the summer, increasing water infiltration and holding capacities, and supporting biodiversity throughout the year.

Researcher Dr Daniel Sacristan, associate professor at the University of Valencia, said, “Together with the farmer-led association EARA we have conducted a study that embraces a new look towards agroecosystems, searching for innovative ways to stimulate rural areas and secure food security and climate adaptation by focusing on soil regeneration and biodiversity boosting.” 

“The EARA study shows that regenerative agriculture, correctly implemented, is more than a buzzword and fashion,” added Dr Theodor Friedrich, retired ambassador of the FAO, and independent reviewer of the study. “Instead it is a pathway towards an agriculture which can feed the world and be at the same time sustainable in all three dimensions - social, environmental and economic. And this can also be verified in a transparent way, as the study further shows.”