MANY more British farmers could find growing non-food crops an attractive alternative to mainstream arable crops in the wake of the latest round of EU reform, according to Melvyn Askew, head of non-food crop research for the Central Science Laboratory at Sand Hutton.

The idea will be one of the main topics of discussion in the nonfFood crops exhibit at the 2004 Royal Show at Stoneleigh from July 4-7.

With a range of growing contracts available from British companies, Mr Askew suggests farmers will start to adopt these and reduce the amount of traditional crops they grow.

He says many contracts are highly attractive and some of those for industrial oilseed rape offer the option of selling to the mainstream market if the price there is higher than the contracted price for bio-diesel, removing a major potential worry for the farmer.

As well as making a major contribution to their businesses, participating farmers could also help secure a valuable environmental benefit, by helping British industry cut millions of miles from their supply lines.

The potential benefits to industry include enabling companies to meet environmental and recycling targets; simplifying supply chains, and making it easier to complete quality and ethical audits, which means the companies contracting farmers to grow these crops have a ready audience.

But Mr Askew says many of the products now being produced from British crops actually offer superior performance to the components they are replacing.

CSL will showcase a range of these crops at the Royal Show, where the highlights will include daily fashion shows in which all the clothes - including jackets, jeans and lingerie - will be developed from British grown crops, among them stinging nettles.

"Most people regard nettles as weeds, but they produce one of the most durable natural fibres available," said Mr Askew. "Many of the backpacks soldiers used in the First World War were made from it. Now we're starting to put it to more stylish uses."

The non-food crops exhibit will also showcase the broad range of industrial products being grown on British farms, which includes novel uses for mainstream crops, as well as a wide range of novel crops grown specifically for industrial markets.

"Wheat is the source of all sorts of products, including a replacement for the carbon black used in car tyres; pharmaceuticals; beauty products such as lipstick, and insulation materials for building," he said. "In the case of the carbon black replacement, the wheat-based alternative is a major advantage as, not only does it replace a noxious chemical which is nasty to handle, but it also reduces the rolling resistance of the tyre, so any vehicle fitted with them will consume less fuel. The 'non-food crops' sector is full of double benefits like this."

Among the most successful specialist industrial crops is crambe (Abyssinian mustard) which produces oils used as slippage agents for plastic bags.

Springdale Crop Synergies, at Rudston, near Driffield, had 230 growers contracted to produce the crop last year for Croda Chemicals. The results were so good that Croda is now aiming to obtain as much of its requirements as possible from UK growers. Springdale is now looking to increase the number of farmers on growing contracts to 800, increasing the area grown from 10,000 acres in 2003 to 50,000 acres in future.

"This is an excellent example of the kind of progress that all kinds of industries could make if they reviewed their purchasing policies and looked at the wider picture," said Mr Askew. "If both parties talk to each other, British industry could soon be sourcing many more of its components from people much closer to it than their competitors.

"With recent EU reform starting the process of removing subsidies from production of crops, Britain's farmers will be looking to secure their futures by striking contracts with defined end markets. There is a huge amount of common ground here, and significant benefits to both sides."