Course summary

Students on this programme will gain a well-grounded understanding of the science and management of sustainable crop production systems, and be able to apply this to real-life situations. In your first year, you will focus on gaining a sound theoretical and practical understanding of sustainable agricultural production. You will develop your knowledge and skills in the foundations of agricultural science and production, before specialising in either Dairy Herd Management, Crop Management or Livestock Management in your second year. In your second year, the Crop Management pathway combines science and crop production expertise surrounding the principles of Integrated Crop Management in field-based crop production and its holistic approach to the sustainable agronomic management of crops. Your studies will focus on crop protection, soil health, nutrition, genetics and waste management, whilst making key connections to Environmental Land Management, Regenerative Agriculture, and associated Eco-Systems Services. You will later explore the principles and applied practices of Protected Growing in our state-of-the-art hydroponic Vertical Farm and Glasshouse systems as complementary or alternative soil-less cropping systems. These systems are growing in popularity due to their potential use in the plant-based alternative and “Urban Agriculture” markets, as well for use by livestock industries to produce sustainable alternative forages. The Applied Crop Investigation module will provide an opportunity for you to engage in a research project at University Centre Reaseheath, in association with the Institute of Sustainability & Food Innovation, enabling you to develop your skills in research methods by conducting applied research in a specific area of crop management. Rural business management is integrated throughout your foundation degree, covering areas such as Diversification, Marketing, Human Resources and Accounting. These skills are hugely important in the assessment, monitoring and management of successful agricultural businesses and are often looked for by employers in the food industry. You will also explore the field-to-fork concept and methods of adding value to produce and the overall supply chain. Upon graduation you will be armed with the toolkit required to progress the crop industry forward in a role in crop management, as well as be able to progress to the BSc (Hons) in Sustainable Agriculture Top-up degree. The Sustainable Agriculture programmes are based at University Centre Reaseheath’s rural Cheshire campus which has had over £80 million in investment in recent years, including: £2 million University Centre teaching facilities £8 million Advanced Engineering and Agri-Tech Centre  £8 million National Centre for Horticulture, the Environment and Sustainable Technology, including an automated, hydroponic, LED glasshouse and 2021 commissioned 200m2 Vertical Farming Centre £7 million Food Centre featuring commercial dairy processing facilities, butchery and bakery  Mixed commercial farm of 272 hectares of grass and arable land including grass, clover, maize, forage peas, wheat and barley  Robotic milking facility (commissioned in 2021) consisting of two Lely A5 Automated Milking Robots, Lely Discovery slurry collector and Lely Juno silage pusher, milking approximately 80 pedigree Holstein cows  Conventional 32/32 Rapid-Exit parlour system milking 130 pedigree Holstein cows  Expanding beef-from-dairy beef unit  A commercial flock of 350 New Zealand Highlanders Anaerobic digester