Tom Amery, Managing Director of The Watercress Company in Hampshire, has made a significant leap into precision agriculture by investing £80,000 in three Agras T50 drones—manufactured by DJI in China—each capable of carrying up to 50 kg of fertiliser, seed, or feed, thanks to four rotary blades.
“The idea came from an Instagram video,” says Amery, looking admiringly at one of three huge drones he has bought to help grow watercress on a Hampshire farm.
He anticipates that drone-based fertiliser delivery—applied to roughly 20 hectares spanning 12 farms in Hampshire and Dorset—will be remarkably efficient:
“Distributing potash or phosphate by drone rather than by hand will be ‘two to three times faster than walking’.”
This approach is expected to minimise waste and support more sustainable yields for the company, which produces 25 million bags of salad annually.
Beyond operational efficiency, Amery highlights the human impact: “It’s about staff retention, taking out an unfavourable part of the job,” he adds. “We will pay the operators more. With more pay, staff are more likely to stay.”
While drone-based agriculture is commonplace in parts of North and South America, it’s still novel in the UK. The company is awaiting approval from the Civil Aviation Authority, and has already trained a licensed pilot: 20-year-old George Mathews. Once authorised, the drones will fly pre-programmed routes across the farms.
Innovation at the company extends beyond drone tech. They’re piloting AI-powered multispectral cameras, which capture invisible light bands to generate thermal-style “heatmaps” of the fields. AI then interprets these images to detect early signs of crop stress or disease.
This technological leap aligns with the National Farmers’ Union’s stance that agri‑tech is essential for enhancing competitiveness and sustainability:
“Driving forward productivity to build domestic food production should be on every government’s list. Among our European neighbours there is evidence that we are falling behind and are not as productive in some areas,” says NFU President Tom Bradshaw.
In line with this, the UK government’s newly revised Industrial Strategy identifies agri‑tech and precision breeding as key growth areas, with £200 million allocated by Defra for farming innovation through 2030.
“Driving innovation and growth in agri‑tech is a win‑win for the nation.… we can boost the profits of farmers and growers through innovation,” said Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner.
However, this funding pledge follows a £100 million (2.7%) cut to Defra’s core farming budget in England, announced just days earlier—a move welcomed with cautious optimism by the NFU.
Tom Amery remains cautious about where the money will flow:
“Lots of this funding is often driven by high‑level innovation, and often lots of that doesn’t make it to the farm gate or doesn’t result in increased levels of production and productivity.”
Most of the drone investment was privately financed; only £20,000 came from a Shared Prosperity Fund via the local council. As a partnership (not a corporation), the company cannot claim R&D tax credits.
Despite financial and regulatory hurdles, Amery holds out hope for transformative breakthroughs:
“Innovation is usually driven by a desire to overcome a problem.… I think we get one major innovation every five to 10 years, one that is a game‑changer.”
