At the end of January, GrowSave hosted its first webinar of 2026 with the title ‘From Standing Charges to Smart Choices’, led by Technical Lead, Eirinn Rusbridge, and Operations Lead, Tom Ovenden.
In case you missed it, this blog summarises some of the key insights that were discussed.
Energy Markets
Eirinn opened with a review of the current energy market and the recent trends that have affected prices, a key focus point for growers. Recent discourse centres around Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charges and their proposed increase so there was in-depth coverage on how and why these charges affect you. For greater clarity on this, please visit the TNUoS calculator developed by Eirinn and the NFU Energy team to understand how these changes will impact your business. Visit the TNUoS calculator
In February, NFU Energy hosted a webinar titled ‘Standing charges revisited: What’s changed and what comes next‘ which went into greater depth on standing charges, the impact on high energy users, and the support available to growers, It’s available to watch in full on the NFU Energy YouTube channel.
GrowSave
The webinar then moved on to discussing the GrowSave programme. This included a review of the 2025 workshops on dehumidification and carbon reporting, the visit to the Amsterdam GreenTech event, and technical updates on glasshouse technology.
Eirinn also laid out the plans for GrowSave through 2026 including back-to-basics of energy management, potential industry collaboration on research projects alongside Greenhouse Innovation Consortium and DEFRA, and planning for the upcoming study tour to explore innovative Dutch glasshouses.
GASTRO
During the session, Eirinn introduced the GASTRO Innovate UK project, which the projects team at NFU Energy leads, in conjunction with University of Lincoln and Pilkington Glass.
The project analyses the energy performance of the glasshouse heating system and the heat retention of the innovative glass utilised in the roof, with early data proving promising. The research is followed by dissemination of the findings throughout the horticulture industry.
NFU Energy and University of Lincoln will be presenting early results of GASTRO at Agri-tech and Food Technology in Eastern England Innovation Showcase.
Funding and incentives
Tom covered the slim pickings of grants and incentives available to farmers and growers, with funding schemes mostly limited to ADOPT and Farming in Protected Landscapes.
Despite government focus switching to environmental-targeted funds and one-time grants over ongoing incentives, the number of opportunities remain low. This means several growers remain reliant on existing schemes such as the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and Climate Change Levy (CCL) tax relief.
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