Lupins will soon be cultivated in rotation in parts of the UK, providing farmers with real high-yield crops, potentially high profits, and soil-improving benefits.
Seed is a high-quality protein that can replace some imported soybeans used in livestock rations and is a sustainable substitute for the UK.
However, as Soya UK director David McNaughton pointed out, this is not a new crop. “It has been planted since 1996, about 600-1,200 hectares are planted each year.
“So this is not the case of a person with multiple fields. It is already an established crop and can be easily expanded because we know how to grow it.”
So why haven’t the spring crops taken off yet? Mr. McNaughton said there are two main reasons for the area to remain static.
The first is weed control. Until recently, since there was no legal chemical method, it proved to be a headache.
But in the past three to four years, the situation has improved with the expansion of the authorization of the three preemergence herbicides for secondary uses.
These are nirvana (imassamo + pendimethalin), S-foot (pendimethalin) and garmit (clomazone). There is also a post-emergence option in Lentagran (pyridine).
“We have pre-emergence plus reasonable post-emergence, so the current crop is comparable to peas.”
Another obstacle is the lack of market and insufficient demand from feed compounders. However, as Frontier and ABN conduct a feasibility study on white lupine (see panel) as livestock feed, the situation may change.
Mr. McNaughton said that one of the key factors in the popularity of lupin is its high quality. Lupins and soybeans both contain high levels of sulfur-containing amino acids, which are important for high-performance pig and poultry feed and high-yielding dairy cows. “They need rocket fuel, both soybeans and lupins.”
Therefore, if there is a mixing plant, Mr. McNaughton will work with buyers to see the area planted to crops expand to tens of thousands of acres.
So what will the UK industry look like? Mr. McNaughton believes that depending on geographic location, it will be a mixture of blue and white.
He explained that blue, white and yellow lupines are actually different species, just as wheat, barley and oats are different grains.
White lupin performs best, with a protein content of 38-40%, an oil content of 10%, and a yield of 3-4t/ha. “On a good day, they will reach 5t/ha.”
Therefore, whites are the first choice, but in Lincolnshire and Staffordshire, he recommends changing to blue because they mature early, especially if the grower no longer has dry diquat.
Mr. McNaughton said that white lupins are more tolerant and can grow in soil below pH 7.9, while blue can grow at pH 7.3.
“Fundamentally, once the roots encounter alkaline conditions, when you have chronic iron deficiency, don’t grow them on chalky slopes.”
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“On clay soil, they are okay, but on thick, rough, suitable clay. They are also subject to compaction.”
He pointed out that sand from Nottinghamshire, and sand from Blakelands and Dorset are ideal for crops. He added: “Most of the arable land in East Anglia, East Midlands and Cambridgeshire will perform well.”
There are many benefits for growers. The first is that their planting costs are low, and they require little input. Compared with other crops such as oilseed rape, they are basically not affected by pests and diseases.
One disease, anthracnose, can cause great harm if left untreated. But it is easy to be chemically identified and processed by alkaline fungicides.
Mr. McNaughton pointed out that lupin is better than beans in fixing nitrogen, 230-240kg/ha and 180kg/ha respectively. “You will see the wheat with the highest lupin yield.”
Like flaxseed, lupins are good for improving soil structure and releasing nutrients in the soil because the roots of beans emit organic acids.
As far as feed is concerned, they are obviously more valuable than beans, and compound feed traders say they believe that 1 kg of lupin is not equal to 1 kg of soybeans.
Therefore, Mr. McNaughton said that if you assume that they are somewhere between beans and soybeans, they are worth about £275/ton, assuming that soybeans are £350/ton, and beans are £200/ton.
According to this value, the profit will indeed increase, and if the output is 3.7t/ha, the total output is £1,017/ha. Therefore, with the cost of 250 pounds per hectare increasing, this crop looks attractive.
In short, lupin has the potential to become a valuable crop, improving arable rotation and soil health, and the size of the UK is similar to that of combinable peas.
But the situation has changed. Due to growing concerns about imported soybeans, more and more attention is being paid to sustainable protein sources in the UK.
This is why ABN (see panel) looks at crops again, and this may be exactly what is needed to make crops take off.
AB Agri has agronomy and feed compounding departments in Border Agriculture and ABN, and is currently studying the feasibility of incorporating lupine grown in the UK into livestock rations.
The team is looking for new and alternative sustainable protein sources that can be used in pig and poultry diets.
The purpose of the feasibility study is to use Frontier’s technical crop production expertise to study how to grow lupins, and then be able to scale up so that the compounders have confidence in the potential protein supply.
The study started in 2018, and last year, mainly in Kent, there were 240-280 hectares of white lupine on the ground. Drilling will be conducted in similar areas next spring.
According to Robert Nightingale, a crop and sustainability expert at Frontier, the white yield last year exceeded 4 tons per hectare.
Many lessons have been learned, including the need to choose the right location. Lupins are often more suitable for moderate to light soils because they do not like compaction.
“They are sensitive to pH, and if you are found, they will struggle. Our agronomists will check the suitability of each grower based on location and soil type before presenting this research.”
Crops do need a drink when they are established. But after it rains, they are more drought tolerant than peas and beans and have larger roots.
By controlling weeds, Frontier is looking for other herbicide options to expand its authorization for secondary uses.
“Not enough to fill the gap, but depending on the soil type, it may prove to be a useful crop.”
He believes that the final area may be about 50,000 hectares, which may be a crop close to the area of ​​combinable peas.
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