# Rothamsted Research

the Broadbalk wheat experiment — running since 1843 — provides 180 years of soil organic matter data under mineral vs organic fertilisation, calibrating long-term soil-carbon models.

Source: https://en.bioecon.ru/companies/rothamsted-research/
Updated: 2026-07-08

- Country: United Kingdom

## Verifiable facts

| Fact | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Affiliation | Rothamsted Research is an independent charitable company supported by the Lawes Agricultural Trust and primarily funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) | https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/corporate-information-and-funding |
| Research focus | Long-term agricultural field experiments, specifically studying winter wheat, crop nutrient responses, soil organic matter, weed ecology, and microbial ecology | https://www.ecologicalcontinuitytrust.org/broadbalk, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/national-capability/the-long-term-experiments, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/maintaining-wheat-yields-possible-over-many-years |
| Facility | The Broadbalk Wheat Experiment, Rothamsted Sample Archive, Electronic Rothamsted Archive (e-RA), and UK Environmental Change Network sites at Rothamsted | https://www.ecologicalcontinuitytrust.org/broadbalk, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/national-capability/the-long-term-experiments, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/maintaining-wheat-yields-possible-over-many-years |
| Grant | Funded by the UKRI-BBSRC (e.g., award BBS/E/RH/23NB0007) and the Lawes Agricultural Trust (which provides annual research grants and capital grants) | https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/802038/full-print, https://www.era.rothamsted.ac.uk/dataset/rbk1/01-BKSOIL, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/corporate-information-and-funding, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/maintaining-wheat-yields-possible-over-many-years |
| Publications | Extensive series of datasets (e.g., Broadbalk soil chemical properties, annual crop yields) and peer-reviewed articles published in journals such as Advances in Agronomy and European Journal of Agronomy | https://www.era.rothamsted.ac.uk/Broadbalk, https://www.era.rothamsted.ac.uk/experiment/rbk1 |
| Principal staff | Andrew Gregory (Principal Investigator/Site Manager), Sarah Perryman (Data Manager), Margaret Glendining (Data Manager), and Paul Poulton (Researcher) | https://www.ecologicalcontinuitytrust.org/broadbalk, https://www.era.rothamsted.ac.uk/dataset/rbk1/01-BKSOIL, https://www.era.rothamsted.ac.uk/experiment/rbk1, https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/national-capability/the-long-term-experiments |
| Headcount | Rothamsted Research employs between 250 and 499 people (approx. 373-376 employees) | https://gender-pay-gap.service.gov.uk/employers/10619/reporting-year-2023, https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/constituency-search/-/charity-details/802038/full-print |

Independent sources: ecologicalcontinuitytrust.org, era.rothamsted.ac.uk, gender-pay-gap.service.gov.uk, register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk

## Technologies

- [Soil carbon MRV](https://en.bioecon.ru/technology/soil-carbon-mrv/)