Break crop with staying power: the rise of maize for AD

The break crop crisis is real. Oilseed rape has carried heightened risk since neonicotinoids were banned in 2015. Spring barley struggles in drought, while beans and oats follow predictable boom-and-bust cycles, everyone grows them, then prices crash. 

Michael Jarmuz, chair of the Maize Growers’ Association (MGA) and feedstock development lead at Future Biogas, said: “There’s an increasing struggle to get any profit from break crops. Rotations have become tighter and tighter over the last 40 years. People know they need to diversify for the health of their business, but they can’t make money doing it. It’s a real catch-22.” 

Enter maize for anaerobic digestion – a rapidly maturing market offering up to 15-year contracts with inflation-linked pricing, zero harvest machinery investment, and digestate return. 

What began as a niche option has now reached a serious scale. Future Biogas alone works with more than 400 farmers across Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, and Norfolk, purchasing around half a million tonnes of silage annually.  

From growers supplying just 10 acres to businesses farming more than 2,500 acres, AD contracts are delivering not just competitive economics but genuine security. 

“We’re working with growers today that we started working with 13 years ago. That kind of stability speaks volumes,” Mr Jarmuz added. 

What’s driving the switch? 

“The thing that’s making people explore alternative crops like maize is predominantly economics,” the expert explained. 

“Wheat and other commodity prices are under pressure, traditional break crops aren’t delivering profits, and resistance in ryegrass & blackgrass is becoming even more widespread.  

“Meanwhile, AD plants offer contracts that remove volatility from 15–20% of the rotation, and cultural controls for many of the pest, weed and disease issues that affect growers in our key growing areas.” 

There’s also a strong agronomic case. Mr Jarmuz said: “Maize offers alternative chemistry, and it’s planted late in the spring. That breaks the natural cycle of grassweeds, which germinate in autumn and early spring.” 

Growth in the sector is coming from both new entrants and experienced maize growers expanding. “We’ve got growers who’ve grown grain maize for 30 years but are now growing it for AD. Agronomically it’s identical, but commercially it can be less volatile and therefore a much stronger option,” he continued. 

Contract advantage 

What really sets AD apart is not agronomy; it is commercial structure. Contract lengths of up to 15 years help remove annual price negotiation and provide CPI-linked certainty. 

Mr “We have a team of 13 feedstock specialists who, alongside a wide range of other tasks, assess crops for maturity and instruct contractors where to harvest,” he explained. “We pay the contractors directly. Growers don’t have to think about it – they grow the crop, and we manage the rest.” 

For farms running tight machinery schedules, that matters. “If a business suddenly has 20% less area to harvest with a combine, they can keep that machine longer or farm more land. We’re seeing maize used as a real strategic tool in the rotation.” 

It’s an effective circular model. “Farmers supplying our AD plants generally receive digestate back in proportion to the feedstock they supply. If you grow 10% of the crop, you receive 10% of the digestate. Growers pay for haulage and spreading, but the digestate itself is free. 

Mr Jarmuz explained: “In the east of England, we simply don’t have the manure volumes we need. For growers in areas like this, digestate is a big win.” 

Initially, this process can be a learning curve. “Arable farmers are used to fertiliser in a bag. Nobody’s really explained how expensive organic material is to move and apply – it’s big and bulky. But once they’ve used it, we have growers almost fighting over it. Few other, if any, crops return nutrients and organic matter as part of the contract.” 

‘Hyper-local supply’ 

AD operates on what Mr Jarmuz calls a “hyper-local” model. “We’re typically working within a 10–15-mile radius maximum. The average distance travelled by crop is between five and seven miles.” 

That proximity creates natural growing clusters. “Our smallest grower grows 10 acres, so there’s scope for farms of almost any scale,” he added. 

For a typical AD plant, maize accounts for 70–75% of feedstock, with the remainder coming from wholecrop rye, barley, and grass.  

Support network 

Unlike cereals, maize has no AHDB recommended list, only a descriptive one. The MGA fills that gap with variety selection guides and site-specific tools. 

“Future Biogas has long supported the association, sponsoring research that falls outside the normal levy-funded work done by AHDB. 

“The MGA isn’t afraid to challenge the status quo. It’s not just the quality of the information; it’s the relevance,” the expert added. 

Mr Jarmuz is clear that maize for AD is not without challenges, particularly for first-time growers. He believes understanding contract terms is the biggest hurdle. 

“How is the crop being paid for? Is it fresh tonnes off the field? Is it adjusted dry matter? At what percentage?” he asks. “We adjust maize to 35%; others might use 32%. It’s just different trading to what most arable farmers are used to, so having advice and support from the likes of the MGA is invaluable.” 

Mr Jarmuz has an impressive experience in the process: a farmer who grew maize, an agronomist who advised on it, a contractor who harvested it, and now an industry leader managing feedstock for one of the UK’s largest AD operators. 

“I’ve done a bit of everything when it comes to maize,” he added. “There’s no getting away from me.” 

For the 400-plus farmers working with Future Biogas – and hundreds more across the UK – that experience represents something increasingly valuable: proven systems delivering security in uncertain times. 

“People need diversity in their rotation. The challenge is finding crops that break disease and weed cycles while actually making money,” Mr Jarmuz continues. 

Maize for AD is not competing with wheat for the best land or the highest margins – it does not need to. Instead, it is providing a viable, profitable break crop option where few existed before. 

“It’s no longer a niche crop. It’s a really good option on light, free-draining soils where spring barley is pretty miserable in drought,” the expert said.

Whether maize for AD suits a particular farm depends on proximity to AD infrastructure, soil type, and rotation needs. For those where it fits, the offer is simple: agronomic benefit, economic resilience, and long-term contract security. 

MGA Annual Conference 2026 will take place on 4th and 5th February. Tickets are available via the MGA website. Find more information here. 

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