Aterra AI is reimagining the UK Food System - developing digital infrastructure and AI tools that shift profit back to farmers, reconnect local supply chains, and demonstrate how intelligent technology can drive systemic transformation for social good.
The UK food system is broken. We're using AI and digital technology to rebuild it.
The Challenge
The UK food system is broken.
Farmers aren't failing. The system is designed to fail them
19% drop
in Farm incomes in England in 2023 (£1 billion loss)
1700farms
have disappeared in since 2010.
£268bn
spent treating diet-related diseases in the UK annually
11million
people in the UK struggle to afford food
85%
of UK Livestock live in Intensive Farming Systems
3million
tonnes of topsoil is lost in the UK every year
1in7deaths
in the UK are diet related
60%decline
in farmland bird populations since 1970
100harvests
left in UK soils (scientific estimate)
This isn't sustainable economically, environmentally, or socially.
Fixing it requires shifting power back to the people who feed us to ensure UK food security.
Our Approach
We're using the power of AI to develop digital tools that deliver real value to farmers now.
We are also creating the digital infrastructure that redirects profit and control back to UK farmers so their hard work is profitable long-term.
01
Practical AI-powered tools
designed with farmers
Digital solutions that address real farming challenges, from navigating complex grant schemes to proving sustainability credentials, from benchmarking costs to simplifying regulatory compliance.
02
Farmer-owned digital
ecosystem that transforms
Farmer-owned digital infrastructure where farmers control their data, govern decision-making democratically, and capture the value their work generates.
This ensures technology serves farmers rather than extracting profit from them.
Where We Are Now
Aterra AI is in the partnership-building and co-design phase.
We're not selling finished products, we're seeking collaborators to build them together.
Farmers
Across arable, livestock, horticulture, and mixed operations to co-design tools with us that solve real problems, not theoretical ones.
Farming Networks
Committed to farmer empowerment and sustainable agriculture who understand that systemic change requires enabling infrastructure
Mission Aligned Funders
Who recognise that transforming food systems requires patient capital and cooperative ownership structures
Technology Partners
Committed to open standards, data sovereignty, and building for transformational social impact
Academic Researchers
Studying agricultural innovation, food systems, or cooperative governance who want real-world testing grounds for farmer-centered solution
Existing Aligned Businesses
Delivering services online and committed to transparent supply chains and fair value distribution to producers
Aterra is seeking technology partners and existing businesses, aligned with our mission and interested in being part of our ecosystem and transformational change.
Our Paper: Putting Farmers First - Building Digital Infrastructure to Transform the UK Food System
Explores UK food system failures and the economic pressures facing farmers and rural communities, making the case for farmer-governed digital technology as a driver of systemic change and social good.
Dr. Sophia Fannon-Howell, Founder & CEO
Sophia founded Aterra AI to rebuild a fairer and more secure UK food system.
With 20+ years leading digital innovation in energy and commodities, she saw how corporations use technology to maximise profits in complex supply chains. As a farm animal welfare trustee, she learned how razor-thin margins force even conscientious farmers into intensive systems.
The root cause: farmers create the value but earn the smallest share of the food pound. This undermines rural livelihoods, public health, environmental sustainability, biodiversity, and economic resilience.
Aterra AI builds farmer-governed technology that shifts profits back to those who grow our food to rebalance the system.
Aterra's mission: Make UK farming economically sustainable, environmentally regenerative, and fundamentally fair.
PhD Geology (Manchester University) | Executive Education (Oxford Saïd Business School) | 20+ years digital innovation leadership
