Plan A is M&S’s published sustainability programme, and Plan A for Farming is its farming strand. This page covers what M&S says there and the Scope 1, 2 and 3 terms around it. It makes no claim that M&S requires, accepts or rewards farm solar.
What M&S publishes
M&S’s Plan A for Farming page (undated) describes a five-year commitment in four pillars, including the aim that all British products on its shelves come from farms using regenerative practices. Farming for the Future is a five-year initiative with 200 farmers and growers, 50 of whom receive funded monitoring and expert advice, and the page cites M&S’s net zero by 2040 commitment. It asks farmers to measure and improve impacts on biodiversity, soil, water and carbon, and does not mention on-farm renewable energy.
Scope 1, 2 and 3 on a farm
Three terms recur. Scope 1: direct emissions from owned or controlled sources. Scope 2: emissions from the generation of purchased electricity the business consumes. Scope 3: everything else its activities cause at sources it does not own or control. The Corporate Standard requires scopes 1 and 2 to be reported and gives companies flexibility over scope 3.
What an on-farm array changes
Illustrative arithmetic: if an array lets a farm stop buying 25,000 kWh a year, the DESNZ 2026 UK electricity factor (0.13096 kg CO2e per kWh, Scope 2) gives 3,274 kg, about 3.27 tonnes CO2e. DESNZ lists transmission and distribution losses separately as Scope 3 (0.01299), so check whether a request wants them added. This is a worked example, not a forecast.
What to ask your buyer
Questions for your technical manager:
- what the template asks for, and in what units;
- whether last year’s submission can be a baseline;
- how electricity from an on-farm array should be recorded;
- whether farm electricity is classed under agriculture or energy in the inventory;
- how the figures are checked, and by whom.
Do not size an array around a supplier scheme
The M&S page cited does not mention on-farm renewable energy, so nothing there says solar is required, accepted or rewarded. Build the case for an array on the farm’s own numbers: load profile, roof (solar panel weight and roof loading), price baseline (farm solar cost guide) and tax (grants and funding). If a buyer asks for evidence, supply meter readings and the DESNZ arithmetic above.
For the building and system, see solar panels for agricultural buildings. Suppliers to Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons will find the same checklist on their pages.
| Point on this page | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Plan A for Farming 2030: all British products from regenerative farms; net zero by 2040 | Marks & Spencer, Plan A for Farming | undated |
| Farming for the Future: 200 farmers over five years, 50 with funded monitoring; no on-farm renewables mentioned | Marks & Spencer, Plan A for Farming | undated |
| GHG Protocol: what the scopes mean, where purchased food sits, and the two Scope 2 methods | GHG Protocol Corporate Standard p.27, Scope 3 Standard, Scope 2 Guidance | undated; 2015 |
| DESNZ factors for UK electricity: 0.13096 kg CO2e/kWh (Scope 2), 0.01299 for T&D losses (Scope 3) | DESNZ conversion factors 2026 | 11 Jun 2026, updated 31 Jul 2026 |
Common questions
Does M&S require farm solar?
Nothing on the Plan A for Farming page says so. It asks farmers to measure and improve impacts on biodiversity, soil, water and carbon. Ask your buyer in writing.
Do exported kWh reduce my Scope 2 figure?
Not on the GHG Protocol definition, which limits Scope 2 to purchased electricity the business consumes. Ask your M&S buyer whether exports should be recorded separately.
Is an array Scope 1, 2 or 3 for my farm?
Mostly Scope 2: under the GHG Protocol that scope is purchased electricity the business consumes, so self-used array kWh replace purchases and exports do not. Fuel you burn on the farm is Scope 1.
Other UK supermarket and processor supplier pages
See our coverage of the major UK retailer and processor supplier schemes: