Customer case study

Modernising Pulse Benchmarking: How PGRO Built the Pulse Performance Network

A new performance network for the pulse sector

How do you modernise one of UK agriculture’s longest-running benchmarking programmes?

This case study explores how PGRO used YAGRO Exchange to simplify field data collection, improve data quality and build the Pulse Performance Network around whole-field benchmarking and actionable insights for growers.

How do you modernise one of UK agriculture’s longest-running benchmarking programmes?

From YEN to PPN

Yield Enhancement Networks (YENs) were launched in 2012 to encourage the sharing of knowledge between growers, helping farms learn from one another and improve crop performance.

The pea and bean YENs were developed through collaboration between ADAS and PGRO. Since their launch, they have helped growers better understand how their crops perform, explore the factors influencing yield and identify practical opportunities to improve performance.

From September 2026, PGRO will take over sole responsibility for running the pea and bean network. Rather than simply continuing the existing programme, it is evolving it into the Pulse Performance Network (PPN).

This change reflects a broader focus on crop performance rather than yield alone. PPN will compare each field against its individual yield potential, recognising the influence of location, soil, climate and other growing conditions. The aim is to give growers clearer analysis about where improvements may be possible.

Yield Enhancement Networks (YENs) were launched in 2012 to encourage the sharing of knowledge between growers, helping farms learn from one another and improve crop performance.

Understanding the Challenge

The quality of any benchmarking programme depends on the information provided by its participants. However, the process of collecting that information had become a barrier for some growers.

Under the previous system, much of the information was entered at the end of the season. Growers could find themselves sitting at a computer trying to recall drilling dates, crop development, product applications and management decisions from months earlier.

Feedback to PGRO was almost unanimously “Can we not just do this in the field?”

Responding to the feedback, PGRO needed technology that would give growers the option to record information when it was most convenient. That could mean entering it from a phone while in the field, adding it gradually throughout the season or completing it from a desktop once the crop was in the shed.

The organisation also wanted to improve the structure and consistency of the resulting dataset. Greater use of dropdown menus, defined answer options and conditional questions would reduce unnecessary typing and limit the amount of data cleansing required before analysis.

As Erin Matlock, Research Agronomist at PGRO, explained during the development process:

“The less somebody has to type and the easier it is to use and have it in the palm of your hand, the easier it is for us to start the data analysis.”

PGRO also reviewed the questions being asked. Where a question was no longer producing useful information, it was removed. The objective was not to collect the largest possible dataset, but to collect information that could support meaningful benchmarking and practical recommendations.

The quality of any benchmarking programme depends on the information provided by its participants. However, the process of collecting that information had become a barrier for some growers.

Feedback to PGRO was almost unanimously “Can we not just do this in the field?”

As Erin Matlock, Research Agronomist at PGRO, explained during the development process:

“The less somebody has to type and the easier it is to use and have it in the palm of your hand, the easier it is for us to start the data analysis.”

Problem

How do you make a long-season evidence programme easier to complete, more consistent to analyse, and more useful for every participant?

“The less somebody has to type and the easier it is to use and have it in the palm of your hand, the easier it is for us to start the data analysis.”

Choosing the Platform

PGRO initially explored the development of a dedicated mobile application. However, building and maintaining a native app would have introduced additional costs, development requirements and reliance on third-parties.

The organisation instead looked for an established platform that could provide an app-like mobile experience while remaining accessible through a web browser.

Its requirements included:

straightforward use on mobile and desktop devices
structured questions with branching and field dependencies
the ability for participants to save progress and return throughout the season
secure management of participant information
visibility of completion progress for PGRO and, where appropriate, programme sponsors
API access to the resulting data
the flexibility for PGRO to manage and amend its own programme
predictable costs as the programme developed.

YAGRO Exchange provided the underlying infrastructure through a white-labelled implementation configured with PGRO branding.

Rather than commissioning a bespoke system and relying on a technology supplier to make every subsequent change, PGRO could use Exchange to build and manage the programme itself. Its team created the survey structure, selected the questions, configured the participant journey and retained control over how the programme would operate.

For Erin, the availability of an adaptable platform changed the nature of the project:

“When we first saw the platform, it already delivered what we were looking for. It was a case of tailoring it to fit our programme rather than starting from scratch.”

That flexibility was supported by a clear position on data ownership. Although the programme uses YAGRO’s technology, PGRO retains ownership and control of the data collected through it.

The organisation instead looked for an established platform that could provide an app-like mobile experience while remaining accessible through a web browser.

Its requirements included:

straightforward use on mobile and desktop devices
structured questions with branching and field dependencies
the ability for participants to save progress and return throughout the season
secure management of participant information
visibility of completion progress for PGRO and, where appropriate, programme sponsors
API access to the resulting data
the flexibility for PGRO to manage and amend its own programme
predictable costs as the programme developed.

YAGRO Exchange provided the underlying infrastructure through a white-labelled implementation configured with PGRO branding.

For Erin, the availability of an adaptable platform changed the nature of the project:

“When we first saw the platform, it already delivered what we were looking for. It was a case of tailoring it to fit our programme rather than starting from scratch.”

That flexibility was supported by a clear position on data ownership. Although the programme uses YAGRO’s technology, PGRO retains ownership and control of the data collected through it.

Platform requirements

Mobile access

Branching questions

API access

Data ownership

Progress tracking

Secure platform

Flexible configuration

Predictable costs

“When we first saw the platform, it already delivered what we were looking for. It was a case of tailoring it to fit our programme rather than starting from scratch.”

“

YAGRO understood the problem we were trying to solve. Together we’ve built a system that removes one of the biggest frustrations for growers by allowing them to capture information in a way that suits them.
Communication has been constant throughout the project, and the team has always been quick to respond whenever we’ve had a question or needed support. It’s felt like a partnership rather than a supplier relationship.

Erin Matlock

Research Agronomist | PGRO

Building PPN

Register

Participants will register for PPN through the PGRO website before receiving access to the PGRO platform.

The platform can be opened on a desktop or mobile device and saved as a tile on a phone’s home screen, giving growers an app-like experience.

Record field activity

Once enrolled, growers can enter information from drilling through to harvest. They are not required to complete the programme in one sitting or submit information at prescribed points during the season.

Branching questions

Branching questions and field dependencies make the process more relevant to each participant. For example, a grower who has not applied a fungicide will not then be asked for the application date. This removes unnecessary steps while producing a cleaner, more consistent dataset.

The platform does not replace all elements of the PPN process. Soil and seed samples will continue to provide important information alongside the crop management records entered digitally. PGRO will combine these different sources to assess crop performance and produce individual reports for participants.

API & Analysis

The structured data collected through Exchange will be made available to PGRO through an API. Leah Howells, PGRO’s data scientist, is developing scripts to process the information and produce the charts, comparisons and analysis used within the programme.

Once those analytical processes are established, the API will allow PGRO to move data from collection into analysis without repeatedly downloading, reformatting and manually transferring files.

Benchmark reports

This provides a foundation that can support the programme as participation grows, while allowing PGRO to concentrate its resources on interpreting results rather than handling data.

Early User Feedback

Ahead of launch, the Pulse Performance Network has been tested with around 15 to 20 growers, along with a number of prospective programme sponsors.

Early feedback has been positive, particularly around the simplicity of the new digital experience. Testing helped PGRO identify and resolve a small number of usability improvements before the programme opens more widely, ensuring the platform reflects how growers will use it in practice.

For PGRO, the beta phase has provided confidence that the platform is ready for launch, while giving the team an opportunity to refine the participant journey before the first full season begins. As the programme grows, the same approach will continue, using feedback from growers and sponsors to make incremental improvements while maintaining the consistency needed for benchmarking across multiple seasons.

From Yield to Performance

The change from the Yield Enhancement Network to the Pulse Performance Network is not simply a rebrand.

Absolute yield remains important, but it does not provide the full picture. A high-yielding field may still achieve only a relatively small proportion of its potential, while another field with a lower absolute yield may have performed particularly well given its soil, location and seasonal conditions.

PPN is designed to give growers clearer information about that context.

The individual report will highlight areas where a crop performed well, identify opportunities for improvement and compare the field with both the wider dataset and its estimated yield potential.

A key part of that approach is benchmarking entire fields rather than selected trials areas, helping ensure the results are representative of how crops perform on growers’ farms. Erin summarised the purpose of the programme ahead of its launch at Cereals:

“Every farm has the potential to learn something from benchmarking. By looking at the performance of whole fields, the Pulse Performance Network isn’t about competing to produce the highest yield. It’s about understanding what’s working, identifying opportunities to improve, and making better-informed decisions for the future.

“Whether you’re already growing exceptional crops or looking to unlock more potential, PPN gives you the information to move forward with confidence.”

The existing YEN reports demonstrate the breadth of information available for analysis, including growing conditions, soil characteristics, agronomy, crop development, resource capture, yield formation and crop nutrition. The new PPN report is intended to make the principal findings easier to identify, with a clearer summary of performance and areas for consideration presented at the front.

“Every farm has the potential to learn something from benchmarking… Whether you’re already growing exceptional crops or looking to unlock more potential, PPN gives you the information to move forward with confidence.”

Growers

Growers contribute crop management data and samples from across their business

PGRO

PGRO manages the programme, provides guidance and ensures data is collected consistently

Working with the Wider Industry

PPN will remain open to individual pea and bean growers, but PGRO is also introducing sponsored focus groups.

Seed businesses, processors, crop protection companies and other industry organisations will be able to support groups of growers investigating a particular product, technology or agronomic approach.

Results from those growers can then be assessed within the focus group and compared with the wider PPN dataset. Rather than benchmarking a selected trial area, PPN takes a whole-field approach, helping ensure the results reflect how crops perform in practice. This provides context that smaller trials cannot offer while giving sponsors access to independent evidence generated on growers’ farms.

PGRO aims to attract approximately 100 growers during the first season. Over the following three to five years, its ambition is to build participation towards 100 to 150 growers for each of the two principal crop groups, peas and beans.

The value of that growth will depend on the programme continuing to produce relevant information for both growers and sponsors.

Looking Ahead

Launching PPN is the first stage of PGRO’s plans for the programme.

The immediate priority is to ensure that growers find the platform straightforward to use, that sponsors receive evidence from their focus groups and that participants choose to re-engage when peas or beans return to their rotations.

PGRO will continue developing the programme over future seasons by increasing participation, refining its benchmarking capabilities and working with sponsors to support their own research and evidence requirements.

As the dataset grows, so does the scope of the analysis. More fields, seasons and growing conditions will allow PGRO to investigate patterns in greater detail, distinguish recurring trends from individual seasonal effects and provide increasingly useful comparisons.

That information can support decisions at farm level, but it also has value across the wider pulse sector. Shared appropriately, the findings can help researchers, growers and industry partners build a clearer understanding of crop performance and where further progress can be made.

YAGRO Exchange provides the digital infrastructure supporting that work. Its role is not to define the programme or interpret the results, but to make the collection and movement of data simpler, more consistent and scalable.

In that sense, the technology acts as a catalyst. Reducing the administrative burden behind participation and giving PGRO more time to focus on adoption, analysis and the practical value delivered to growers.

For the coming season, that focus is clear: an enhanced digital experience, stronger benchmarking and more useful insight for UK pea and bean growers.