More than 2,000 farmers have responded to Defra’s call for
applicants for the pilot of the Sustainable Farming Incentive,
due to start in October 2021.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive is the next step in the
Government’s landmark plans to reward farmers and land managers
for sustainable farming practices that enhance the environment.
It is one of three new schemes that will help to deliver on the
25 Year Environment Plan and carbon net zero targets.
2,178 farmers responded to the Expressions of Interest that
opened in March. Successful candidates will be contacted by the
end of May and will be asked to develop their applications from
June, leading to the first pilot agreements going live from
October 2021. Interest came from a diverse range of farms and
regions in England which will ensure good nationwide coverage
when the pilot is implemented.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive is the first of three new
environmental schemes to be piloted and co-designed. Further
information on the other two schemes, Local Nature Recovery and
Landscape Recovery, will be shared later this year. These schemes
will operate together and pay for actions to support sustainable
farming practices alongside profitable food production, improve
animal health and welfare, improve environmental outcomes, and
reduce carbon emissions. They will create habitats for nature
recovery and make landscape-scale changes such as establishing
new woodland and other ecosystem services, providing key means to
deliver against our 25 Year Environment Plan goals and carbon net
zero targets.
Farming Minister said:
“We want farmers to manage their businesses in a way that
achieves profitable food production and the recovery of nature.
“It is great to see so many farmers wanting to get involved in
the Sustainable Farming Incentive pilot scheme. We want to design
our future policies in conjunction with farmers across England to
ensure that they are as straightforward and effective as
possible.”
Defra is working in partnership with the Rural Payments Agency to
deliver the pilot, which will gather ongoing information from
horticulture, dairy, pig, poultry and grazing livestock farms
across England. Participants will take part in a range of
activities, providing rapid feedback on their experience of all
aspects of the pilot. This will ensure the scheme is tested,
fully workable and user-friendly once fully rolled out from
2024.
In the first phase of the pilot, participants will be able to
select from an initial set of eight standards to build their own
agreements. The standards will promote cleaner air and water, and
guard against environmental risks such as climate change and
flooding. Within each standard there are three levels for
participants to choose from – Introductory, Intermediate and
Advanced. Each level is more challenging, and more rewarding,
than the previous level and delivers greater environmental
benefits.
Although the window for farmers to express an interest in joining
the first phase of the Sustainable Farming Incentive pilot is now
closed, there will be more opportunities to participate in future
phases of the pilot. Farmers will also be able to join the
progressive roll-out of early Sustainable Farming Incentive
scheme from next year.
