The Government’s long awaited 2023 Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) was announced last week expanding the Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMS) programme. With Basic Payments ending in 2023 and with reduced “de-linking” payments scheduled to end by 2027, farmers need to consider the ways they adapt the farm plan to incorporate the ELMs schemes to “plug the gap” in funding
The government has confirmed that the Sustainable Farming Incentive’s (SFI) expanded offer will begin accepting applications in a carefully planned rollout starting this August.
Earlier this year, Defra unveiled 23 additional SFI measures to enhance the Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMS) program.
The new standards include hedgerow management, integrated pest management, nutrient management, arable and horticultural land, improved grassland, and low-input grassland. These standards build on the existing three introduced in 2022, to improve soil health and moorlands, which nearly 1,900 farmers already have agreements for.
Farmers will receive payment for their efforts in supporting food production and enhancing the environment after Brexit. Such measures include managing hedgerows and planting hedgerow trees for as little as £10 per 100m, as well as receiving up to £129 per hectare for growing multi-species cover crops and up to £589 for nutrient management reviews.
Alongside this, tenant farmers will also be able to benefit from shorter agreement lengths without needing landlord consent. The SFI 2023 offer comprises a number of new actions not previously included in schemes and increases the accessibility of a number of actions and payments for people on short-term agreements.
What the experts have said
According to Farming Minister Mark Spencer, the government aims to provide farmers with a package that suits their needs, with efforts to streamline and improve SFI resulting in a simple and flexible system that farmers can easily engage with, apply for, and embrace.
The scheme will remain flexible to accommodate the evolving needs and demands of farmers and their markets, ensuring optimal outcomes for food production and the preservation of the natural environment. In addition, the government has extended the SFI management payment to cover all land based SFI actions, including moorland, and has revised the payment rate for low input grassland action to ensure parity between upland and lowland areas.
This announcement has prompted Natural England to encourage land managers to explore the SFI 2023 offer and its potential positive impact on wildlife and nature. The NFU welcomed the broader and more flexible SFI offer and urged farmers to closely examine all available options. Defra plans to offer a smooth transition for 3,000 plus farmers who joined the SFI22 scheme, and the NFU has stressed the importance of treating them fairly and providing certainty for widespread uptake of the SFI and ELM scheme.
What to expect
The online application for the SFI scheme is tailored to each farmer’s unique farm, presenting them only with applicable options. In an effort to give farmers more freedom, SFI now offers a ‘pick and mix’ approach, allowing farmers to choose which actions to take.
There are no limitations in terms of land area or hedgerow length, ensuring farmers can customize their SFI agreement as they see fit. Combining SFI and Countryside Stewardship (CS) options is also an option, provided eligibility and compatibility criteria are met.
Prescriptive rules have been replaced with flexibility, allowing farmers to determine the best way to achieve each action’s outcome.
From August 2023, the applications for SFI will offer;
- More than double the original planned SFI actions
- Quarterly payments for ease and convenience
- A management payment of £20 per hectare for the first 50 hectares to cover participation costs
- A payment to cover one on-farm vet visit annually, to review the health and welfare of livestock
- Equal payment rates for farms in upland and lowland areas
- An additional annual payment for common land, valued at £6.15 per hectare for groups of two or more
- A comprehensive SFI 2023 handbook, outlining confirmed payment rates and final details for each action
As part of its commitment to help farmers maximize their benefits from the scheme the Government has published an all-inclusive SFI Handbook. This handbook contains all the relevant information farmers need, including which SFI actions can be done alongside Countryside Stewardship (CS) and Environmental Stewardship (ES) options on the same land, as well as other SFI standards and actions.
There are also sector-specific guides to enable farmers to quickly identify what’s on offer for their farm type.
Starting in August, applications for SFI 2023 will be accepted through a controlled rollout. During the rollout period, farmers can either apply online or contact the Rural Payments Agency to initiate their applications.
Applications for SFI 2022 have been closed to ensure a seamless transition to the 2023 offer, with communications being sent to all farmers under the previous scheme, as well as those who had submitted applications, on how they can access the payments, benefits, and improvements in the 2023 offer.
