Climate Change

The Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) grant scheme has been extended until March 2026

Simon Britton, of Knight Frank, said struggling 'upland farmers' could benefit from a redesign of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme but arable and lowland livestock farms may need to 'reconsider expectations'

A Committee report found the approach of Part 1 of the Bill was ‘potentially burdensome and bureaucratic'

Exmoor farmer Robin Milton said ‘trust and confidence in SFI had been wrecked' and it would take ‘some exceptionally good assurance' before many farmers would trust integrating it into their business again

TFA representative George Renner said despite indication from Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner at an ‘emergency' industry roundtable that a ‘stripped back version' of SFI would be available this summer, commitments from the Minister were still ‘very woolly'

In today's Farming in Five, chief reporter Rachael Brown reports on the latest from the fallout of the Sustainable Farming Incentive closure. Defra is under scrutiny over its failure to give farmers' notice as the industry questions whether all the budget has been spent. She also looks ahead to next week, a special podcast on Donald Trump, tariffs and what this means for machinery markets and UK farming going forward and the livestock team are heading to Borderway UK Dairy Expo at Carlisle this week, the first dairy show of the year

Wildfarmed's Andy Cato writes on Defra's SFI24 closure, why it is vital that farmers receive support for their efforts in nature and climate recovery, and why nature-rich food production should be seen as the most valuable of investments rather than a subsidy by Government

SFI24 now has more than 37,000 multi-year live agreements and has reached its ‘maximum limit' and can no longer accept new SFI applications from today

Rachael Madeley-Davies, AHDB head of environment said: "Ensuring that soil remains permeable and minimising compaction is an easy win in terms of soil health and adapting to managing increased rainfall and flooding implications on farmland"