The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is a funding scheme which, alongside other ambitious elements of England’s Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMs), promised to financially reward farmers for their efforts to farm in a nature-friendly way.
The promise of support through these schemes is vital to enable farmers to lead efforts to tackle the nature and climate crisis. Through nature-friendly practices, farm businesses can become more climate resilient, helping to clean up our rivers and restore nature.
However, yesterday's Government decision (An update on the Sustainable Farming Incentive – Farming) to pause the SFI without warning has caused significant anger and frustration across the farming sector and means that essential funding for nature-friendly farming practices is no longer accessible to farmers. As it now stands, no single Environmental Land Management scheme is open for application, leaving farmers and landowners without a clear pathway towards sustainable futures.
Barnaby Coupe, Senior Land Use Manager at the Wildlife Trusts, says:
"The UK Government's decision to pause all applications for the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) has pulled the rug from beneath the feet of farmers who are trying to farm more sustainably. This immediate pause without warning has upturned the apple cart for many English farmers and will only undermine trust in Defra's new farming schemes.
"Farmers need to be able to plan their businesses, and public funding for environmental actions is critical to this. The SFI is a crucial tool to enable a transition to nature friendly, climate resilient farming. The Government is right to review the scheme because it does need to be strengthened, targeted, and made more ambitious over time. But this must be managed in a clear process for farmers which avoids a funding cliff edge."
