One of the most significant changes is that the legume fallow option has now been made rotational.
There is still the expectation, from Defra, that there’s an established legume fallow with plants on the ground over winter, but the change offers farmers more flexibility while still being able to take part in the SFI action.
NFU Vice President David Exwood welcomed the changes saying: “The updated list of SFI (Sustainable Farming Incentive) actions published by Defra are welcome and a positive step on the path to restoring confidence among British farmers.
“Following NFU lobbying, legume fallow such as the seed mix CNUM3, has been secured as a rotational action within SFI. This is good news and will not only provide a payment but give arable farmers greater flexibility to produce food alongside delivering for the environment – helping soil health and provide food for wildlife. However, farmers will be unable to graze livestock.
“We are continuing to go through the details of the other SFI actions announced to make sure they work for all farming sectors.”
For those in the uplands, this SFI update still fails to deliver. There is a only glimmer among the detail which is that Defra has announced a new ‘Moorland mapping (PA5)’ capital grant at a payment of £918.08 per agreement.
Commenting on the uplands situation, David went on to say, “We still have significant concerns around scheme details and how they work for farmers, particularly for our Upland members. We will continue to work to get this right.”
“We are continuing to go through the details of the other SFI actions announced to make sure they work for all farming sectors.”
NFU Vice President David Exwood
We will have more on this detail on upland changes in the coming days.
Read our breakdown on the details of the scheme, including other changes announced on our SFI – scheme information and guidance page.