Thousands of farmers facing uncertainty over payments to protect nature

Thousands of farmers may have to abandon long-running nature projects as Government payments they receive for environmental benefits are set to expire at the end of this year, with no confirmed replacement.

Information obtained by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) under freedom of information laws shows that 5,830 Countryside Stewardship (CS) agreements will end in December.

These schemes are older Government initiatives that provide financial incentives to farmers to implement measures such as insecticide-free farming, wildflower strips and flourishing hedgerows – all of which contribute to national nature targets.

Many are being phased out as part of a transition towards new post-Brexit environmental land management schemes, such as the flagship Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI).

But in March, the Government caused uproar when it abruptly closed applications to the SFI because it had been fully allocated for the year.

Many farmers set to see their CS payments end in December say they are facing uncertainty over whether they will continue to get support for vital projects, some of which have supported biodiversity and nature for decades.

David Barton, 58, an arable and livestock farmer based in Gloucestershire, who has been in environmental schemes for 35 years, said: “I feel completely abandoned.”

He told the PA news agency: “This came out of the blue and with no clear direction. I think it’s absolutely woeful of any government to not have that direction.”

Mr Barton said his farm already receives small amounts from the SFI scheme and he was preparing to transfer his “comprehensive” CS scheme over to the new system for January.

But since applications for the SFI have closed, he said: “I have absolutely no idea what happens after December 31.

“Never before has one scheme run out before another one was up and running.”

Mr Barton said the environmental projects on his farm have been delivering benefits to the wider community and country for decades.

But they are expensive, take a lot of planning ahead of time, and could unravel quickly if support is taken away, meaning the environmental damage could be “significant”, he warned.

The end of payments will also hit his business “really hard”, he added, saying he chose to focus on making profits from environmental actions, as governments have encouraged farmers to do, rather than farming all the land intensively.

“The idea to just pull SFI and then have no direction for people that are coming out of schemes at the end of December is just crazy,” he said.

Mark Meadows, a 53-year-old arable farmer in south Warwickshire, is also among those who are set to see their scheme term end on December 31.

Speaking to PA, Mr Meadows said he has taken land away from productive agriculture to boost nature, such as diffusing pollution from soils going into water courses and installing wildlife strips to support pollinators around electricity poles.

But much of this land will no longer make money without payments from the Government, therefore he may have to revert them back into food production to stay profitable.

He said: “We’ve been hit with the double whammy this year that we’ve got poor yields and the prices just keep falling.

“To top it all off, we don’t know what’s going to happen with our environmental land.

“And it’s not knowing that’s some of the worst.”

The farmer said he is already some £12,000 out of pocket for what he estimated next year, and deciding what to do with the land is “a real conundrum”.

“It’s sleepless nights a little bit. I’m not going to say I’m a massive worrier, but it’s very concerning, and it’s concerning for the other people in the same situation that I’m in.”

He called on the Government to give clarity “sooner rather than later”, adding: “We need to know”.

“I know it’s tight financially across the whole country, but agricultural support historically has provided a seven-times benefit.

“They’re pulling the Jenga pieces out, and it’s about to fall down. There’s no doubt about it.”

The NFU is calling on Defra to allow existing Countryside Stewardship mid-tier agreements that end on December 31 to roll over for one year while they develop a long-term plan.

It also urged ministers to deliver the new SFI scheme quickly to ensure farmers can enter agreements without losing the financial means to continue delivering for the environment.

David Exwood, NFU deputy president, said he has written to farming minister Daniel Zeichner to highlight farmers’ concerns and to ask Defra to set out a clear path forward.

“This is an opportunity for Defra to show it values farmers not just for producing food, but for the environmental benefits they deliver on behalf of the nation,” he said.

“To ensure farmers can continue to undertake these vital environmental projects as part of profitable, resilient businesses – an ambition we share with the government – Defra must provide a clear plan for their future, and urgently.

“Any further delay risks undoing decades’ worth of positive environmental action.”