Farming Investment Fund - robotics and slurry - open for applications

[Janet Hughes Defra]

Good afternoon all

Just to let you know that we've opened another round of the Farming Investment Fund https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2022/01/19/improving-farm-productivity-grants-open-for-applications/…

This one is mainly focused on robotics and slurry equipment. It follows the water round of the fund, and the farming equipment and technology fund we launched last year (https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2021/11/16/the-farming-investment-fund-launches-today/). A round on adding value will come shortly and there will be further rounds after that.

If you have views on how we can continue to improve the Farming Investment Fund, we're all ears. We'll be continuing to take feedback and iterate the scheme over time, including reviewing the things we fund and the rules and operation of the scheme.

There's an online eligibility checker to help you work out if you're likely to be eligible for funding. If you're not sure if you are eligible to apply, or if you are not able to access the online checker, please contact RPA directly - email [email protected] or call 0300 0200 301 and follow the options for the Farming Transformation Fund scheme.

 

[renewablejohn]

Have only just read the water management farm productivity grants but to me it just smacks of clueless waffle. The whole point of sustainable water management is the control of water by the use of energy. Energy is the expensive part but nowhere is hydro electric mentioned . Reservoirs filled by gravity are the most sustainable on demand energy efficient source available but restrictions put on by the Environment Agency make this a total non starter for probably 99% of farmers. All my polytunnels were programmed automated watering systems either using timed sprinklers or syphon water tables using gravity fed stream water that had to be pressurized. Cannot see any of that would have been funded under the current schemes.

 

[Regenerator1]

Yes agreed.. Sorry Janet but they are not going to encourage automation with tiny grants and massive grants and nothing in the middle for normal businesses..
It just looks like another lazy EU copy and paste exercise from your civil servant.. Lockdown has resulted in no imagination or was it Treasury's fault again??

 

[Grass And Grain]

Thank you for letting us know.

I see in one of the upcoming grant schemes you are going to ask which items farmers would find useful. Big thumbs up to that , which is a slight shift towards letting farmers ask for what they need vs what DEFRA think might be useful to us. I do understand how a prescribed list of items makes it much easier to administer.

 

[white_stuffed]

It seems very niche, it's another funding stream which "doesn't feel like us!"
FETF - doesn't feel like us because we don't do bells and whistles.
FIF doesn't feel like us because the minimum grant of £35k is feeling way out of reach.

Please can we have some funding for solar installation and battery storage. It seems to tick all the boxes and would be genuinely helpful to the business and the environment.