New information about local nature recovery and landscape recovery

[ajcc]

Civil servant reply, bank holiday weekend!!

 

[Two Tone]

It does seem quite a while since we have actually heard anything from @Janet Hughes Defra .
Especially insofar as we have had various emails from George Eustice and shiny bumph come through the post re ELMs.

Has somebody finally woken up to the impending food and food inflation situation?
Could this explain why everything has gone so quiet?

We can’t buy cooking oil and tomatoes are in short supply. Yet much news of this seems to be suppressed so as not to create a panic. But it’s coming!

 

[steveR]

OK then, what funding is available for “tree” establishment and is that funding therefore available for Miscanthus ?
@Janet Hughes Defra

I would happily consider establishing an extra 10 ha with a newer hybrid variety and up to date propagation technology to see how it performs compared to our original from 2007/8 which just seems to get more productive every year…

( Despite horror stories Miscanthus can be removed in springtime after harvesting by glyphosate and subsequent annual arable crop establishment.)

Know of a big swathe of land that has been brought back to arable...

Timing is everything I guess on the spraying.

 

[steveR]

It does seem quite a while since we have actually heard anything from @Janet Hughes Defra .
Especially insofar as we have had various emails from George Eustice and shiny bumph come through the post re ELMs.

Has somebody finally woken up to the impending food and food inflation situation?
Could this explain why everything has gone so quiet?

We can’t buy cooking oil and tomatoes are in short supply. Yet much news of this seems to be suppressed so as not to create a panic. But it’s coming!

It's all OK. Bozo has donated the the Ukranians a pile of NLAW and Brimstone missiles, and we will be getting some wheat back... sometime.

 

[Courier]

Know of a big swathe of land that has been brought back to arable...

Timing is everything I guess on the spraying.

Just so long as the subsequent use involves tilling the upper few 100mm or close cutting as in multi cut forage each year for a few years then it will not be a problem - Wouldn't be any use for a solar farm ....

 

[Huno]

Just so long as the subsequent use involves tilling the upper few 100mm or close cutting as in multi cut forage each year for a few years then it will not be a problem - Wouldn't be any use for a solar farm ....

The term is tilth.... i totally agree...

 

[Huno]

Janet will be applying to be MP for Tiverton and Honiton next week... maybe??

 

[Huno]

Poor old Neil quote Bojo" me olde muckspreader" i would be tempted to risk going blind but hàppy after than comment in parliment..tossers

 

[Wolds Beef]

@Janet Hughes Defra I appreciate it was a Bank Holiday and I hope you enjoyed it. Now it is back to work and please answer these latest questions as soon as possible as we are all ears!!
WB

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

It does seem quite a while since we have actually heard anything from @Janet Hughes Defra .
Especially insofar as we have had various emails from George Eustice and shiny bumph come through the post re ELMs.

Has somebody finally woken up to the impending food and food inflation situation?
Could this explain why everything has gone so quiet?

We can’t buy cooking oil and tomatoes are in short supply. Yet much news of this seems to be suppressed so as not to create a panic. But it’s coming!

I'm sorry about that - an unfortunate sequence of covid, holiday and then a pre-election period meant I've not been on here much at all, I'm just catching up now and will be here a few times a week as normal from now on. Really sorry I didn't make that clear and left you wondering where I was.

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

OK then, what funding is available for “tree” establishment and is that funding therefore available for Miscanthus ?
@Janet Hughes Defra

I would happily consider establishing an extra 10 ha with a newer hybrid variety and up to date propagation technology to see how it performs compared to our original from 2007/8 which just seems to get more productive every year…

( Despite horror stories Miscanthus can be removed in springtime after harvesting by glyphosate and subsequent annual arable crop establishment.)

Hi sorry I missed this, I've been offline - I'm just checking this with teams and will come back to you asap

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

@Janet Hughes Defra we really need to know if Defra and Natural England's comments above from Instiute for Govt, seeking to lock Elms participants into a long term land ,regulated and restrictive designation even if you have ceased being involved in the Elms scheme is policy.Please update us as its less than 4 weeks before Sfi rolls out and if participating locks me forever into a land designation devaluing my asset then no way will anyone participate.Thank you.

Morning, I'm sorry I missed this at the time - you won't be at risk of getting locked into any long-term land designation as a result of participating in SFI, as the actions we're paying you for are things you do as part of your regular farming rather than changes in land use or designation

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

OK then, what funding is available for “tree” establishment and is that funding therefore available for Miscanthus ?
@Janet Hughes Defra

I would happily consider establishing an extra 10 ha with a newer hybrid variety and up to date propagation technology to see how it performs compared to our original from 2007/8 which just seems to get more productive every year…

( Despite horror stories Miscanthus can be removed in springtime after harvesting by glyphosate and subsequent annual arable crop establishment.)

Hi there, sorry to have been slow, I was just checking this out with my colleagues for you.

We don't currently pay for miscanthus or other biomass crops through agri-environment schemes, but we're considering it as a potential option for new schemes and should be able to confirm whether we'll do that, and if so how, later this year.

(There is work underway on government policy on biomass as part of net zero. That's led by BEIS as the lead department on net zero, but Defra are involved. That's the higher-level policy work that will then help us decide whether to include payments for miscanthus in our new schemes, and if so how.)