Sustainable farming incentive - handbook for 2023 has been published

[Janet Hughes Defra]

Afternoon all,

Today we've published a handbook containing all the detailed information about the sustainable farming incentive offer for this year.

The handbook is here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sfi-handbook-for-the-sfi-2023-offer

An overview blogpost is here: https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2023/06/21/sfi-more-ways-to-enhance-your-income-productivity-and-the-environment/

The handbook sets out all the detailed actions, rules and requirements of the scheme, in a single handbook that you can download and print (because this is what many of you have asked us to do, rather than spreading the information across multiple pages on GOV.UK).

We have made some changes to the scheme in response to feedback from you and other farmers and through our pilot and early rollout of the scheme. In particular, we have made a much broader range of options available, made the scheme more flexible so you can pick the individual actions you want to do rather than having to do them in set combinations or percentages of land entered into the scheme.

Finally, I know I have not been present on the forum in the consistent, ongoing way many of you would like. I understand why that has been frustrating and annoying, and I am really sorry about that. I have found that am just not able to personally engage on every thread on an ongoing basis, I'm afraid. However I do really want to find a way of addressing your questions and hearing your feedback all the time, not just when we publish new information, so I am working with @Clive to put in place a better, ongoing, sustainable way of managing this so that you can ask questions of me and my team and give us feedback when they arise. We will let you know where we get to with that as soon as possible.

For this particular thread, I am planning to be online at least daily, for the next week, to answer your questions about the information we've published today. I have posted this as a question with voting, and if you could upvote questions that you particularly want me to address it would be helpful if you could vote for them so that I can prioritise my time and attention, and I will then do my best to work through as many of them as I possibly can. I hope this is helpful and look forward to your questions.

If you have questions about your specific farm situation, the best thing to do is contact the RPA contact centre and they will be able to point you in the right direction.

Thank you.

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

@Janet Hughes Defra, thanks for coming back on ff and answering our questions, I'd like to ask, is there going to be anything else in the future for extremely high quality HLS+ permanent pasture because as it stands I have some of the best species rich hay meadows in the south west and I don't want to plough them up to plant a herbal ley or leave them as stubble ect.
I'm standing to lose 14k in subsidies as it stands if I go all in with SFI/CS.

Yes, we are updating a range of existing options and as part of that we are looking at how we can enhance the offer for pasture like yours - we will publish full details of what's coming in 2024 later this year, building on the information we published in Jan which set out the full list of everything we will pay for in schemes (https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...ment-and-climate-goods-and-services#grassland).

(We've also produced summary leaflets available that set out the range of options for different types of farm, including livestock farms, here: https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/about-us/)

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

I have a simple question for all of us? Why do Civil Servants throw themrselves under the social "media bus" like this every few months? It is truely baffling??

Because there are people here who have questions and wouldn't have any other opportunity to ask them directly in this way and I think it's right to make myself available to answer them. And also because I find it useful to see your feedback.

I am sorry not to have been here as consistently as you or I would prefer - I mentioned this and apologised for it in my initial post.

 

[Janet Hughes Defra]

Evening all. Thanks for all the questions. I think I'm up to date with them as of now, and have noted where I need to check details with my colleagues - I'll come back on those asap.

Meanwhile I am logging off now and will be back here again on Monday.

 

[Exmoor Farm]

We're trying to make it flexible so you can make a judgement about what is reasonable, and under the new approach to controls if RPA don't agree with what you've done the first step will be a conversation about it (see page 124: If you find you cannot do what’s required under your SFI agreement, we’ll try to be pragmatic and start by helping you to fix what’s gone wrong)

I understand the principle of farmers in SFI having flexibility to decide how best to achieve the action’s aims.

However in the case of SAM1 (Soil Organic Testing) we will need more guidance on what is considered a ‘small’ parcel.

It is inevitable that the RPA will issue guidance on this for their inspectors in the future.

Once the precedent has been set that the RPA consider a certain area (like 5ha for example) to be the limit of a ‘small’ parcel, then it will become black and white.

You’ll have thousands of farmers (who out of fear of falling foul of this subjective rule) do not test soils on parcels and thousands more who end up being financially penalised for testing too ‘big’ a parcel.

 

[Grass And Grain]

If we start an agreement in say Oct 2023, but then add in a new option/standard in Oct 2024, when does the 3 year agreement end? Oct 2026 or Oct 2027?

 

[texelburger]

Not wasting any more time on this. The way it looks is that most significant options on arable (birdseed etc) in both SFI and stewardship leave you with £200 /acre profit (with no rent or borrowings) at the very most if things fall right and they rarely do. You are also beholden to the RPA and an inspector. So I’ll carry on cropping thanks very much. It’s my job. Call it what you like but I think I ought to do it.

Same here.Its turned into a total mishmash which is difficult to fathom.What was in is now out and what is in now could be out in the future.How can anyone apply for this is beyond me.Add all the regular inspections and the costs to implement your actions for a pitiful return means I'm out and will try to intensify my farming to cope without BPS.Unfortunately we will be up against a Europe and World who are still getting direct payments.
Meanwhile food inflation in the UK will continue to grow,as production declines, and imports from around the World,who don't give a monkey about climate change,will flood in to help pacify the masses.
It's madness, total madness.

 

[JoeBloggs30]

I would recommend calling the RPA if you want to check in advance whether your plan meets the requirements of the actions

@Janet Hughes Defra Ring 5 times and you get 5 differing answers and not one will be brave enough to put it in an email to you. and when they do they normally just say see scheme guidance, which you’ve already read 3 times. On a serious note This is normally not helpful when wanting evidence to support future rpa audits.

 

[stroller]

Exactly, SFI could have been a base payment per ha for complying with cross compliance and some more items Defra want like:
- Soil testing & soil management plans
- Nutrient Plans
- IPM plans
- Animal Health and Welfare Plans
- EID tags and Bvd testing (controversial
It would be simple, deliverable and achieve everything their current schemes are trying to.

No more re-inventing the wheel, no more double funding conflicts, no more policy confusion, no more of the budget wasted on DEFRA admin.

And that is precisely why they haven’t done just that. It also doesn't look as good on their CV to say they tinkered with an existing system and made it better, far more impressive to have been involved with the implementation of a completely new million pound system with innovative new fangled gubbins etc etc, by the time its gone over budget and been delayed the staff involved will have climbed higher on the greasy pole.

 

[Ceri]

Yours to if you ask the lady

Na….. The whole things so awful & complicated, I predict it’ll be scrapped so I’m not going to waste my time…

 

[Two Tone]

Evening all. Thanks for all the questions. I think I'm up to date with them as of now, and have noted where I need to check details with my colleagues - I'll come back on those asap.

Meanwhile I am logging off now and will be back here again on Monday.

Like the previous 4 weekends, I and a lot of other farmers will still be working our arses off to be able to keep you fed and try to keep ourselves in business!

Enjoy yours, but think of us, won’t you?

 

[Tubbylew]

Regarding SAM3 establish and maintain herbal leys, are there any stocking limitations/minimum winter cover requirements? And what species of herbs are acceptable and in what proportion of the ley must they be?

No (see clause 6.4 of the terms and conditions, starting on page 135 of the handbook) - we changed this for SFI last year, following feedback from you and others about this issue. We can only change it with your consent, other than in genuinely exceptional circumstances.

Is there a definition of exeptional circumstances somewhere? Seems a little open ended, although somewhat improved.

Regarding the hedgerow standards:-

HRW1
Who can complete the assesment? I.e. does it have to be a suitably qualified person? And why is the payment so low? I assess hedges professionaly in a roundabout way, to conduct a survey of 100 meters of hedge and to return to the office to write a report would take about half a day. Or is there a tickbox template somewhere?

HRW2
I understand that capital grants are available to help with the work, but why is fg2 absent? The hedges invariably need protection from livestock after the prescribed actions have been carried out.

Are any of the payment rates going to be linked to the CPI?

 

[Scholsey]

Like the previous 4 weekends, I and a lot of other farmers will still be working our arses off to be able to keep you fed and try to keep ourselves in business!

Enjoy yours, but think of us, won’t you?

Dont be a arse, you choose to do what you do, nobody makes you.

 

[icanshootwell]

Dont be a arse, you choose to do what you do, nobody makes you.

He's not, we are on call out duties all the time, if my suckler cows get out into the wheat on Saturday evening when I'm having a pint, I can't say fu#k it,, that can wait till Monday morning at 9.

 

[Ceri]

Regarding SAM3 establish and maintain herbal leys, are there any stocking limitations/minimum winter cover requirements? And what species of herbs are acceptable and in what proportion of the ley must they be?


Is there a definition of exeptional circumstances somewhere? Seems a little open ended, although somewhat improved.

Regarding the hedgerow standards:-

HRW1
Who can complete the assesment? I.e. does it have to be a suitably qualified person? And why is the payment so low? I assess hedges professionaly in a roundabout way, to conduct a survey of 100 meters of hedge and to return to the office to write a report would take about half a day. Or is there a tickbox template somewhere?

HRW2
I understand that capital grants are available to help with the work, but why is fg2 absent? The hedges invariably need protection from livestock after the prescribed actions have been carried out.

Are any of the payment rates going to be linked to the CPI?

Having to now muck around doing assessments on hedges for £3/ 100 meters just about sums up this awful scheme….. Farmers really haven’t got time to be doing absolutely pointless stuff like this or is it going to be another thing where we’ll have to pay somebody £500/day to do it for us to get £520 back……

 

[delilah]

We are planning to remove duplication across schemes and are looking at the best ways to do this for 2024.

Scrap SFI and just have CS.

You have been brave enough, honest enough, to remove both Landscape Recovery and Local Nature Recovery from ELMS. Finish the job. Make sure that there is something for everyone within CS, put attractive payment rates on them, job done.

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

@Janet Hughes Defra thank you for spending your precious evenings engaging with us here, it is appreciated even if it doesn't always read that way.

I completely retired from farming in April so this observation is more for the benefit of others really but here goes:

I can see that you've worked hard to address the concerns we have all raised and to introduce the flexibility necessary for the scheme to be applicable to as many farmers as possible; thank you to all your team for that. It does now mean though that the whole SFI has become very complex to navigate, as evidenced by the length of your latest handbook.

I have personally navigated the English farm subsidy scheme in its many forms since around 1985 and acted as agent for 2 other farm business on a voluntary basis along the way. Each iteration has become more complex to keep up with.

The Rock review highlighted the huge burden the whole farm regulatory system, including the subsidy system, places on what are mostly small businesses who lack dedicated management support.

You stated early on that the intention was for applications for SFI not to need paid professional advice yet I can see many farms will now need exactly that to optimise their engagement. This was always likely to be an unintended consequence of adding flexibility.

Is it now time to seriously consider my suggestion of adopting dedicated named individual officers within DEFRA, each partnered to a small number of farming businesses, who can act as advisers in regard to the process and help to overcome any bureaucratic hurdles the farm may encounter?

These officers would need a wide remit but could prove revolutionary in increasing uptake and overcoming the perceived conflict between farmers and DEFRA.

 

[delilah]

That's been a published target since 2020, but it's not our main objective - our main objectives are to deliver the intended outcomes for food production, farm productivity and environment / climate. We think that level of uptake will ne necessary to do that.

So 70% participation is 'an objective' but not a 'main objective'.

The commitment to address the fact that 50% of the BPS goes to 10% of farmers. Is that an 'objective' or a 'main objective' ?

 

[Henarar]

Having to now muck around doing assessments on hedges for £3/ 100 meters just about sums up this awful scheme….. Farmers really haven’t got time to be doing absolutely pointless stuff like this or is it going to be another thing where we’ll have to pay somebody £500/day to do it for us to get £520 back……

I have looked at this and can't see what you have to put in the assessment apart from the condition, so I take it @Janet Hughes Defra the assessment is just checking the hedges condition as a hedge, so I will just wright as an assessment "I have assessed all the hedges I have put in the scheme are in good condition"
Janet will this be OK for my hedge assessment ?

 

[MrNoo]

Scrap SFI and just have CS.

You have been brave enough, honest enough, to remove both Landscape Recovery and Local Nature Recovery from ELMS. Finish the job. Make sure that there is something for everyone within CS, put attractive payment rates on them, job done.

Those are my thoughts, SFI overcomplicated, under compensated. CS would be much better, simpler but then they'd have to admit defeat and also admit they'd spanked a load of money and time on yet another dead duck

 

[Henarar]

Scrap SFI and just have CS.

You have been brave enough, honest enough, to remove both Landscape Recovery and Local Nature Recovery from ELMS. Finish the job. Make sure that there is something for everyone within CS, put attractive payment rates on them, job done.

better to scrap cs and keep sfi