The current offer for horticultural growers and farmers
Written by The Team
Credit: Michael Brown
The horticultural sector is a vital part of the UK economy. It contributed £4.3 billion in 2022. Ornamental growers make a significant contribution to promoting wellbeing and contribute £1.5 billion to the economy.
Growers nourish the nation. Every year, they produce more than 3 million tonnes of over 300 different fruits and vegetables.
Many horticulture growers and farmers are already benefiting from our schemes and grants, helping us to meet our commitment to produce at least 60% of the food we consume in the UK as they take care of the environment.
The horticulture industry in England is diverse. As such, we have a range of different offers available for farmers and growers.
Whether you grow carrots or strawberries, daffodils or apples there is support you can access to help increase your productivity, improve the environment and innovate.
In this post, we’ll summarise the schemes and grants horticultural famers and growers can access now. It follows the post we published yesterday which looked at the new environmental land management actions for the sector.
This year will see the biggest upgrade to farming schemes since the start of the agricultural transition. We're increasing payment rates by an average of 10% for Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship agreements.
We will make around 50 new actions available this year, including actions to support uptake of precision farming. This will enable horticulture farmers to reduce their use of costly pesticides or fertilisers, as well as improve yields, productivity, air and water quality, and benefit biodiversity and soil health.
We go into more detail about the support available to the sector through Countryside Stewardship and SFI in this post.
By offering payments which support agricultural technology, such as for robotics, automation and solar technologies, we are helping farmers and growers adopt new technology or practices, so they can grow more, sell more and have more resilient businesses.
Not only will there be more choice, but the way you access the offer will improve. From summer, there will be a streamlined single application service to help eligible farmers and growers apply for Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier actions. It will replace separate application windows and processes.
Farmers and growers can also sign up as a member to access the full complement of resources from The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture (TIAH). TIAH, which is part-funded by Defra, will play a pivotal role in creating a highly skilled, technically proficient workforce.
Our extended offer builds on what’s already there and works well for businesses, food production and the natural environment.
The update to the Agricultural Transition plan on GOV.UK sets out further details of our progress and plans.
Farmers and growers producing field horticulture crops and permanent horticulture crops are eligible for a range of funding under our environmental land management schemes.
These schemes pay for sustainable farming practices and help us to achieve our 25 Year Environment Plan ambitions and carbon net zero goals.
Farmers and growers can be in more than one scheme, as long as the actions they undertake are compatible and we’re not paying for the same actions twice.
Countryside Stewardship provides financial incentives for farmers, foresters and land managers to look after and improve the environment. Farmers and growers in the horticulture sector can be paid to deliver a range of actions including establishing flower mixes for wildlife, managing hedgerows, or creating and maintaining traditional orchards.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive rewards farmers and growers for farming practices that help produce food sustainably and protect the environment.
Farmers and growers can pick and choose from a range of actions on soils, integrated pest management, nutrient management and for farmland wildlife to create an offer that works for their business.
The actions available now are summarised in the following table. Even more actions will be available in the summer.
Written by The Team
Credit: Michael Brown
The horticultural sector is a vital part of the UK economy. It contributed £4.3 billion in 2022. Ornamental growers make a significant contribution to promoting wellbeing and contribute £1.5 billion to the economy.
Growers nourish the nation. Every year, they produce more than 3 million tonnes of over 300 different fruits and vegetables.
Many horticulture growers and farmers are already benefiting from our schemes and grants, helping us to meet our commitment to produce at least 60% of the food we consume in the UK as they take care of the environment.
The horticulture industry in England is diverse. As such, we have a range of different offers available for farmers and growers.
Whether you grow carrots or strawberries, daffodils or apples there is support you can access to help increase your productivity, improve the environment and innovate.
In this post, we’ll summarise the schemes and grants horticultural famers and growers can access now. It follows the post we published yesterday which looked at the new environmental land management actions for the sector.
A recap
This year will see the biggest upgrade to farming schemes since the start of the agricultural transition. We're increasing payment rates by an average of 10% for Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship agreements.
We will make around 50 new actions available this year, including actions to support uptake of precision farming. This will enable horticulture farmers to reduce their use of costly pesticides or fertilisers, as well as improve yields, productivity, air and water quality, and benefit biodiversity and soil health.
We go into more detail about the support available to the sector through Countryside Stewardship and SFI in this post.
By offering payments which support agricultural technology, such as for robotics, automation and solar technologies, we are helping farmers and growers adopt new technology or practices, so they can grow more, sell more and have more resilient businesses.
Not only will there be more choice, but the way you access the offer will improve. From summer, there will be a streamlined single application service to help eligible farmers and growers apply for Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier actions. It will replace separate application windows and processes.
Farmers and growers can also sign up as a member to access the full complement of resources from The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture (TIAH). TIAH, which is part-funded by Defra, will play a pivotal role in creating a highly skilled, technically proficient workforce.
Our extended offer builds on what’s already there and works well for businesses, food production and the natural environment.
The update to the Agricultural Transition plan on GOV.UK sets out further details of our progress and plans.
Environmental land management schemes
Farmers and growers producing field horticulture crops and permanent horticulture crops are eligible for a range of funding under our environmental land management schemes.
These schemes pay for sustainable farming practices and help us to achieve our 25 Year Environment Plan ambitions and carbon net zero goals.
Farmers and growers can be in more than one scheme, as long as the actions they undertake are compatible and we’re not paying for the same actions twice.
Countryside Stewardship provides financial incentives for farmers, foresters and land managers to look after and improve the environment. Farmers and growers in the horticulture sector can be paid to deliver a range of actions including establishing flower mixes for wildlife, managing hedgerows, or creating and maintaining traditional orchards.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive rewards farmers and growers for farming practices that help produce food sustainably and protect the environment.
Farmers and growers can pick and choose from a range of actions on soils, integrated pest management, nutrient management and for farmland wildlife to create an offer that works for their business.
The actions available now are summarised in the following table. Even more actions will be available in the summer.
Code | SFI Action | Payment Rate | Field horticulture crops | Permanent horticulture crops |
Soils |