Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what data her Department holds on the proportion of applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive made in the last 12 months in which more than (a) 25%, (b) 50% and (c) 75% of the applicant's holding was focused on uses other than food production.
Answered by Mark Spencer
In the last 12 months data shows that the proportion of all applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive by the applicant's holding where they focused on uses other than food production is shown in the table below (this includes land that was not in food production previously and regardless to the status of the application).
Not in Food Production | Proportion Applications |
Between 25% and 50% | 0.24% |
Between 50% and 75% | 0.64% |
Greater than 75% | 3.79% |
On the 26 March we introduced a “25% of your holding limit” on 6 SFI actions, these 6 were actions that were designed to operate in tandem with food production – rather than instead of. The 25% limit still provides farmers with the flexibility to incorporate SFI actions into their farming systems and rotations. The majority of the SFI actions are not limited and enable farmers to produce food sustainably. Very few farmers were putting over 25% of their land into these non-food producing actions, however, we decided to act promptly before this became an issue. Industry and stakeholders worked with us on this – and welcomed the move.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much and what proportion of land covered by applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive was tenanted farmland in the 2023-24 financial year.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Defra does not hold data on which land is tenanted and so the data for the proportion of land covered by applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive which was tenanted farmland in the 2023-24 financial year is not available.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what data her Department holds on the proportion of land covered in applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive in the last 12 months which is focused on uses other than food production.
Answered by Mark Spencer
In the last 12 months, data shows that the proportion of land covered in applications to Sustainable Farming Incentive which is focused on uses other than food production is 3.4%. This is regardless of the status of the application.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the support available for the biopesticide industry.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Biopesticide applicants in the UK are supported via the Biopesticide Scheme. Support provided through the scheme includes dedicated Health & Safety Executive (HSE) biopesticide champions, free pre-submission advice, and capped fees for biopesticide active substance approval.
We are considering where approvals and permissions for biopesticides might be made simpler and faster without compromising the environment or human health standards. This would aim to reduce the burden for manufacturers and bring more biopesticides to the market.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to help reduce the transition costs for farmers moving to regenerative agricultural methods.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Farming in England is going through the biggest change in a generation. We have listened to the needs of farmers and our approach to working with the farming sector is also changing. We are improving our policies and services to make them more effective, fair, flexible, accessible, and workable for farmers.
Environmental land management is the foundation of our new approach. Our new schemes will pay for sustainable farming practices (such as reducing carbon emissions, creating, and preserving habitat, and making landscape-scale environmental changes) and improvements to animal health and welfare. This is an important step towards achieving important environmental outcomes such as net zero, climate change adaptation, biodiversity, and water quality.
In late June 2022, we launched the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). SFI pays farmers for actions that support food production and can help improve farm productivity and resilience, whilst also protecting and improving the environment.
The SFI scheme contains standards that can support a regenerative approach and are designed so that there are options available for all types of farmers. The standards include:
• hedgerows standard
• integrated pest management standard
• nutrient management standard
• arable and horticultural land standard
• improved grassland standard
• low input grassland standard
We are rolling out the SFI2023 in a controlled way, making sure we offer everyone the right level of support. We invited Basic Payment Scheme eligible farmers to register interest for SFI2023 with the Rural Payments Agency from 30 August 2023. Over 14,000 farmers have done so, representing one in six. This process is already being simplified, with the majority of farmers no longer needing to registrations of interest as of the week commencing 16 October 2023. We started to accept applications from 18 September, and I am pleased to confirm the first payments were made on 17 October 2023.
The Landscape Recovery scheme also supports a regenerative approach to agriculture. It focusses on restoring nature across a wider landscape, bringing together landowners and managers who want to take a more large-scale, long-term approach to producing environmental and climate goods on their land. Round two pilot applications opened on 18 May 2023 and closed on 21 September 2023. Applications were open to any individuals or groups who want to come together on projects of over 500 hectares and public bodies will need to apply in collaboration with other land managers – for example, with neighbouring landowners, farmers, and tenants. Projects involving elements of regenerative farming could apply.
Our Countryside Stewardship scheme includes actions that can form part of a regenerative or restorative farming approach; to improve soil quality, enhance biodiversity, decrease water pollution, and restore, create, and manage habitats.
We are offering farmers and land managers, including those who take a regenerative approach, funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment through the Farming Investment Fund. This offers funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment. This fund provides grants to farmers, foresters, and growers (including contractors to these sectors) so that they can invest in the things they need to improve productivity and enhance the natural environment.
We are also offering support to drive adoption of new innovation by farmers and growers. The Farming Innovation Programme encourages groups of farmers, growers, businesses, and researchers to get involved in collaborative research and development. We believe that by working together, they will be able to solve challenges and exploit opportunities for increasing productivity and environmental sustainability in the agricultural and horticultural sectors in England. Farmers testing out regenerative approaches to agriculture will be able to apply for these grants.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of regenerative agriculture on achieving the Government's climate goals while increasing UK food security; and whether her Department is taking steps to increase the adoption of regenerative farming practices.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Farming in England is going through the biggest change in a generation. We have listened to the needs of farmers and our approach to working with the farming sector is also changing. We are improving our policies and services to make them more effective, fair, flexible, accessible, and workable for farmers.
Environmental land management is the foundation of our new approach. Our new schemes will pay for sustainable farming practices (such as reducing carbon emissions, creating, and preserving habitat, and making landscape-scale environmental changes) and improvements to animal health and welfare. This is an important step towards achieving important environmental outcomes such as net zero, climate change adaptation, biodiversity, and water quality.
In late June 2022, we launched the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). SFI pays farmers for actions that support food production and can help improve farm productivity and resilience, whilst also protecting and improving the environment.
The SFI scheme contains standards that can support a regenerative approach and are designed so that there are options available for all types of farmers. The standards include:
• hedgerows standard
• integrated pest management standard
• nutrient management standard
• arable and horticultural land standard
• improved grassland standard
• low input grassland standard
We are rolling out the SFI2023 in a controlled way, making sure we offer everyone the right level of support. We invited Basic Payment Scheme eligible farmers to register interest for SFI2023 with the Rural Payments Agency from 30 August 2023. Over 14,000 farmers have done so, representing one in six. This process is already being simplified, with the majority of farmers no longer needing to registrations of interest as of the week commencing 16 October 2023. We started to accept applications from 18 September, and I am pleased to confirm the first payments were made on 17 October 2023.
The Landscape Recovery scheme also supports a regenerative approach to agriculture. It focusses on restoring nature across a wider landscape, bringing together landowners and managers who want to take a more large-scale, long-term approach to producing environmental and climate goods on their land. Round two pilot applications opened on 18 May 2023 and closed on 21 September 2023. Applications were open to any individuals or groups who want to come together on projects of over 500 hectares and public bodies will need to apply in collaboration with other land managers – for example, with neighbouring landowners, farmers, and tenants. Projects involving elements of regenerative farming could apply.
Our Countryside Stewardship scheme includes actions that can form part of a regenerative or restorative farming approach; to improve soil quality, enhance biodiversity, decrease water pollution, and restore, create, and manage habitats.
We are offering farmers and land managers, including those who take a regenerative approach, funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment through the Farming Investment Fund. This offers funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment. This fund provides grants to farmers, foresters, and growers (including contractors to these sectors) so that they can invest in the things they need to improve productivity and enhance the natural environment.
We are also offering support to drive adoption of new innovation by farmers and growers. The Farming Innovation Programme encourages groups of farmers, growers, businesses, and researchers to get involved in collaborative research and development. We believe that by working together, they will be able to solve challenges and exploit opportunities for increasing productivity and environmental sustainability in the agricultural and horticultural sectors in England. Farmers testing out regenerative approaches to agriculture will be able to apply for these grants.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to reply to the correspondence of 26 April 2023 from the Rt Hon. Member for Scarborough and Whitby on supermarket profits, food security and other issues.
Answered by Mark Spencer
A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 21 June 2023.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to reply to the correspondence of 24 May 2023 from the Rt. hon. Member for Scarborough and Whitby on the time taken to complete full checks on EU SPS imports and on the EU’s Entry/Exit System and Short Strait agrifood flows.
Answered by Mark Spencer
A reply was sent the hon. Member on 21 June 2023.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to reply to the correspondence of 26 April 2023 from the Rt hon. Member for Scarborough and Whitby on Supplementary Estimate 2022/23 and Post-Implementation Reviews.
Answered by Mark Spencer
A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 21 June 2023.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many breaches of the Heather & Grass Burning Regulations 2021 have required official action, since those regulations came into force.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
To date, we have received 1,584 individual reports of alleged breaches of the Heather and Grass etc Burning (England) Regulations since the regulations came into force on 1 May 2021.
Of these, 1022 could not be assessed because they included insufficient location information.
490 reports have been assessed by Defra and Natural England. Many of these were established to be duplicates or were established to not amount to offences under the regulations.
A total of 72 reports, related to the current burning season, are currently undergoing assessment by Defra and Natural England.
A small number of reports have progressed to formal investigation with one instance resulting in the issue of a formal warning. It would be inappropriate to comment on the ongoing investigations.