Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial support schemes are available to assist small and medium-sized agribusinesses in expanding their operations.

Defra has committed £1.8 billion, the largest figure ever, to Environmental Land Management schemes in 2025/26, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive. These schemes offer funding streams for farmers who have been often ignored such as small, grassland, upland and tenanted, whilst improving our natural environment, and supporting sustainable growth and resilient food production. We are on track to spend that money.

Defra also supports agri-tech innovation and almost £150 million has been committed to projects to date, of which over £84 million has been committed to small businesses. The Accelerating Development of Practices and Technologies Fund (ADOPT), launching this spring, will also provide innovation grants for farmers and farm businesses to trial and demonstrate new technology, which will help to create demand to support agri-businesses to expand. We are also looking to explore other means to improve access to finance to drive agribusiness development, including opportunities to collaborate with public finance institutions.