Sustainable Farming Incentive
(asked on 27th March 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend that any future reinterpretation of the Sustainable Farming Incentive would comprise distinct non-universal schemes for more targeted purposes such as small farms, hill farms and other designations.
Answered by
Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No decision has been made on exactly how the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) will be adapted.
We are evolving the SFI offer and are exploring ways to better target the money, for instance, potentially towards smaller farmers, the least productive land or delivering specific outcomes. We will provide further details about the reformed SFI offer once the Spending Review has been completed.
However, although SFI is an important offer, it is part of a wider package. We plan to launch the new Higher Tier scheme later this year; Capital Grants will re-open in summer 2025; we continue to move forward with Landscape Recovery; and we are increasing payment rates for Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreement holders to recognise their ongoing commitment to delivering environmental outcome.