Emergency SFI meeting scheduled with Defra farming minister

An emergency roundtable meeting with farming organisations has been scheduled for Monday 17 March to discuss Defra’s decision to pull the plug on new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) applications.

Farming minister Daniel Zeichner is expected to join the meeting, which hopes to provide an opportunity for organisations to air their views on the SFI 2024 closure and discuss how the government and stakeholders can work together going forward.

The unexpected announcement on Tuesday (11 March) to suspend the SFI sparked fury among farmers in England and the wider industry, and left many with unexpected cashflow concerns.

See also: Land agents offer advice in light of SFI suspension

While Defra is no longer accepting new SFI applications, it has said that every penny in all existing agreements will be paid to farmers.

Any outstanding eligible applications that have been submitted will also be taken forward. 

Farmers who entered a three-year SFI agreement earlier this year will be paid until 2028, it has been confirmed.

A government spokesperson added that there will be a new and improved SFI on offer, with details to follow in the spending review, expected in June.

Seeking clarity 

The Tenant Farmers Association (TFA) is hoping to get clarity from Defra at the meeting on how much budget there will be for new scheme agreements, and will press for opportunities for draft applications to be completed.

“Some are seeking legal advice and there is a suggestion that these individuals would have a good case to make against Defra in respect of their legitimate expectations,” said TFA chief executive George Dunn.

He added that Defra needs to confirm how many applications were “in-flight” when they closed the door, and to pull together the main organisations to plan how and when the SFI will reopen and on what terms.

Victoria Vyvyan, Country Land and Business Association president, added: “This isn’t complicated. Farmers don’t want spin or sudden U-turns. We want honesty, a plan, and a voice in decisions that directly affect us.

“We all want to see farming and nature flourish, but that can’t happen if the government repeatedly breaks faith with us.”

Interim scheme

The Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN) has already called on the government to introduce an interim scheme to assist farmers not currently enrolled in the SFI.

“Many of the problems that have led to the abrupt closure of the SFI were predictable and should have been foreseen by both ministers and civil servants,” said NFFN chief executive Martin Lines.

He added that any new scheme must truly deliver on the government’s key targets, such as access to nature, natural flood management, the restoration of landscapes and biodiversity, as well as guarantees of food availability.