Defra’s abrupt closure of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) for new applicants has rightfully left farmers across England feeling frustrated and betrayed.

Why did the Labour party decide to close its flagship agri-environmental scheme without any prior warning?

Just as farmer confidence within the industry was hitting rock bottom, another devastating blow has been dealt to the agricultural community.

With depressed grain markets and farmers now locked out of essential funding, concerns are rising – particularly for those finishing Countryside Stewardship (CS) schemes and were about to submit SFI applications.

Farmers Weekly caught up with three farmers who share their concerned thoughts on the matter.

See also: Defra ‘blew up apple cart’ with SFI closure, says NFU chief – Farmers Weekly

Billy Lewis

Boycefield Farm, Herefordshire

Billy Lewis © Richard Swingler

“Disgraceful politics, from amateur politicians” – that’s how Herefordshire farmer Billy Lewis describes the government’s SFI snatch from farmers in England.

“The Labour party are destroying rural communities, and they’re taking great pleasure in it. If any other population group was treated like this by the government there would be outrage.

“I don’t know why they feel it’s acceptable to do it to us,” he says.

“We are already hearing talks of land agents and ancillary industries considering laying off staff, as well as awful stories of farmers in floods of tears wondering just how they are going to survive.

“This is adding a huge amount of stress to what is already an exhausting time.”

Billy’s passion is regenerative agriculture, intertwining cropping, livestock, soil and nature, but the latest government set back has left him extremely frustrated and disheartened.

“There are so many aspirational young farmers out there, who, before Labour got into power, were so excited for the future. Now we are all just thinking, what is the point in it all.”

The situation for the family farm is being made all the worse by the fact Billy’s mother’s off-farm job was consulting farmers on SFI schemes, which is now in a precarious position.

The family has a range of SFI options currently in place at the 140ha farm near Dilwyn, including cover crops, herbal leys, direct drilling and insecticide-free options, which has helped drive the farm financially and environmentally forwards.

However, with farmers now locked out of the scheme and missing out on essential funding, Billy is concerned what the future of agriculture will look like.

Andrew Wilson

Slingsby, North Yorkshire

Andrew Wilson © Angela Waites Photography

North Yorkshire mixed farmer Andrew Wilson has lost all trust in the government as he says farmers simply can’t trust Defra to stick to its promises.

As a fourth-generation tenant farmer on the Castle Howard Estate, Andrew has been involved with environmental schemes in one guise or another for more than 30 years.

His latest Mid Tier agreement recently came to an end, and he was busy drawing up plans for the farm’s SFI application when the bombshell hit.

“For various reasons, I hadn’t quite finished putting my SFI application together. Defra clearly stated on their website that any changes would be communicated with six weeks’ notice.

“We had not even a sniff that applications were being halted,” he notes.

“There has been wheels on the goalposts at Defra for many years, but it seems now they have become motorised.”

Next steps

For this year at least, Andrew says existing stewardship scheme margins will be topped, fertilised where possible and a cut of grass taken to be sold as hay.

Some of the farm’s larger AB9 plots will be taken up and planted to spring barley, while others will be reincorporated back into the main cropping fields.

Some stewardship areas will likely be sown to grass.

“It’s not an ideal situation, but the rent still needs to be paid.

“No part of the business is sufficiently profitable to facilitate voluntary stewardship beyond things such as pollinator strips on irrigation tracks in potato fields,” he says.

In terms of area, paid stewardship previously covered about 4% of the total 160ha farm.

“This might not sound a lot, but these environmental schemes still generate cost that somehow or other will need to be recouped.

“Now all the effort in building habitat over the past five years seems to have been for nothing. In simple terms, we cannot trust Defra to stick to their promises.

The schemes had previously fit into the farm well.

Primarily, Andrew opted for grass margins alongside watercourses to protect water quality and assist Local Environment Risk Assessment for Pesticides compliance.

Other measures included strategically placed pollen and nectar plots to create habitat for beneficial insects, which in turn kept aphid numbers down and reduced virus risk in root crops.

Wild bird food plots also helped reduce vermin pressure and bolster wildlife levels on the farm.

With confidence at an all-time low in the farming industry, it seems Andrew and many other farmers are left thinking: “What next is the government going to pop up and challenge us with?”

Matt England

Fring Estate, Norfolk

Matt England © MAG/Emma Gilbard

Farming 1000ha of organic land in north-west Norfolk, farm manager Matt England describes the shock SFI closure as a “jugular attack” on farming.

Environmental schemes play a critical role in supporting the farm and has shaped the business into its current system.

“We have built a whole system which is reliant on government support. Margins are low, so farmers need subsidies to support them.

“Converting such a large area of land to organic was a challenge, but through these schemes it was possible.”

The future is now looking very uncertain.

Serious gap to fill

Matt currently has three live SFI schemes ranging from cover crops to herbal leys across 10% of the farm. A further 40% of land is in a CS Mid Tier scheme, which is expiring at the end of the year.

Matt was hoping to simply transition this into a CS Higher Tier agreement, but with such unpredictable actions coming from Defra he is not holding his breath.

“If the government were to pull the plug on this funding like they have done with SFI, we would have a serious gap to fill.”

The farming system has undergone major rotational changes over the past five years, with marginal heathland, taken out of cereal production and into stewardship.

“We would have to completely change our farming approach,” notes Matt.

“The farm would have to intensify production in order to remain financially viable. Our current stewardship areas would have to be ploughed up and planted back to cropping.

“At the end of the day farmers need to have profitable businesses to support the environment. Farmers have lost the Basic Payment Scheme and now SFI.

“I just don’t know how small scale farms are going to survive.”

Real potential

Matt notes the launch of SFI had real potential to benefit farmers, food production and nature, but what was initially a simple system, has evolved into a complex headache.

This was because the government kept chopping and changing the scheme, and releasing more options.

As a result, the farm has ended up with three separate SFI agreements, with a fourth still in the pipeline and waiting for Defra approval.

As a result, the farm has ended up with three separate SFI agreements, with a fourth still in the pipeline and waiting for Defra approval.

“It has turned out to be quite complex, with different agreement start and finish dates, different rotational options and different stipulations for certain options.

“The Defra computer system just cannot handle it.”

In a time when the industry needs stability, Matt hopes that Defra does not make yet another huge change and complicate matters further.