Spending review ‘must deliver for UK farmers’

• Fair funding needed for farming

• Details on revised SFI awaited

• Farm investment and certainty

Industry leaders are ramping up efforts to secure a fair deal for farming ahead of next month’s government spending review.

Funding for the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), Environmental Land Management (ELMs) and a range of other government initiatives are due to be announced following the review, which is due to conclude on 11 June.

The review will set out the government’s spending plans for the next five years. It will also decide how departmental budgets should be spent  – including on Defra staff and its agency employees.

Economic climate

Given this is a new government under a challenging economic climate, there is potential for there to be significant changes to previous commitments and funds, says the NFU.

“The government could decide to take an entirely new approach from the previous government – although on farming issues Defra has made broad commitments to maintain key priorities such as ELMs.”

Having said that, surprise measures announced in the autumn budget included the faster phase-out of the Basic Payment Scheme. That was followed by the shock closure with immediate effect of the SFI to new applications.

Food security

The NFU says it is continuing to lobby both the Treasury and Defra to ensure farming gets a fair deal from the spending review – and that the government recognises the importance of public investment in food security and agriculture.

The government has said that ELMs agreements will remain in place – including existing SFI agreements, and that it will launch a new and improved SFI in 2026. The redesign of the scheme will follow the spending review.

CLA regional director Cath Crowther said the government had made it appear as though the abrupt closure of the SFI to new applications was something it had always planned.

Stuttering roll-out

“The reality is that since its launch, the SFI has been hampered by a stuttering roll-out, with uptake only increasing significantly in the last 12 months. All while basic payments were relentlessly reduced.

“The industry was very much under the impression that the scheme would continue to remain open, with Defra providing assurance that there would be minimal changes for SFI, apart from the addition of new actions later in 2025.

“The stop-start nature of these schemes does nothing to build confidence and this latest blow undermines the hard work of forward-thinking farmers and land managers who have put positive environmental outcomes at the heart of their businesses.”

Open Farm Sunday ‘more important than ever’

Farmers are being encouraged to highlight their vital role in food production by taking part in Open Farm Sunday next month.

Thousands of people will visit farms on Sunday, 8 June to see how their food is produced and how farmers look after the countryside. The annual flagship is organised by the Linking the Environment and Farming charity (LEAF)

Key to success

LEAF Education specialist, Sam Wyman, has trained and supported numerous farmers to host OFS events over the years. He provides reassurance that taking part is both straightforward and rewarding.

“Remember what an amazing resource your farm is when you look at it with a fresh perspective,” says Mr Wyman. “Even the simplest items and tasks – like touching some grain or holding an EID tag – can be truly eye-opening for visitors.

Mr Wyman is clear about the farmer-focused benefits of providing opportunities for curious consumers to visit local farms. “Everyone I’ve ever worked with to host an OFS event is absolutely buzzing at the end of the day.”

Recent OFS data shows that 91% of visitors are motivated to buy more British produce after attending. By giving access and sharing stories and expertise, farmers can directly reinforce the importance of supporting local farming.

Farmers can register their Open Farm Sunday event at www.farmsunday.org and access a wide range of freely available resources, including webinars and promotional materials to help make each event a success.