South Shropshire MP welcomes new system of support payments for farmers
Farmers from south Shropshire met their MP for a discussion on issues affecting their industry.
Among the issues discussed was the roll-out of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) which will begin accepting applications from August.
South Shropshire MP Philip Dunne, himself a farmer, has welcomed the SFI as offering greater flexibility and additional supported actions to choose from.
It includes projects that support food production, improve farm productivity and resilience, as well as protecting and enhancing the environment.
Mr Dunne says that under the scheme, farmers will have the opportunity to select from a wider range of 23 actions, including both existing themes such as soil health and moorland, as well as new actions covering hedgerows, integrated pest management, nutrient management, farmland wildlife, buffer strips, and low input grassland.
The SFI 2023 offers grants for various projects with an increase in funding for multi-species cover crops to £129 per hectare as basic payment scheme payments reduce.
The Government has also confirmed that the SFI management payments will be applied at the same rates to all land-based SFI projects, including moorland and uplands areas.
Philip Dunne said: “As a farmer myself, I welcome the latest Sustainable Farming Incentive measures. This is another important step on the transition to the new support scheme and should help uptake participation by farmers for next season.
"I was pleased to discuss this and other issues of interest to NFU members in South Shropshire recently”.
