Sustainable Farming Incentive

This week, DEFRA published a series of guidance documents on various aspects of the Sustainable Farming Incentive 2022 (SFI 2022) as well as updating relevant pages online which can be found in the SFI Guidance Collection on DEFRA’s website. https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sustainable-farming-incentive-guidance

With the guidance, more detail is provided on the standards to be available from 2023 onward as the SFI is to expand each year with the addition of a higher level for the standards already available, as well as new standards.

This updates and develops the information given in March and reconfirms that there will be three SFI standards open for application in 2022: Arable and Horticultural Soils; Improved Grassland Soils; Moorland. 

Each of the standards will be available at two levels – Introductory and Intermediate for the soil standards and a base payment for the moorland standard with a top-up available. Additional payments are available for agreements covering Common land.

Agreements will last for three years and the applicant must be eligible for the Basic Payment Scheme in 2022.

DEFRA announced that they expect applications to be open from late June 2022 and if this scheme is of interest, then please get in touch with Catherine Johnston at our Knaresborough office on 01423 860322 or email catherinejohnston@listerhaigh.co.uk