Farmers should act quickly on new scheme
A grant funding scheme helping farmers to improve their productivity through the purchasing of new equipment has been reopened, with a total of £25m being made available.
The Rural Development Programme for England countryside productivity small grant scheme provides financial support for farmers and, similar to the previous two rounds of grants, is targeted at investment in specific items of agricultural equipment.
There are various items included within the scheme and the grants range from £3,000 to a maximum of £12,000. These cover up to 40 per cent of the standard cost of each item.
It represents an excellent opportunity for farmers and rural business owners to invest in some much-needed equipment that can increase the productivity of their farming business. This could make a huge difference to many farmers and rural businesses as they recover from the impacts of Covid-19.
The Rural Payments Agency is encouraging farmers to speak to their suppliers to confirm the items they wish to order are available before accepting their grant by using the acceptance portal on GOV.UK by November 4.
To have the best chance of securing a grant, businesses should act swiftly with their applications as there is expected to be high demand.
Charles Skelton is from the food and farming team at Savills
