Practical pointers on the 2022 Sustainable Farming Incentive

The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is one of the three legs of Defra’s Environment Land Management (ELM) scheme.

The basic concept of the SFI is that farmers will be paid for carrying out a list of land management activities which contribute towards meeting a certain ‘standard’, designed to improve environmental outcomes.

When will it be available?

The first tranche of SFI is to be rolled-out to everyone in June 2022. There will be no deadline, as applications will be accepted on a rolling basis, meaning farmers can apply when it suits them and their business.

What does the 2022 SFI scheme involve?

The 2022 scheme will be limited to three core standards which are: Arable and Horticultural Soils, Improved Grassland Soils, and Moorland. Livestock farmers will also be able to claim funding to access an annual health and welfare visit from a vet.

Each standard has three levels of commitment that a farmer can sign up to – introductory, intermediate, and in time, advanced – with the payment rates increasing accordingly.

What are the other key features of the scheme?

SFI agreements will last for three years (rather than five under Countryside Stewardship) and can be amended every 12 months. Payments will be made quarterly to aid cashflow.

There is no minimum or maximum area to be entered into the scheme and land currently under CSS is eligible, so long as the measures implemented do not overlap.

Other considerations?

For the next couple of years, farmers will also have the option of submitting a CSS application, or indeed both a SFI and CSS application. In its March 2022 announcement Defra has sought to give greater clarity about how these two schemes may be blended or stacked.

If you would like to discuss any aspect of the SFI – or any of the other schemes being offered by Defra – then contact a member of the farming team.

George Dickin is a farming consultant at Strutt & Parker