Farmers battle on with SFP forms
FARMERS ARE battling to get their single farm payment application forms completed with just 10 days left before the deadline.
But the process is proving a slog, with many finding it difficult to make sense of some guidance notes or clarify which crop codes they should use.
Other farmers are angry that they still have to meet the May 16 deadline – which DEFRA has stressed will not change – even though they have only just received their form.
Geoff Trewhitt of Peachtree Farm, Minskip, Yorks described the fruit, vegetable and potato authorisation (FVP) arrangements as a nightmare.
In his opinion there were grey areas that should have been resolved.
He rented land every year to grow sugar beet and potatoes but, despite reading the booklets and seeking professional advice, he was still not clear on how to arrange his application to ensure he did not lose out on payments.
“As they stand at the moment the guidance notes are just not good enough. It needs to be crystal clear so everyone knows what they are doing.
“There are no solid facts on how to sort the payments and keep things legal, and there are no two people giving you the same advice. Everything is a fudge,” he said.
Andrew Nichols of Upper Barnbow Farm, Barwick near Leeds complained he had been unable to get on with filling in his form until this week as he has only just received it.
“There are that many different editions and updates [from DEFRA], it is proving really difficult to follow things. For the older generation, it must be a nightmare.”
The Rural Payments Agency has reported that 20,000 forms have now been returned but 10s of thousands more are still outstanding.
Bill Duncan, head of the RPA’s Central Scheme Management Unit, said that he wanted to focus farmers’ minds on their applications as time was now running away.
“Our message is ‘Can you get on with filling in the application form, as the closing date is coming’,” he told FARMERS WEEKLY.