Menu

Know How / ELM

The Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme will replace basic payments to farmers in England. The scheme will provide payments for farming that improves the environment and mitigates climate change, such as hedge planting and river management.

We explain the details as they emerge to help farmers understand how they will qualify for payments under the scheme.

Advice and tips

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

A guide to staying SFI compliant

Unlike more rigid support schemes of the past, the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is all about giving farmers greater flexibility to make actions work for their farm, while simultaneously delivering…

ARABLE

How SFI grassy corners and blocks can work most effectively

Grassy corners and blocks are perhaps potentially one of simplest of all the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) options to implement, but, as ever, to deliver the maximum benefit for the…

BUSINESS

How to bounce back from bad weather and drop in farm support

Labelled as a perfect storm, declining support payments, a new government, extreme weather and market disruption have combined to cause uncertainty and put incomes under pressure in 2024. Transition from…

OTHER CROPS

How to maximise SFI herbal leys in arable rotations

About 175,000ha of SAM3 herbal leys are due to be grown in Sustainable Farming Incentive 2023 (SFI23) schemes, according to the figures released by Defra for agreements reached by the…

See all

Case studies

OILSEED RAPE

Oilseed rape grower sees helping hand from SFI

Hampshire oilseed rape grower Dick Hall is earning £369/ha from environmental payments, allowing the crop to rival winter wheat for profitability and making rapeseed the best break crop he can…

ARABLE

How SFI actions closely align with Herefordshire mixed farm

Chris Greenaway, farm manager at Garnstone Farms in Herefordshire is advising farmers to make the most of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), given the accelerated reduction in Basic Payment Scheme…

GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT

Why simple herbal ley mix benefits Durham mixed farm

Government clarification that growing one herb, one legume, and one grass together qualifies as a herbal ley under the Sustainable Farming Incentive is grist to the mill of a County…

ARABLE

How nature focus helps profits rise on east Kent farm

A switch to nature-friendly farming is boosting profitability on one east Kent farm, with inputs slashed, soils improved and price premiums gained as grain yields are held at high levels.…

See all

Insights

FARM POLICY

Post-Brexit farm support - how is Defra spending the money?

One of the reasons many farmers voted for Brexit in 2016 was because they were so fed up with Brussels red tape. Our survey at the time, run in the…

ARABLE

How financial support helps make nature-friendly farming pay

Comprehensive four-year trials across 17 arable farms in southern England have revealed that nature-friendly farming methods can significantly boost biodiversity, beneficial insects and crop yields. But, perhaps as importantly, the…

TENANCIES AND RENTS

Tenancy model promotes nature's recovery and diversification

All new farm tenancies on the Crown Estate are to be environmental farm business tenancies with a minimum 15-year term, no open-ended break clauses for the landlord but breaks for…

ELM

Sustainable Farming Incentive: Where next for farmers?

The sudden closure of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) to new applications has left the farming industry in England wondering what the future holds for agri-environment schemes. Defra’s decision, which…

See all

News

FARM POLICY

Farmers voice frustration over £600 delinked payment cap

Farmers across England have reacted with dismay after receiving confirmation that their delinked payments for this financial year will be capped at just £600. This is a dramatic drop from…

NEWS

Fresh SFI delay storing up ‘massive problems’ for 2026

Farmers in England are set to face significant cashflow shortfalls in 2026, with the new Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme not expected to open until late spring at the earliest. As…

FARM POLICY

SFI22 farmers told to repay £250 after RPA blunder

Farmers in England have been left frustrated after the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) demanded repayment of £250 from participants in the 2022 Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), following an administrative error…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

English farmers face funding gap as CS agreements expire

More than 5,500 Countryside Stewardship (CS) agreements across England are set to expire between July 2025 and March 2026, leaving thousands of farmers at risk of losing vital environmental funding.…

See all

Video

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Video: Trade and food security top concerns for Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats have passed a wide-ranging motion pledging better support for British farmers to produce food more sustainably, protect the environment and uphold their high standards in trade deals.…

See all