Farmers Weekly Podcast Ep 325: Sifting through the SFI wreckage

Farmers are ploughing up environmental features after thousands were shut out of the Sustainable Farming Incentive when funding ran out less than six hours after applications opened.

In this episode of the Farmers Weekly Podcast, we hear from Lincolnshire farmer Charles Anyan as he returns buffer strips to wheat production following problems with his SFI application.

See also: Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026: The haves and have-nots

NFU vice-president Robyn Munt sets out what the union wants Defra to do next – including urgent clarity for farmers left without agreements and an earlier opening for SFI 2027.

Shadow farming minister Robbie Moore gives the Conservative response and argues that the government and Treasury must provide greater certainty over future funding.

And we visit the Allerton Project in Leicestershire, where a planned SFI agreement worth about £85,000 a year failed to get through.

Allerton head of sustainable farming Joe Stanley considers what the debacle means for environmental delivery – and whether private natural-capital markets can fill some of the funding gap.

The Farmers Weekly Podcast is co-hosted by Johann Tasker, Louise Impey and Hugh Broom. Edited and produced by Johann Tasker.

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