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Tumbling grain prices, along with the ongoing post-Brexit phase-out of EU subsidies paid through the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), have heaped financial pressure on many arable businesses.
Farmers are being encouraged to explore new income streams through Defra’s Future Farming Resilience Fund (FFRF), which is in its “scale-up phase” until March 2025.
It offers free one-to-one business consultancy to identify opportunities such as finding commercial uses for disused barns or marginal land, working collaboratively with neighbours, or converting arable land into environmental features or woodland.
Andrew Spinks is an associate agricultural business consultant in the Norwich office of Brown and Co, one of the agencies offering free advice through the scheme.
He said the evolving economic climate made it increasingly vital to capitalise on the expertise of management, planning and environmental experts who could then also help identify other funding streams for new technologies, stewardship schemes or diversification projects.
“Over the last year, commodity values have been higher so perhaps it [the financial situation] has not felt quite so acute,” he said.
“But now the economics have changed slightly, so the fact that the BPS has declined to the level it is now, people will start to feel it more over the next year or so.
“It was important to have this FFRF scheme two years ago, but even more so now
“We’ve been able to help people identify new opportunities, or funding to help them build some resilience in their farming system.”
Mr Spinks said another catalyst for FFRF discussions could be the details announced this week on the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) – part of Defra’s new system of environmental payments to replace land-based subsidies.
“A lot of people have been waiting to move forwards because they have been waiting to find out what the SFI is going to look like,” he said.
“Many will take up the opportunity of the FFRF as a way of working out how they combine their farming activity with Countryside Stewardship and the SFI.”
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