Written by Mike Donovan What will be the farming policy be for the new government? Keir Starmer promises pain before gain, yet so far the Defra budget has not been discussed in any detail. It’s the principle question in the minds of all 109,000 farmers and its 471,000 workforce today. Farming employs 1 per cent …
Written by Chris Fellows After the interruption of a General Election, Defra have been able to get back to answering farmers 2024. The delay, which has been frustrating for all, has now passed and on the 26th September Defra delivered a webinar in collaboration with the Farming Advice Service (FAS) and The Farming Forum (TFF). The webinar was lead …
Knight Frank’s Mark Topliff writes why the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is now worth considering and consultant Andrew Martin provides an example of how arable land can make the most of the scheme. When the SFI was launched in 2022, it was generally met with a lukewarm reception by farmers and environmental organisations. English Basic …
Is it time to make the most of the Sustainable Farming Incentive? Read More »
Planting trees in the right place at the right time can bring significant benefits to your farm including generating additional income through activities such as harvesting trees for timber, producing wood for fuel and other wood products, selling carbon units, and designing woodland for recreation and leisure use. Andy Gray, who farms at Elston Farm, …
October 2023 Sustainable Farm Incentive, my experience and future plan We joined SFI pilot at the first possible opportunity, our previous entry level scheme consisting of little more that 3m margins, that never really added an awful lot to local biodiversity, had expired 2 years earlier. Countryside stewardship was the natural replacement, it was competitive, …
Written by MIke Donovan Many farmers experiment with seed varieties, fertiliser, chems, machinery, target dates… looking for ways to improve results. Some farmers post their results on The Farming Forum and other media so others can benefit. Others join groups such as AHDB’s Innovative Farmers Field Labs so specific problems can be answered. The Farm …
Written by Ian Gould and Ethan Powell from Oakbank Game and Conservation As we inch ever closer to knowing more detail regarding the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and the new government portal for applications (possibly in September), many farmers are trying to make sense of what we do know. So far there has been little …
Written by Chris Fellows We certainly confused a few in the last issue with the title change. As you can see, we are back to normal now (see what we did there). But the point stands, regen agriculture is everywhere right now and Defra have made it more profitable than ever. Thus, every other publication …
Written by Dr Alastair Leake from The Allerton Project “There’s a reason why we use the plough” a colleague sagely advised me when I questioned this fundamental agricultural practice; “It works” – and I was treated to a history lesson to-boot. Having transitioned from growing heated glasshouse salad crops in hydroponics, the ultimate zero-till system, …
The evolution of tillage techniques on heavy arable land in the East Midlands Read More »
April 2023 Since my last article we have taken delivery of the new Horizon disc drill and used it for Autumn and Spring drilling of cereals and Beans. Initial results have been good and I have been pleased at the lack of blackgrass germination behind the drill ( One of the main reasons for the …
