Funding frenzy adds to pressure on worried farmers — SkimNews
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- The Sustainable Farming Initiative (SFI) offered £253m in total, opened at 10:00 BST on 22 September, and ran out by 15:48 the same day—under six hours.
- Norfolk farmer Lex Brun of Great Massingham hoped to receive up to £100,000 from the scheme but submitted his application at 16:00, after the window had closed; he said it "destroyed confidence in the government" and compared the scramble to "getting tickets for an Oasis concert."
- Facing "massive increases" in fuel and fertiliser costs, Brun is now considering shifting more land to commercial crops and away from wildflower projects for birds and insects.
- The Country Land and Business Association said many farmers were in a similar position and may have to cut environmental schemes, calling for more funding in October's budget.
- Green MP Adrian Ramsay of Waveney Valley said "a lot of farmers" were frustrated and that "there just isn't the confidence the funding is going to be there in the years to come."
- Farming Minister Stephen Morgan said he had "heard the concerns" of "deeply disappointed" farmers and would explore alternatives to the first-come, first-served application process.
- The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said it would provide further information about 2027 funding applications "soon."
Why it matters: The £253m SFI fund depleted in under six hours, locking out farmers who had spent months preparing environmental projects—and one is now planning to convert wildflower habitat to commercial crops. With DEFRA only promising 2027 details "soon," farmers face a full budget cycle of uncertainty after being told the scheme would replace lost EU subsidies.
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