Terrafarmer’s Head Consultant and Agronomist, Anthony Ellis, feels small to medium, mixed/grassland, and existing low-input farmers may lose out under the new Environmental Land Management schemes
Looking across social media and various farming forums, it appears that Defra’s recent announcement on the details of the Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMS) has received mixed reactions among different farmer and land manager groups.
There is no doubt that this has been an enormously complicated task for Defra’s Director of farming reforms, Janet Hughes, and her team. And it is great to finally get some clarity, with some immediate improvements such as the rolling application window.
Winners and losers
With 280 different options now on the table, it is going to take some time to get one’s head around the different prescriptions and how they all fit together. And, as with all things, there are inevitably winners and losers.
The clear winners are arable farmers, although there are some very welcome and much-needed steps forward in terms of encouraging reduced tillage, soil and nutrient management, integrated pest management, precision farming, and so on.
But (and it’s a big but)…
As things currently stand, the clear losers are the small to medium, mixed/grassland, and existing low-input farmers. Given the significant interest in regenerative farming practices, this is both a surprise and a huge disappointment.
The options are very heavily weighted towards the arable sector. In doing so, it appears Defra has failed to acknowledge the importance of pasture in delivering clean air, clear water, biodiversity, carbon sequestration and storage, thriving rural communities, and so on. What’s even more surprising is that many of the arable options that are equally applicable to pasture are marked in bold, ‘Does not apply to pasture’. Why?
A missed opportunity
With all the media and policy discussions surrounding ‘rewilding’, one would be forgiven for assuming the unspoken long-term government policy is to withdraw funding for livestock farming in the hope that much of the industry will fold, allowing permanent pasture to be planted to trees to meet national Net Zero targets while encouraging the development of the plant-based food industry through existing arable land.
I suspect many livestock and mixed farmers (and those in the uplands) will look at the details of Defra’s announcement and wonder why they are effectively being sidelined while the big arable farmers – some of whom have arguably treated their soils and environment the worst – are getting most of the rewards.
All in all, this feels like a huge opportunity missed by the wider Defra family. But there is one hope: throughout this entire process, Defra’s Janet Hughes has been a revelation when it comes to transparency and open communication with farmers, as well as listening first-hand to our experiences, ideas, and concerns. In one of her latest Tweets, Janet says “If you think there are other actions we should look at that aren’t yet covered, do please let us know – we’ll carry on refining and improving the offer.” Only time will tell if those voices are heard.
About the author
Anthony Ellis graduated from Harper Adams in 2004 with a BSc (Hons) in Agriculture with Environmental Management and went on to become a commercial agronomist. Over the years, Anthony has built up extensive knowledge and experience of a range of different crops, both organically and conventionally. He has gained numerous BASIS qualifications, including Crop Protection, Soil and Water Management and Biodiversity and Ecological Training for Advisors.
About the author
Anthony Ellis graduated from Harper Adams in 2004 with a BSc (Hons) in Agriculture with Environmental Management and went on to become a commercial agronomist. Over the years, Anthony has built up extensive knowledge and experience of a range of different crops, both organically and conventionally. He has gained numerous BASIS qualifications, including Crop Protection, Soil and Water Management and Biodiversity and Ecological Training for Advisors.