NFU Conference 2025: All You Need To Know

Yesterday at the NFU Conference, the government announced a range of farming updates, including increased funding for environmental and innovation grants, new support for farmers, and improvements to existing schemes. These measures aim to boost sustainability, enhance productivity, and ensure fairer access to financial support.

ELM Capital Grants

The popular stand alone 2024 scheme that had over 4,000 applications suspended in November 2024 will now be fully processed in 2025/26, totalling approximately £120 million in funding.

For 2025/26 Applications: A new round of Capital Grants will open later this year with the following funding limits:

• £25,000 for water quality, air quality, and natural flood management.
• £35,000 for trees and boundaries.

New spending caps aim to ensure fairer access, particularly for smaller farms and high-priority projects. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis.

Farm Equipment and Innovation Grants 

Farm Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF):

A final round will open in spring, emphasising innovative equipment.

Productivity and Slurry Grant:

A £30 million scheme will support improvements in farm productivity and environmental sustainability.

ADOPT (accelerating development of practices and technologies) Fund:

A new initiative offering up to ten competitive funding rounds, beginning in spring, with grants between £50,000 and £100,000 to support innovative farming projects.

Farming Innovation Programme:

£63 million will be allocated to projects focusing on precision breeding and net zero.

Environmental Land Management (ELM) and Stewardship Schemes

Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI):

No major updates; future funding may be subject to the Spending Review.

Landscape Recovery:

The first schemes are moving to the implementation phase.

Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL):

Extended until 2026 to continue supporting environmental and conservation projects in protected areas. Currently over 7,000 farmers involved.

Higher Level Stewardship (HLS):

Increased Payment Rates: Payment rates for HLS agreement holders will increase from the 2025 claim year. Specific rate changes will be published soon, and agreement holders will receive written notification by April 2025.

Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT):

Pre-Application Phase: A controlled, invitation-only rollout is currently underway. Once this has been tested further it will be open for other applicants.

Did you know that Ceres Rural is offering free farm business advice to guide farmers through various current opportunities, such as these grants and schemes? It’s our way of supporting our industry and the farming community. If you would like to make the most of this opportunity, click here to learn more and register your interest.

T&Cs here.