OUR THOUGHTS
From time to time, our experienced consultants take a moment to reflect on recent work, policy news or industry trends. Read what they have to say below and don’t forget, if you’d like to receive updates from us, including news and insights, business updates, and Ceres Publications, subscribe to mailing list.
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Chloe Timberlake
Jan, 17 2024As has become customary, the Oxford Farming Conference provided a platform once more for announcements by Defra. Steve Barclay, the relatively new in-post Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs revealed changes to the Agricultural Transition Plan. He also detailed important updates to Environmental Land Management schemes, which will provide support for both […]
Christopher Monk
Jan, 11 2024
Day one of the conference, Senior Consultant Christopher Monk attended and saw Steve Barclay (the new Secretary of State) announce an unexpected increase in Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) / Countryside Stewardship (CS) payments of 10%, which will apply to both existing and new agreements. He also announced a number of new premium actions/options and confirmed […]
Edward Hutley
Dec, 05 2023At Ceres Rural, we like to continually fuel our knowledge bank and obtain information and opinions from you to help enhance our advice throughout the year. This next piece of data collection will also help one of our consultants, John Price, with his BASIS project – focusing on winter wheat companion crops, a requirement for […]
Jock Willmott
Dec, 05 2023We’re pleased to share with you our Yield Summary for 2023. This is a free publication detailing conclusions and learnings from harvest. We have analysed results across a breadth of crops, using a significant Ceres Rural dataset built over the last three seasons. The objective is to provide you with an independent view of crop […]
Beth Speakman
Dec, 04 2023 Defra Clarifies Future of ELMs and Opens New SFI Round Defra has provided much-needed clarity on the future of Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs) and agri-environmental funding. At the same time, another round of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) has opened for applications. This round includes several easy wins for farmers, such as funding for […]
Sebastian Young
Sep, 18 2023We’ve reviewed the data and put together a detailed comparison report reviewing the costs and returns across the last five years in relation to Contract Farming Agreements (CFAs) for both contractors and landowners. There is a complete dataset of 52 CFAs up to 2022, spanning a geography across the south and east of England. For […]
Phillip Norden
Jun, 02 2023Second Round of Water Management Grant Opens On 19 April 2023, the second round of the Water Management Grant opened. This grant supports arable and horticultural businesses in England that grow, or plan to grow, irrigated food crops, ornamentals, or forestry nurseries. Funding Details The grant can cover up to 40% of eligible project costs. […]
Edward Hutley
May, 23 2023 A ten-year sustainability plan put in place just over a year ago at Squerryes Estate at Westerham in Kent has provided a framework for the business, as it navigates its way through the agricultural transition. With six priorities – access, community, terroir, ecology, flooding and carbon – the plan was developed to show how the […]
Tim Isaac
Feb, 21 2023Don’t Miss Your Chance to Get the Answers You Need to Drive Your Business Forward We’re excited to join CLA experts, Defra, and the RPA at a series of events focused on the latest developments in the agricultural transition. Announcements about the new Environmental Land Management schemes seem to come almost daily. Many farmers are […]
Beth Speakman
Jan, 31 2023 Published on 26th January, Defra announced the roll out of six new standards under the Sustainable Farming Incentive with the three-year agreements aimed at promoting biodiversity, air quality, climate change adaptation and water quality. The new standards include: Nutrient Management Standard Integrated Pest Management Standard Hedgerow Standard Arable & Horticultural Land Standard Improved Grassland Standard […]