Three-quarters of the funding under the latest Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) 2026 offering had already been allocated within a few hours of the window opening.
The second SFI window, worth £233 million, opened this morning. It includes a £50 million boost announced by the Prime Minister in August, to help farmers hit by low yields and rising costs access a reliable income stream, in return for action to improve the environment.
Defra said the package, which includes £3 million not allocated in the first application window, supports more drought-resilient, sustainable farming practices and forms part of a wider drive ‘to give farming businesses breathing space on costs and grow the rural economy in every corner of the country’.
The first window saw strong uptake, with 7,000 applications received including from many small farms, 3,100 new agreements going live by 1 September, and payments already reaching farmers’ bank accounts.
With the fund to be heavily sought after again, Defra said it would publish updates when 25%, 50% and 75% of the budget has been allocated. These milestones came thick and fast – by 3pm, Defra confirmed on its blog that 75% of the budget for Window 2 had already been allocated.
Under the latest iteration of SFI, every eligible farmer and land manager with at least three hectares of agricultural land can now apply.
The government said it had made changes to make the scheme ‘more focused, more transparent and fairer’, meaning as many farmers as possible can benefit from an agreement.
Farmers whose current environmental land management agreements are due to expire by the end of February 2027, around 21,000 farms, will also be able to apply early for their next agreement before their existing one runs out. This includes any small farms who held off applying in the first window so they could use this new early-application option.
Announcing the scheme was open, farming minister Stephen Morgan said: “Growing our own food is a matter of national security and part of our long-term plan for English farming, the Farming Roadmap.
“Farmers shouldn’t have to carry the risk of a changing climate alone, and this funding means more farmers can build the kind of resilient, sustainable businesses that can better withstand whatever the weather throws at them next.”
Rural Payments Agency CEO Oliver Munn said: “We have worked hard to make this year’s scheme clearer, more focused and easier to navigate for farmers and land managers.
“The response to the first window shows strong demand, and our teams have been working at pace to turn applications into agreements and payments. As the second window opens, our focus is on giving applicants clear guidance, predictable processes and the confidence to apply when they are ready.”
Scramble
However, commenting when more than half of the budget had been allocated already today, Country Land and Business Association (CLA) Deputy President Joe Evans said: “We have always been clear that in this round of SFI, there was insufficient budget allocated to enable farmers to continue delivering for the environment on behalf of society.
“Today has been a scramble for thousands of farmers desperately trying not to be left behind and we urge Defra to provide clear guidance to farmers who – despite their best efforts – will be unlucky and fail to secure an SFI26 agreement.”