Ways to boost farming income by combining Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) actions have been analysed by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
AHDB’s stacking analysis report coincides with the expanded SFI options, which are open to new entrants for the first time to support sustainable food production.
It includes payments for precision farming and agroforestry, which look to help farmers reduce input costs and improve yield.
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The analysis has shown that farmers should carefully select the right options for their businesses to help boost their net profit level.
AHDB has also released agroforestry information on its website, detailing actions available to farmers who wish to know more about this opportunity.
Sarah Baker, AHDB head of economics (analysis), said: “SFI is at the top of farmers’ worry lists at the moment, weighing up whether or not to participate in the scheme and to what extent. The expanded SFI offer gives farmers much more flexibility in terms of choosing actions which suit their farms.
“It will contribute to net margin and mitigate loss of Direct Payments if used strategically and in line with business objectives, but careful consideration is needed to decide which plots of land to enter.”
She stressed that land that is less productive is “most likely to give a positive return” after the costs of participation and opportunity have been considered.
Sarah continued: “If actions can be carried out on less productive areas of the farm without sacrificing large areas of cash crops, an increase in net profit is likely.
“If the action fits with your current management plan, you may as well be getting paid for it. Such actions are also likely to help regenerate unproductive land and make it more productive in the long term.”
“Essentially, our message is don’t take productive land out of production because you may lose money. Make sure you understand the true costs of participating which will vary between individual businesses.”
AHDB reiterated that no one SFI action in the SFI is enough to mitigate the loss of direct payments. But the right combination of them could play a major role in making up shortfall.
