Last week, the Scottish Government published a document setting out it’s “vision for Scotland as a leader in sustainable and regenerative farming” and indicating what the basis for direct support payments and grants will be in future, after the current funding system under the European Common Agricultural Policy has been phased out.
As expected, the document confirms that direct payments to support active farming and food production will continue but, in return, farmers will be expected to meet set targets linked to matters such as biodiversity gains on their land and low emission food production.
A National Test programme will be introduced from Spring of this year, with support available to help farmers to carry out tests and surveys to obtain a baseline of information and understanding of the current environmental performance and efficiency of their own individual business. Future improvements will then be measured and set against this baseline to show the progress that is being made. The Scottish Government paper notes that these measures will be phased in but will eventually become a mandatory requirement for access to government support. Indicators such as greenhouse gas emissions and animal health and welfare plans will become key conditions for future support payments, although the full details of how the new payment support scheme will operate in practice are still to be confirmed.
The full vision document can be found on the Scottish Government website here