Defra's 'devastating blow' to nature-friendly farming

Just weeks after Soil Association Certification published its Organic Market Report (OMR) for 2025, which reported that land being transitioned to organic farming is ‘finally on the rise’, Defra has confirmed that with immediate effect it intends to cease all new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) applications.

The Soil Association (SA) calls the development a ‘devastating blow for nature-friendly farming’ and highlights the impact it will have on vulnerable small-scale producers who just recently gained access to the SFI and will now have to halt plans which they have been working on for many months.

“The Government has repeatedly acknowledged the need for a policy environment that enables the farming sector to produce healthy and nutritious food while supporting nature recovery and mitigating climate change,” comments Lucia Monje-Jelfs, senior policy officer at the SA. “This announcement stands in stark contrast with that goal.”

“We understand that the budget is limited, and that the existing SFI left room for improvement, but the sudden closure of applications to the scheme will have a huge impact on farming businesses across the country, and risks eroding the sector’s confidence to transition to practices good for nature and climate,” says Monje-Jelfs. “It risks England falling even further behind others doing more, such as Scotland and Europe, which have targets to increase organic farming.”

By Rosie Greenaway, editor