CLA REITERATES SUPPORT AS NEW LEGISLATION AFFECTING UK POTATO GROWERS IS LAID DOWN.
WITH a statutory instrument now being laid down, putting into law reductions to be applied to 2024 delinked BPS payments, the the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) has reiterated its support for the Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes replacing BPS and urged UK potato growers to consider how these can work for them.
The statutory instrument is a form of legislation which allows the provisions of the Agriculture Act 2020 to be altered without Parliament having to pass a new Act.
CLA President Victoria Vyvyan said: “The move towards Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs) was always going to be challenging – but it is a path worth taking, for the sake of food production and the environment.
“ELMs will benefit the grower who will receive a new income, they will benefit the consumer, who will continue to enjoy world-class British food, and they will benefit nature as we move towards more sustainable practices.
“As Basic Payment Scheme payments are delinked, the ELM schemes are improving year-on-year and could become the most environmentally-sustainable farming policy in the world. They should become something for everyone to be proud of. Whether on the left or the right of the political divide, whether on the traditional or the modern end of farming. We encourage all farmers to consider how ELMs can work for their businesses.”
Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs) are the mechanisms for implementing the new policy in England. The schemes will pay land managers and growers for providing environmental goods and services alongside food production.
There are 3 ELMs being introduced: The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), Countryside Stewardship (CS), and Landscape Recovery.
The BPS will end completely in 2027.
