Through the Farming Resilience Fund, farmers and land managers who receive BPS payments can access free, independent business advice. In this film, we travel to Shropshire to meet rare breed pig farmers Sarah and Byron Odell. Together with their adviser Karen Fisher, they describe their business objectives and the advice they were given.
I am pleased to tell you that the annual health and welfare review of livestock is now open to non-BPS registered farmers, meaning more livestock keepers in England can now apply. Through the Review, farmers who keep cattle, sheep and pigs can get funding to pay for a vet to visit their farm and carry out a yearly review.
On Monday 20 November, we hosted a webinar for livestock and grassland farmers to learn more about the funding opportunities available in England. The webinar focused on the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway.
When we launched the Annual Health and Welfare Review, a funded annual vet visit, we said that we would continue to improve with feedback from farmers and vets. In this post, we’d like to share an update on our work which includes simplifying the process to apply, bringing BVD testing for beef in line with CHECS and BVD Free requirements and clarifying how to use the review to enable exports to the EU. We also include a video of a farmer and vet who took part in a Review.
In this film, farming facilitator Danny Teasdale took us to Strickley Farm in Cumbria, to meet dairy farmer James Robinson. Danny and James show us a piece of farmland that has always been unproductive and prone to flooding. James and Danny explain how they re-meandered the stream through the flooded area to create a natural habitat for wildlife that can also be used for grazing livestock.
In the latest in our series of films from the Lake District, we visit Miller Farming in Penruddock. Upland farmers, Garry and Hazel Miller, have sheep, cows, and free-range hens. They talk about how they’ve increased productivity and enhanced nature at the same time.
If you have an ambitious research and development project which supports productivity and sustainability, you can now apply for a share of £12.5 million to fund it.
We recently blogged to introduce Animal Health and Welfare grants. These grants, of between £1,000 and £25,000, go towards the cost of items from a list which are designed to improve the health and welfare of your livestock. We're very pleased to say that the first window to apply is now open. In this post, we'll share more about the grant, why you might want to consider it and how to apply.
Now that the Annual Health and Welfare Review is open, I’d like to share more about the next step on the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway: Animal Health and Welfare grants.
At around this time last year, I wrote a post introducing the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway. I’m pleased to tell you that the first step on the Pathway, the SFI Annual Health and Welfare Review, is now ready to be rolled out. In this post, I'll explain how to register for a funded annual visit from your chosen vet or team of vets.
On 5 May, we are at North Somerset Show, Bathing Pond Fields, Wraxall, BS48 1NE.
Come and say hello to our team. We’ll be there from 8:30am.
You can also find us at these agricultural shows and conferences in 2025.
