Nature friendly farmers reacted with relief to the Spending Review settlement for farmers and nature announced by the Chancellor on Wednesday.
The Nature Friendly Farming Network and Soil Association acknowledged that ministers had recognised the importance of nature-friendly farming in the latest government spending decisions.
Martin Lines, CEO of the NFFN, said, “Given the challenging economic climate, it’s a relief that the budget for nature-friendly farming has been largely protected. Ministers have listened to our calls to recognise the value of nature-friendly farming and what it can do.
“However, the challenges facing food production, biodiversity and climate resilience demand far greater ambition. Without increased investment, we risk falling short of our national commitments and letting down the very farmers ready to lead the transition.
“Investing in nature-friendly farming isn’t a luxury – it’s essential to future-proof British farming, protect our communities and secure our food production. This investment benefits everyone, whether protecting communities from devastating flooding, supporting affordable renewable energy or ensuring high-quality food is available on supermarket shelves.
“The funding announced today must now be matched by faster delivery, clearer and better-designed schemes, and real rewards for the farmers who are ready to do more for nature.”
£2.7 billion for farming and nature
While savings will be required within Defra, the government has confirmed it will invest more than £2.7 billion per year in sustainable farming and nature recovery from 2026–27 to 2028–29.
This includes a commitment to increase funding for the Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes from £800 million in 2023–24 to £2 billion by 2028–29. These schemes reward farmers for delivering environmental benefits, such as natural flood management and creating wildlife habitats on farms.
However, the NFFN warned that current levels of funding still fall short of what’s needed to meet the UK’s legally binding climate and nature targets. Future spending increases must be part of any serious strategy for land use, food security and farm resilience.
Not enough to meet targets
Soil Association Director of Policy, Brendan Costelloe, echoed the concern that funding levels were too low for the government to meet its environmental targets.
He said, “The farming and nature settlement will have been hard won by Defra ministers, but it still amounts to real term cuts and it will now be even harder for the government to reach its environmental targets. Given the scale of the challenge, it’s more critical than ever that spending is targeted at those areas that do most to deliver transformational change.
“We want the government to treat food system transformation as seriously as it treats the green energy transition. This means continued support in SFI for regenerating soils – the ‘renewable energy’ of the food system. Building soil fertility allows farmers to reduce their dependency on harmful chemicals, and it lays the foundations for a widespread transition to nature-friendly farming.
“Increased investment in agroforestry can also play a critical role in building farm resilience and national food security, by helping to protect farms from the increasing impacts of climate change.
“The government also needs to support farmers who do the most to improve the environment and give animals the highest standards of welfare. This means continued support for organic farming, including the urgent reinstatement of transition support for the increasing numbers of farmers who want to convert to organic. It is also vital that farmers are given the support and tools necessary to benchmark and monitor environmental outcomes on their farms.”
Food and farming under pressure
The Spending Review comes at a time when the impact of the climate on farming has been starkly revealed by the driest spring in decades across the UK. High temperatures and a lack of rain have pushed many farmers to the brink, with crops failing as a result.
The NFFN stressed that support is essential to build farm resilience and safeguard Britain’s ability to produce food. It is now urging ministers to use ELMs to reward more ambitious action for nature on England’s farms, with increased funding for the higher tiers which support farmers to do more for biodiversity and climate.
The organisation is also urging the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to use their allocations from the review to continue developing ambitious post-Brexit agricultural support schemes with nature-friendly farming at their heart.
Lines concluded, “Farmland has a vital role to play in adapting to climate change, and farmers have the skills to deliver what is needed. The solutions for a sustainable future exist – we now need the Government to back and fund them.”
Responses from other organisations:
National Farmers’ Union – NFU President Tom Bradshaw said, “While the Defra Secretary of State has listened and managed to maintain the overall funding for farming and nature recovery, from what we can see so far, the £100 million cut to farming means farmers and growers will need to do more with less.
“The devil will be in the detail. And it’s essential that the Environmental Land Management schemes will be accessible for all farmers to get involved.
“This government has repeatedly said it wants to deliver growth, and the Chancellor said today that ‘economic security relies on our ability to make and sell more in Britain’, something the food and drink sector is primed to do. It is already the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, worth some £148 billion to the national economy and supports more than four million jobs. To help increase this, farmers must be included in the government’s industrial strategy and given access to the new investment announced today to boost supply chain resilience, job creation, R&D and local economic growth.
“The Chancellor also said that this government ‘cares about where things are made and who makes them’. But British farmers and growers haven’t felt this applies to them, and their confidence has been battered by constantly moving policy goalposts, global volatility and unpredictable climate events. In this age of insecurity, will the government back up its manifesto statement that food security is national security, and give farmers and growers the certainty and confidence to invest in their future?
“It’s also incredibly disappointing that the Chancellor didn’t take this opportunity to do the right thing on the family farm tax, especially when farmers and growers are the working people of Britain, the same people this government claims it wants to see thrive.
“We still need more details and the NFU will continue to work with Defra as it makes important decisions about how this money will be spent.”
RSPB – Alice Groom, Head of Sustainable Land Policy, England, said, “Today’s spending review outcome marks a big moment for farming and nature. Thanks to the united voice of farmers and environmental groups calling for a dedicated, nature-friendly farming budget, we’ve broadly succeeded.
“The government has committed to over £2.7 billion per year from 2026-27 to 2028-29 for sustainable farming and nature recovery, of which £2 billion will be spent on Environmental Land Management Schemes – supporting both food security and the ecosystems that underpin it.
“This is more money than has ever been spent on nature friendly schemes anywhere ever.
“More investment will be needed to meet the scale of the challenge. But we’ve shown what’s possible when farmers, land managers, and environmental voices stand shoulder to shoulder. We are difficult to ignore! I hope we continue to work together to ensure this money is well spent, delivers real impact on the ground, and builds the case for future investment in a thriving countryside for food, for climate, for nature, and for people.”
Country Land and Business Association – CLA President Victoria Vyvyan more needed to be done to deliver an ambitious plan for rural growth. She said, “While we still need further detail, it is clear that this is a meaningful funding settlement. Many farmers will be breathing a sigh of relief.
“We now need Defra to work closely with industry to understand how to get the best bang for their buck – to further the impressive gains we have already made in nature-friendly farming. Trust and confidence have been shaken, and this is an opportunity to rebuild.
“It is clear though that government still has not fully understood the consequences of its anti-business policies. Taxes are going up, jobs are being lost and investment in the rural economy is crumbling. Now is the time to get around the table with rural business leaders and thrash out a robust and ambitious plan for growth.”