As the UK government prepares for the upcoming Budget, a leading conservation voice is issuing a stark warning: the long-term stability of the nation’s food security, water management, and economic health hinges on the robust funding of Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes. The Wildlife Trusts, an umbrella organization representing 46 individual trusts across the UK, have argued that investing in nature-based solutions is no longer a peripheral concern, but a core requirement for national resilience.
At the heart of the argument is the transition of agricultural subsidies. Since the UK’s exit from the European Union, the government has been working to replace the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) with a system that pays farmers “public money for public goods.” Under the proposed ELM schemes, landowners are financially incentivized to restore peatlands, plant hedgerows, improve soil health, and create floodplains. The Wildlife Trusts contend that these practices are not merely ecological luxuries but are the most effective tools available to mitigate the volatile impacts of a changing climate.
“We are at a crossroads where the health of our environment and the security of our food system are inextricably linked,” states the advocacy group. “By failing to properly fund these schemes, we risk undermining the very natural systems that allow our food production to continue in the face of increasingly erratic weather patterns.”
Climate resilience is a key pillar of this call to action. Recent years have seen the UK battered by record-breaking heatwaves, prolonged droughts, and catastrophic flooding. These extreme events have disrupted supply chains and increased costs for producers, which are eventually passed on to consumers. The Wildlife Trusts point out that landscapes managed for biodiversity—such as restored wetlands that act as natural sponges—provide a necessary buffer against floods, while healthy, carbon-rich soils are more resilient to drought. Without these natural defenses, the cost of human-engineered infrastructure to manage water and soil degradation will be significantly higher for the taxpayer.
Furthermore, the organization argues that the economic argument for ELM schemes is fundamentally misunderstood by those who view environmental protection as an obstacle to food production. On the contrary, the Trusts suggest that relying on intensive, chemical-heavy farming models—which degrade the pollinators and soil quality essential for long-term yields—is a recipe for food insecurity. By supporting farmers in adopting regenerative practices, the government can help stabilize food prices by reducing the sector’s dependence on expensive, volatile synthetic inputs like chemical fertilizers, the prices of which have spiked during global energy crises.
The upcoming Budget presents a crucial test for the government’s commitment to its “25-Year Environment Plan.” The Wildlife Trusts are calling for a multi-year commitment to the ELM budget that provides the financial certainty farmers need to pivot their business models. They warn that “stop-start” funding or reductions in the environmental budget will force farmers to return to high-input, low-diversity methods that ultimately leave the landscape more vulnerable to climate shocks.
As global food systems face mounting pressures from geopolitical instability and climate change, the UK’s reliance on imports remains a significant vulnerability. By embedding nature recovery into the heart of agricultural policy, the government has the opportunity to create a domestic food system that is truly sustainable. However, as The Wildlife Trusts have underscored, this transition requires more than policy frameworks; it requires the political will to provide adequate, consistent, and long-term financial support.
With the Budget looming, the message from the conservation sector is clear: the most pragmatic way to ensure affordable food and a stable environment is to invest in the natural infrastructure that sustains them. Neglecting this investment today, the Trusts warn, will prove far more expensive for the nation in the decades to come.
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