Wales’ Sustainable Farming Scheme has had a rough ride since it launched earlier this year after nearly a decade in development. The idea behind it is that the old post-Brexit subsidies, which were based on how much land a farm had, get replaced by payments with a more “green” focus. This means farmers who sign up agree to a checklist of requirements including managing at least 10% of their land as habitat for wildlife.
About half of farmers applying for subsidies this year opted into the new scheme, according to government figures. The other half stuck with the old system for now, which means they’ll see a 40% cut in funding this year as those payments are phased out.
The Welsh government has now announced it will commit £340m a year to the SFS through to March 2030, which adds up to over a billion pounds across the current Senedd term. Of that, £238m goes to the entry-level payment and £102m to optional and collaborative layers where farms can take on more ambitious environmental work for extra money.
‘Certainty and stability’
Despite the numbers seeming rather substantial, experts are saying it still won’t cut it.
Farming minister Llyr Gruffydd said the budget was “a baseline” that would be ring-fenced for farming.
“Farmers told us loud and clear they need certainty and stability – and that is exactly what we are delivering,” he said, though he acknowledged the financial pressures on government and said if he could “leverage more money out of government towards the sector I’m up for it”.
NFU Cymru president Abi Reader welcomed the multi-year commitment, saying “at least we know for the next three years it’s certain”, though she added that a budgetary uplift would be welcome.
Not enough for nature or for farming
Each side of the argument seem to agree that the money offered up just isn’t enough.
The £340m a year is roughly what Welsh farms have been getting since 2012, and farming unions have consistently argued that closer to £500m is needed given how much costs for fuel, feed, fertiliser and machinery have gone up since then.
Reform UK Wales made the same point, calling it a real-terms cut once you factor in over a decade of inflation.
Conservation groups aren’t happy either. Wildlife Trusts Wales, the RSPB and National Trust had all pushed for double the current budget, on the basis that farmers look after 90% of the Welsh landscape and can’t be expected to restore nature and tackle climate change on a shoestring.
Rachel Sharp of Wildlife Trusts Wales said sticking with the same budget was “disappointing”, adding that what gets decided through the SFS will “shape the rivers we swim in, the wildlife we see, the food we eat and the way Welsh communities cope with floods, drought and a changing climate”.
News reference
Wales Government. (2026). Welsh farmers to receive over £1 billion in multi-year funding certainty.
