£40m in grant money is now available for farmers to improve productivity.
There has been plenty of talk of late about productivity in the UK. Defra has now made a pot of grant money available for farmers in England to improve productivity. £40m is now available and farmers in England can apply for support to improve productivity or add value to meat, milk and fruit, by investing in new technology.
Farmers must be able to invest at least £50,000 themselves and there is a minimum grant of £35,000 which will equate to 40% of the eligible costs of the project.
The scheme looks set to run until 3 December 2018 with expressions of interest for adding value to be submitted by 29 June next year.
This may not be an opportunity for the smaller producer but for a farmer looking to move the business on it may provide valuable support. Given the uncertain future of support payments then now might be the time to look to make improvements before any changes take place.
Tim Watkins is our Managing Partner, and agriculture is his primary area of expertise so he looks after all our farming clients, handling everything from accounts and tax to business advice.
