The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has unveiled the “near-final scheme information” for this year’s Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer.
As announced at the start of this year, Defra affirmed that it still intends to open the scheme’s first application window this month, with June 30 being selected as the date.
From June 30 onwards, all small farms and those without an existing Environmental Land Management (ELM) revenue agreement will be allowed to apply for an SFI offer.
Defra announced that it will also be inviting a small number of farmers who are eligible for Window 1 to apply from around June 18 as a way to test trial the scheme before its roll-out.
The department outlined that this year’s SFI is “an iterated version of the 2024 scheme”, with most of its features remaining the same, alongside “some improvements to simplify and streamline the offer.”
SFI26
Defra recommended small farms to view the most popular SFI actions in their region through the Window 1 map, which can be found on the department’s website, to help decide which action they should choose.
The scheme information published today can also be on Defra’s website, which include SFI26’s terms and conditions, scheme rules, requirements for actions, and guidance to help applications and agreements.
The department reiterated that the information has been published as “near final versions to allow for final checks”, with the fully finished details expected to posted “mid-June before applications open.”
The second application will reportedly open in September 2026 for all farmers and land managers.
Defra
During her appearance at this year’s Oxford Farming Conference, Defra Secretary of State Emma Reynolds noted that SFI26 offers have been designed to be “less complex and easier to apply.”
Reynolds said: “There will be no more sudden unexpected closures and we will give you regular updates so you know when a window is close to being fully subscribed.
“Once these changes are in place, the main design of SFI will be stabilised for the rest of this parliament, so you will know what to expect in the years to come,” she added.
The two upcoming application windows will be the first SFI rounds available to farmers since the scheme was closed on March 11, 2025 due the entirety of its previous budget being allocated.