“Rolled out at the start of January, the Sustainable Agriculture Programme replaces the familiar Basic Payment Scheme and the transitional scheme implemented last year,” said the MP. “SAP aims to provide a financial life-line for farmers, as they work towards improving efficiency, sustainability and productivity, while contributing to environmental protection.

“SAP represents the way forward for future farm support in Northern Ireland, and it is vital that farmers fully understand the various elements and mandatory requirements.”

Ms Lockhart added:”CAFRE staff are currently hosting a series of information events aimed at explaining SAP and outlining the options available for farm businesses. A number of events have already taken place across the province, but there are further dates and venues scheduled in the coming weeks.

“I strongly encourage farmers to attend these sessions. Engagement and preparation at this stage is crucial if the programme is to be workable at farm level.”

However, the DUP Agriculture spokesperson has hit out at DAERA for failing to deliver a bespoke package for sheep farmers. “Despite repeated assurances from the Minister over a long number of months, sheep producers have been largely forgotten by the new SAP regime. This is totally unacceptable. The sheep industry is pivotal to the economy, rural landscape and food security, and it must be adequately supported.

“At the recent Oxford Farming Conference, Minster Muir said he “stood steadfast with our farmers” and spoke of his plans for a “thriving, resilient and environmentally sustainable agriculture” sector in Northern Ireland”.

“Minister, you can’t simply fail to honour your commitment. The sheep sector contributes to the 70,000 agri-industry jobs, and helps to bolster NI’s thriving food and beverage market which contributes over £5 billion to the local economy.”

Ms Lockhart has vowed to continue to press DAERA for a scheme reflective of the unique challenges faced by sheep farmers. “A one-size-fits-all approach won’t work, especially for family farms trying to sustain a living in upland and marginal areas, where alternative enterprise options are very limited.”

To maintain receipt of subsidy payments, farmers throughout Northern Ireland will have to adhere to the new Farm Sustainability Standards (FSS), which replace the former cross-compliance rules. Eligible businesses will be notified in writing, and full details are available on the DAERA website.

The MP added: “The Farm Sustainability Standards (FSS) focus on water, biodiversity, landscape, soil, food safety, animal welfare, and traceability.

“A proportionate penalty matrix system has been introduced for breaches in regulations. This will see fairer deductions in payments, rather than individual fines. The matrix includes five levels of severity – warning, training, monetary deductions.

“Supporting schemes are voluntary, but the conditionalities outline that farmers must participate in specific projects such as, the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme and Bovine Genetics Project, in order to qualify for full payment.”

Schemes covered include: Farm Sustainability Payment, Protein Crop Scheme, Farming with Nature Package, Environmental Farming Scheme, Beef Carbon Reduction Scheme, Suckler Cow Scheme and relevant Forestry measures. “Each scheme carries complex criteria which must be fully understood and adhered to,” she said.



Concluding, Carla Lockhart said: “The devil will be in the detail, and any teething issues will have to be teased out in due course. Capital Grant support will be made available, hopefully around the springtime, to help farmers fund investment in machinery, equipment and technology to align with the broader goals.”