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Northern Ireland farmers receive incentives to plant forests
20/04/2009
The European Commission’s Common Agricultural Policy has changed to reassure farmers that they will still receive their Single Farm Payment (SFP) if they turn their farmland into forest.
Farmers have traditionally been wary of making changes to how they use their land as they were afraid they may lose their SFP. However, the Commission’s Health Check led to a change in its policy in January, which means that land that is converted into woodland remains eligible for SFP under the Forestry Grant Scheme.
Farmers are likely to welcome the news as many have long been keen to plant woodland in outlying parts of their farms as it can provide valuable shelter, encouraged wildlife and can, of course, be felled for fuel or timber.
Planting trees can also provide farmers with a stable long-term investment while enabling him/her to concentrate on the parts of the farm that are immediately valuable.
Farmers can get financial aid for their forestry projects through the Forest Service, which is co-financed by European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. Schemes include the Farm Woodland Premium Scheme and the Woodland Grant Scheme, both intended to help boost the amount of farmland used as woodland.
Farmers have traditionally been wary of making changes to how they use their land as they were afraid they may lose their SFP. However, the Commission’s Health Check led to a change in its policy in January, which means that land that is converted into woodland remains eligible for SFP under the Forestry Grant Scheme.
Farmers are likely to welcome the news as many have long been keen to plant woodland in outlying parts of their farms as it can provide valuable shelter, encouraged wildlife and can, of course, be felled for fuel or timber.
Planting trees can also provide farmers with a stable long-term investment while enabling him/her to concentrate on the parts of the farm that are immediately valuable.
Farmers can get financial aid for their forestry projects through the Forest Service, which is co-financed by European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. Schemes include the Farm Woodland Premium Scheme and the Woodland Grant Scheme, both intended to help boost the amount of farmland used as woodland.
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