County Fermanagh countryside. Picture: Cliff Donaldson
By assistant policy manager Aileen Lawson
Representatives from the Ulster Farmers’ Union environment committee have been sitting on working groups alongside those in the environmental sector, giving views and suggestions on how the new Farming with Nature (FwN) Scheme should be shaped.
The Farming with Nature package is the replacement for the Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS) and aims to support Northern Ireland farmers across all land types to make environmental improvements.
Farming with Nature will be delivered using a phased approach starting with a Farming with Nature Transition Scheme (FwNT), which started to roll out in 2025 and offered support for a range of simple actions on farm. This is currently an annual scheme with plans to roll out an extended list of options for application later this year.
In addition to the transition scheme, there are proposals for a scheme which focuses on farmers working in groups at a landscape scale to improve a specific habitat or species, and a scheme which will focus on priority habitats. Development work on these elements has started with multiple workshops and meetings taking place.
In designing new schemes, DAERA also have to take on how these operate in practice and the administrative costs of rolling them out. The UFU have a clear message; schemes must be simple, practical and financially attractive to achieve good uptake by local farmers.
While the Farming with Nature Transition Scheme was funded by some additional capital funding within DAERA, it is proposed that in time, funding taken from the ring-fenced agricultural budget will be used to fund the Farming with Nature package. The UFU has concerns around this and have consistently expressed the need for farmers to have the opportunity to receive back any money they lose from the Farm Sustainability Payment through the Farming with Nature package.
DAERA’s plan is that the Farming with Nature package will continue to expand and roll out over the coming years.
The UFU would remind farmers who were successful in the 2025 Farming with Nature Transition Scheme that all selected actions and associated supporting items should be carried out in line with the provided specifications, with work being completed by 31 March 2026 (with the exception of retention of winter stubble which should be retained to the 15 February, and multi-species winter cover crop which should be retained to the 15 February and then destroyed in line with normal husbandry practice).
As this is an annual scheme, extensions to these timelines are not possible. Therefore, if farmers have not been able to carry out all the actions they applied for, they should only claim for the work which has been completed.
