Defra announce first results from monitoring the impact of 0% set aside rate

The amount of farm land left uncropped is likely to fall by more than 50 per cent in 2008, new results published today suggest.

The results from Defra's Farm Business Survey (FBS) , are in line with the departments earlier analysis of the likely impact of the decision by the EU to set the set aside rate to 0 per cent this year.

Within the overall change, the non-rotational area - land left out of production for more than a single year - is expected to fall by 35 per cent, while the rotational area - land left out of production for one year only - is expected to fall by 85 per cent, reflecting the ease of bringing this land into cultivation. The area in margins and corners of fields is expected to fall by 13 per cent overall, with greater reductions on farms not in Environmental Stewardship.

These results are the first major piece of evidence on farmers'

planting decisions and intentions for 2008 and beyond and comes from an extension to the long-running survey.

The results also indicate that around 70 per cent of farms which still retain some 'set-aside' do not plan to make further reductions in 2009; 19 per cent do plan to make further reductions and the remaining 11 per cent are uncertain.

The results follow the announcement by Environment Secretary Hilary Benn on 26 September 2007 that a programme of environmental monitoring of farmland would be set up under Defra's Agricultural Change and Environment Observatory (ACEO) in the wake of the EU Agriculture Council's decision to set a 0 per cent rate of set-aside for the 2008 harvest year.

Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn said:

"This first piece of evidence from the Defra's Agriculture Change and Environment Observatory (ACEO) will help in assessing the scale and nature of the likely environmental impacts of the move away from set aside in England.

"I look forward to further evidence coming from the programme to provide a firm basis for informing any future action".

The monitoring has been set up to assess what has happened on the ground following the new set aside target and to provide a firmer basis for any future action. FBS monitoring also included information on farmers' decisions and intentions about land formerly set aside and otherwise out of agricultural production.