More than £1bn pledged to support Welsh farming

Welsh farmers will receive more than £1 billion through the Sustainable Farming Scheme over the next three years, ending the uncertainty caused by annual funding settlements.

The Welsh Government has committed £340 million a year until March 2030, with £238 million allocated to the scheme’s Universal Layer and £102 million for Optional and Collaborative actions.

The settlement retains the existing 70:30 funding split in favour of the Universal Layer, which provides the main source of support for participating farm businesses.

Optional and Collaborative actions are intended to fund additional work, including environmental projects and joint initiatives involving groups of farmers.

Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability Llyr Gruffydd announced the commitment at the Royal Welsh Show.

The settlement delivers a Plaid Cymru manifesto commitment to provide a multi-year budget for the scheme within the government’s first 100 days.

NFU Cymru welcomed the announcement, describing it as a “major boost” for Welsh agriculture.

The ring-fenced, multi-year settlement and the retention of the 70:30 funding split were among the union’s main requests in its Senedd election manifesto, published in June 2025.

NFU Cymru president Abi Reader said the commitment would give farming businesses greater confidence during a period of rising costs and uncertainty.

“Today’s announcement securing £340m per annum for the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) for three years through to March 2030 is a major boost to the sector,” she said.

NFU Cymru said support through the Universal Layer, particularly its social value payment, helped underpin food production and the financial resilience of family farms.

The union also argued that the funding supported rural communities, Welsh culture, heritage and language, as well as businesses that rely on the agricultural sector.

The announcement comes as farm-gate prices have fallen in some sectors while input costs have risen in response to global instability.

Farming businesses often work across production and investment cycles lasting several years, making it difficult to plan when funding is confirmed only annually.

Mr Gruffydd said: “Giving farmers only 12 months' line of sight to funding is not sufficient.”

He said the three-year commitment was intended to provide the certainty needed for farmers to make longer-term business and investment decisions.

Alongside the funding settlement, the Welsh Government announced plans to reduce the administrative burden on family farms.

The measures follow early feedback from an independent review of agricultural bureaucracy led by John Davies.

From 2027, farmers enrolled in participating farm assurance schemes are expected to be able to use one form and one veterinary visit to meet both assurance and Sustainable Farming Scheme requirements.

The government plans to align the Animal Health Improvement Cycle in the scheme’s Universal Layer with the requirements of interested farm assurance providers.

Ministers said the relationship between farmers and their vets would remain central to improving animal health.

Further Optional Actions are also due to be introduced later in the year, while a new application window for the Integrated Natural Resources Scheme will contribute to the Collaborative Layer.

The first simplified animal-health arrangements are expected to take effect in 2027, with further scheme measures scheduled to be rolled out before the end of the year.