FARMING organisations largely welcomed the Government’s announcement on Ecological Focus Areas (EFAs) – although they also had concerns.

The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) said that by giving farmers the option to count hedgerows towards their EFAs, meant productive land would not have to be taken out of use.

Dorothy Fairburn, CLA North regional director, said Defra had listened to CLA concerns about EFAs.

“Without heeding this advice, farmers would have had to take arable land out of production, which would be inconsistent with Government policy to grow the rural economy while improving the environment.” However, she was disappointed by the potential delays to payments for farmers who include hedgerows as part of their five percent EFA.

“This delay could result in a period of up to 18 months between payments, having a huge impact on farm cash flow,” she said.

The NFU also welcomed the hedgerow option and for nitrogen fixing crops such as peas and beans counting towards a farmers EFA greening measures .

Meurig Raymond, NFU president, said sensible decisions on land use were crucial. “While many will be disappointed that all landscape features won’t count from year one of the new CAP, there will be some relief that nitrogen fixing crops such as peas and beans will count,” he said.

“We have pressed hard on this, and I am pleased that Owen Paterson and his ministers have also made an important and pragmatic decision to include hedges in the range of options farmers can use to meet their EFA requirements in 2015 and not face restrictions on inputs.

“We have long-argued it is critical to have hedges included – after years of counting towards agri-environment schemes, it would have been a real own goal if they didn’t feature towards the new EFAs.”

Mr Raymond knew that some would be bitterly disappointed that more landscape features were not included from 2015.

He said: “For some, I believe that compliance under the new CAP will mean taking land out of production. That’s bad news for farmers, for the agri-food sector and for the UK economy.”

He expected to see a wider array of landscape features on offer from 2016 onwards, arguing that EFAs must recognise the features farmers already have.

“That’s critical,” he said, “We never wanted to see land taken out of production by this CAP deal and, let’s be clear, I don’t think anyone’s happy with the outcome.”

Mr Raymond said it was important that farmers who use hedges to meet their “greening”

obligation understand that they face higher risks of inspection, delayed payment and possible penalties.

There will be a review of EFAs but, Mr Raymond said, there also needs to be an early review of crop diversification.

He said the European Commission had developed a CAP package with huge practical hurdles for all in agriculture.

“It’s not the promised simplification,”

he said, “Policy measures distort farmers’ commercial decisions and do little to help us gear-up to the longterm food production and environmental challenges which we know are ahead.”