Horticultural businesses affected by the floods will be able to claim a slice of a £10 million government fund to get their businesses back up and running.
Speaking at the NFU Conference this week, Defra minister George Eustice outlined details of the Farming Recovery Fund, which is aimed at offering support with uninsured losses to help farms get back into production again.
It will also help with restoring grassland, as well as productive horticultural and arable land, restoring field access for vehicles and improving field drainage.
An immediate response fund is available, where farmers can apply for grants of up to £5,000 which will cover up to 100 per cent of the eligible costs. A second part of the fund will be held back so that funds are still available to help farms that continue to be affected but where it is too soon to assess the full extent of the damage.
“Once we have a better picture of the scale of the damage we will reassess the upper limit for grants and we will keep the scheme under constant review so that it remains flexible and is targeted at those in greatest need,” Eustice said.
He added that spending on flood defences was “a major priority for this department and this government has continued to increase investment despite the challenges facing the public finances.”
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