AQW 36104/22-27

Mr John Blair
Alliance Party
South Antrim

Tabled Date: 24/11/2025
Answered On Date: 09/12/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to detail any payment schemes available for farm owners whose farms are under three hectares.

Answer:

Subject to meeting scheme eligibility requirements, farm businesses under three hectares, may be able to avail of support through a number of current and future Schemes within the Sustainable Agriculture Programme. These include the Farming with Nature Package, the pilot Protein Crop Scheme, the planned Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme, the Farming for the Generations Scheme, and the Horticulture Pilot Scheme. . These schemes are being introduced, subject to legislative and business case approval, in accordance with the published SAP timeline that can be viewed on the Department’s website: www.daera-ni.gov.uk/topics/sustainable-agriculture-programme.