Check Basic Payment claim statements

To celebrate the move mid-March to their new city centre office at Shiretown House, 41-43 Broad Street, Hereford, Berrys will be offering a BPS service from £250.

“Applications for 2018 BPS close on May 15 and in the forthcoming months we can help farmers check their 2017 claim statement and advise on the changes for the 2018 application,” said Ben Corbett, Berrys’ partner in Herefordshire.

“We are also advising farmers to check their online maps and land data carefully, making sure the recent mapping updates have been correctly done.

“Farmers also need to be aware that the land use codes used for BPS 2018 must match those management options that they use or want to use for any Countryside Stewardship agreements,“ he advised.

The main updates for 2018 BPS are changes to the greening rules, as follows:

• A ban on the use of Plant Protection Products on nitrogen fixing crops, fallow and catch/cover crops declared as Ecological Focus Areas (EFA’s). This ban took effect from 1 January and applies up to when the crop is harvested.

• EFA catch crops must be maintained for a minimum of eight weeks and must now be established by 20th August 2018 and retained until at least 14 October 2018.

• As part of crop diversification, you can declare an area as ‘mixed crops’ that contains small areas of different crops grown next to each other.

• EFA nitrogen-fixing crops are extended to include mixtures of different nitrogen-fixing crops and other crops, as long as over 50% is nitrogen-fixing crops. The value of nitrogen-fixing crops for EFA has increased from 0.7 to 1.0.

• The limit of 30 hectares of remaining arable land has been removed from two of the crop diversification exemptions and both of the EFA exemptions.

• The EFA hedgerow option has been extended to include ‘trees in a line’. There must be more than three trees in a row.

• The EFA buffer strips option (minimum width of 1 metre adjacent to a water course) is extended to include field margins as well as buffer strips.

• During the EFA fallow period (1 January 2018 to 30 June 2018), you can: carry out drainage work; sow wild bird seed mixes and/or nectar sources and/or pollen sources; top green cover or previous crop residue.

• During the EFA fallow period you must not: sow grass, unless for an agri-environment scheme; plough or cultivate the ground; use cultivation to control weeds; carry out any form of production; apply fertiliser or farmyard manure or plant protection products.

• Where EFA fallow is located next to an EFA buffer strip/field margin, they must be ‘visually distinguishable’. From 2018 the RPA will be increasing reliance on physical inspections to check that it is possible to see a difference.

To take advantage of the discounted BPS fee call the Hereford office of Berrys on 01432 809830 or email ben.corbett@berrys.uk.com or vicky.price@berrys.uk.com.

Press release prepared on behalf of Berrys by Heather Jones Communications Limited

For further details contact Vicky Price at Berrys on 01432 809830 or email vicky.price@berrys.uk.com or Heather Jones on 07971 848778 email heather.jones@berrys.uk.com