FLOODING ACROSS parts of the UK has caused devastation to farmers, some of whom are being forced to abandon harvest and keep off the sodden ground.

With lack of access to land being a considerable issue, and yellow rain warnings still in place for the East of England, there is concern that farmers might not be able to make their greening commitments prompting calls to Defra asking for a derogation on certain regulations.

The NFU has also written to the government department to urge them to make their BPS payments promptly when the window opens from the first of December to ensure farmers are given the support to get them through the current challenges.

The SF spoke with beef and arable farmer Liz Webster who farms south of the Cotswolds on the banks of the river Thames. She explained that they have lost all of their winter crop to the floods and are having to find ways to move their 300 head of cattle to dry ground: “The water is coming up to our knees on the farm and we’re struggling to find any dry space in the sheds for the cattle. We have managed to find one shed on slightly higher ground used for storage that we can shuffle around and relocate the cattle to.

“The fields on the farm are saturated and we will just need to accept that our crops are gone,” she continued. “There are 150 acres of maize we haven’t been able to get to which will be ruined and will set us back £60,000 alone. That’s only one crop – we had planted rye and wheat which have been lost and our rape has been ruined two years in a row now – with the drought last year – so we’ve made the decision not to plant it again. At this rate we will have nothing to sell next year,” she stressed.

Liz suggested that the recent flooding could be the last straw for so many farmers: “We will have to wait and see how this weather pans out but with all of the added pressures on farmers with Brexit and falling beef prices, farmers are being left to become extinct. We are one of the lucky ones as we have a solar farm and it’s the only thing saving our bacon.”

Lincolnshire potato farmer Andrew Branton who farms near Spalding is predicting a loss of £1m in crops: “When the flooding hit we still had around a third of our 600-acre crop to harvest and it is unlikely we will be able to salvage much of that now. This is a serious situation for potato growers who invest hugely in their crop and that money is now sitting out there unable to be retrieved. We could potentially be looking at a £1m loss of crop.”

South Nottinghamshire crop farmer Peter Gadd is hoping the government will relax some of their requirements for direct payments given that many farmers' land remains under water: “Never in my lifetime have I seen such a sustained period of wet weather at such a key time, that has created local, regional and national issues. The rain just keeps coming and it’s become obvious we are going to have to shut the gate on winter sown land and prepare ourselves to face some more serious challenges to cash flow.

“I would like to think the government will take a pragmatic approach and make sure our direct payments come to us as soon as the window opens on the first of December. They could also help with regulatory issues as people are going to be challenged to meet the three-crop rule and obligations under greening regulations.

NFU deputy president Guy Smith commented: “It is absolutely critical that Defra takes a common-sense approach to how it manages this situation, particularly ensuring affected farmers are paid promptly at the start of the payment window next month. Our future domestic agricultural policy must recognise this and ensure there are measures for farm businesses to manage volatility, particularly in the face of increasingly unpredictable weather.”

Beef and sheep farmer Jane Landers who farms at Bargaly farm in Newton Stewart reported on the picture in the south of Scotland: "The ground is spongy but we're coping, things are worse down south. Luckily the wind has helped dry things out but it wouldn't take much to find ourselves in trouble if we have a heavy downpour."