Support payments will be made available to all fully-certified organic producers in Wales this year, in a move which will provide certainty for the sector.
The new support, which will be administered through Wales' SAF process, will enable organic producers to maintain their certified status for this year.
While there is a taper on the maximum payment, there is no upper limit on the area of land that can be submitted, the Welsh government confirmed.
Horticultural land will receive £300 per hectare (previously £400/ha) and enclosed land will receive £45 per hectare (previously £65/ha).
Land above the upper limit of enclosure will receive £9 per hectare (previously £15/ha), and enclosed land with a dairy enterprise will receive £115 per hectare.
On average, the payment rates are around 30% lower than those received under the recently ended Glastir Organic Scheme.
However, there are no payments to cover certification costs, and dairy organic producers will receive a higher rate than what they would have done previously to reflect increased input costs.
Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) president Ian Rickman welcomed the news: “This will certainly be welcomed by the sector as the majority rely on such support to produce food using organic practices.
"The premiums they receive for their products very rarely reflect the additional challenges and costs associated with farming in this way.”
