A £10 million fund is being made available to beef and dairy farmers to help them replace ageing cattle buildings with new facilities, Defra has announced.
The Animal Health and Welfare Infrastructure Grant, which opened today, will allocate awards to cattle farmers in England ranging from £15,000 to £500,000.
Through this grant, they will be able to access funding for roof-top solar panels on calf housing buildings, as well as prioritising new and upgraded calf housing.
The government has also announced that more than £19 million has been awarded to over 3,000 livestock farmers who applied to the first round of the grant
Both grants form part of the wider Animal Health and Welfare Pathway, which supports farmers to transition to higher welfare practices and systems.
Announcing the new grant, Farming Minister Mark Spencer said: "Our animal health and welfare grants are helping farmers improve conditions for their livestock.
"Not only is that good for the animals, it’s also a way to improve productivity and help them be more profitable."
He added: "It’s great to see such enthusiasm for these grants, with over 3,000 farmers receiving money through the Equipment and Technology Grant from today.
"Many more set to benefit with our investment in new and upgraded calf housing through our brand new Infrastructure Grant."
The guidance for a new infrastructure grant to support cattle farmers to further improve the health and welfare of their animals has been published, with the grant scheme opening for applications later this summer.
The grant will enable farmers in England to access funding, ranging from £15,000 to £500,000, to co-finance cattle infrastructure projects.
Defra said successful applicants could receive funding for a variety of building types - for example, the construction of A-frame buildings to house dairy calves from birth to weaning, or a mono-pitch building on a beef unit to house calves between 3-6 months.
Defra added that it would be extending this infrastructure grant to other livestock sectors, with forthcoming funding available for pig and poultry farmers.
