Andrea Leadsom – Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – has today announced a sizable funding boost for rural business.
In total, £120M of funding is to be made available to support farming concerns, foster new business, and generate thousands of jobs across rural England.
According to Ms Leadsom, interested parties will be able to apply for the next round of the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) shortly. To date, the Programme has played a pivotal role in getting countless rural businesses off the ground, while also assisting existing organisations with their own growth and improving access to international markets.
Already this additional funding has made a lasting difference. A Biddenden fruit handling company – the recipient of a £70,000 sum – has installed specialist equipment, leading to two original products and three newly-created jobs. Elsewhere, Carvannel Free Range Dairy in Cornwall received £80,000 to diversify their business and develop a new milk processing factory.
Having attended the Oxford Farming Conference, Ms Leadsom went on to say: “A quarter of England’s businesses are based in the countryside and this funding will give rural start-ups, family-run businesses and farmers looking to diversify the boost they need.
“The Programme has already supported a range of projects, from installing cutting-edge equipment to restoring flood plains, and the next round will help create more jobs, sell more products and help us access new markets.”
The dedicated £120M sum will now sit beside funding for other RDPE projects, including woodland rejuvenation and a flood action facilitation fund.
It is envisioned that the RDPE will help protect 2.5 million hectares of farmland, create 6,750 rural jobs and contribute to the planting of 11 million trees.
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