Details of the way the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will be implemented in Scotland were formally submitted to Europe yesterday.
The decisions include those set out by the Rural Affairs Secretary in his statement to the Scottish Parliament in June as well as confirmation of the voluntary coupled support scheme for beef and sheep.
They also include confirmation of what some farmers will have to do to meet the Ecological Focus Area (EFA) requirement of the new greening element of the CAP.
The new rules do not apply to all farmers, but generally speaking those with more than 15 hectares of arable land must deliver an area corresponding to five per cent of their arable land as EFA.
In Scotland this can comprise any of the following:
l Land lying fallow (mandatory weighting factor of 1 applies).
l Catch crops (mandatory weighting factor of 0.3).
l Nitrogen fixing crops (mandatory weighting factor of 0.7).
l Field margins and buffer strips along water courses, for which a decision has been taken to apply a weighting factor of 1.5.
Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead said: "I have already confirmed that Europe's standard greening measures, the three-crop rule, retaining permanent pasture and EFAs, will apply in Scotland in 2015 while we continue to seek approval to implement our proposed equivalence measures from 2016 onwards.
"For EFAs we need to achieve a balance between food production and meeting our environmental goals and obligations.
"That's why I have taken the decision to apply a weighting factor of 1.5 to field margins and buffer strips along water courses which are generally the lowest productive areas of arable land and the most valuable for the environment."
Mr Lochhead added: "Of course, there are various exemptions from these greening measures and not all farmers will have to adhere to EFA rules.
"Those that do can choose from any of the available options in order to meet their EFA requirements."
The Cabinet Secretary will be writing to about 22,000 farmers and crofters later this month with more details.
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