Farming in the National Parks
Farming has an important place within the National Parks. Years of agricultural practices have shaped the way our Parks look today. However, most farmers are in need of financial support to ensure their survival. If farming practices disappear or alter substantially, the appearance of the Parks will be affected.
Financial support is available, and farms within National Parks benefit from this. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is a European Union scheme devised to maintain affordable food supply and farm income and preserve rural heritage. The CAP is constantly being revised and most 
recently the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) was introduced. This removes the link between production and payment which had led to years of overproduction and damage to the environment. SPS payment depends on meeting basic environmental conditions. There are also a number of agri-environment schemes in England and Wales that pay farmers to manage their land in environmentally sensitive ways. However, farmers can opt out of these schemes when the contracts come to an end, which can undermine any progress which has been made. Up to date information for England can be found here and Wales here. 
However, the system of financial support for farmers is far from perfect. One concern for example, is that farmers are not required to keep livestock in order to receive their CAP payment. This is a particular problem for upland areas in National Parks. Upland farming is essential for the maintenance of much of the countryside. If this becomes unprofitable the cattle and sheep used in land management could disappear and the appearance of the landscape could change.
Climate change strengthens the case for keeping people with land-management skills on the land and the need to ensure a system of support continues.
The English Park Authorities have produced a joint position statement on upland livestock farming in National Parks.
National Parks recognise the importance of maintaining their farming communities and there are a number of projects around the Parks that support farming practices:
Forest Friendly Farming
The New Forest National Park Authority works with local volunteers and a small team of staff to develop practical ways of supporting farming, commoning and woodland managment within the New Forest.
Dartmoor Hill Farm Project
The project helps Dartmoor farmers by offering advice on funding and training opportunities and developing group activities such as marketing initiatives and machinery rings.
Limestone Country Project
The Limestone Country Project aims to protect and improve important wildlife sites by promoting the re-introduction of native cattle breeds across the Malham and Ingleborough areas of the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
The following links take you directly to each National Park Authority’s farming pages
| Brecon Beacons | Northumberland |
| The Broads | North York Moors |
| Dartmoor | Peak District |
| Exmoor | Pembrokeshire Coast |
| Lake District | Snowdonia |
| New Forest | Yorkshire Dales |