NEW guidance has been issued on what the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) greening rules will mean for English farmers.

CAP is the £15billion policy implemented at EU level which sets out rules for what farmers can produce and how.

The information aims to be as simple and flexible as possible.

Under the new Basic Payment Scheme, greening will account for around 30 per cent of claimants’ direct payments.

There is a new online service called the CAP Information Service, available on gov.uk

This will be used to apply all new CAP schemes and to help keep track of payments.

Farmers have raised concerns about the impact of the new greening criteria and three-crop rule on their businesses.

The three-crop rule states that if a farmer has 10 or more hectares of arable land, they have to follow crop diversification rules to continue to receive the full greening payment.

The government has said it does not want farmers to be adversely affected and that three crops can be grown over the course of a year.

A two-month inspection window of May to June has been set for the five per cent of farms that will be inspected. This should cover the majority of crops in England.

Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said: “I will press the Commission for increased clarity and flexibility on greening, including a review of the three-crop rule.

“I will champion the interest of our farmers so they can continue to produce top-quality, world-class food.”