News item | 24-04-2026 | 12:45
Essen’s Minister of Agriculture, Food Security, Fisheries and Nature (LVVN) is making 20 million euros available for a new pilot scheme for agricultural nature management. Partnerships of farmers and collectives can apply for a subsidy of € 1 million to € 5 million per project between April 29 and June 3, 2026. The scheme is intended to accelerate the expansion of agricultural nature management and make it more effective.
Minister of LVVN: “With these pilots we are taking an important step to further advance agricultural nature management in practice. Farmers and collectives are given the space to experiment with new approaches that contribute to nature restoration, water quality and climate, but also to a healthy revenue model. I call on parties to jointly seize this opportunity and show in practice what works for farmers and nature.”
New subsidy scheme for pilots
The scheme responds to the challenges for nature, water and climate and the need for a future-proof revenue model for farmers. That is why agricultural nature management is being further expanded and improved together with farmers and collectives.
The scheme finances pilots that show how agricultural nature management can be used more effectively and efficiently in practice, with an eye for both ecological goals and business returns. We also look at how administrative and implementation costs can be reduced. Knowledge exchange between projects and with governments is mandatory, so that successful approaches become more widely applicable.
Two tracks within the scheme
The scheme has two categories:
- Heavy agricultural nature management in priority areas
- Development of new measures and instruments
The priority areas include peat meadows, Natura 2000 areas, habitats of target species such as the black-tailed godwit, stream valleys and groundwater protection areas. New measures and instruments are tested in practice, so that it becomes clear what works at company and area level and how this can be included in future regulations, such as Agricultural Nature and Landscape Management within the Common Agricultural Policy.
For whom?
The subsidy is intended for partnerships between farmers and agricultural collectives. In innovative projects it is recommended to also involve a research or knowledge organization. This ensures good substantive elaboration and clear substantiation of the results.
For farmers the scheme offers:
- opportunities to try out new forms of agricultural nature management
- opportunities to combine nature and climate goals with income
- space for collaboration and practical knowledge development
More information about the scheme can be found at the RVO website.
