Payment rates under the upcoming tranche of the Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS) wider level will remain the same as previous tranches, a DAERA spokesperson has confirmed.

The fifth tranche of the scheme will open on 16 August and applies to land which is not environmentally designated.

Payment rates for the measures under EFS wider level have not changed since the first tranche of the scheme was launched in 2017.

The cost of 15-year guaranteed fencing posts has stayed relatively stable since then, although there are reports that prices have edged up recently. The cost of posts depends on length and diameter, but quotes generally start from £2.50 plus VAT.

The price of galvanised wire has crept up and 50m rolls of sheep wire now typically cost £40 plus VAT, with 200m rolls of barbed wire costing around £30 plus VAT.

Several options have been removed from EFS wider level since it was first rolled out in 2017. For example, the popular single fence “watercourse stabilisation” measure was no longer available in the fourth tranche.

More recently, the “hedge laying with two protective fences” option and the “drinking trough pipework” capital item have been removed from the upcoming fifth tranche.