Cumbrian farmers are to get a £9.8 million boost to help keep them farming ahead of the biggest subsidies shake up for half-a-century, reports Jennie Dennett.

On the heels of a survey released last week, which showed the county's farmers were making more money from tourism than farming, a huge advice and grants scheme has been launched to specifically support agriculture.

It comes just as the sector is facing massive upheaval following Common Agricultural Policy reforms which will see an end to subsidies linked to what farmers produce. Instead, next year they will be getting a single payment based on the farm's area regardless of what they grow or how many animals they raise.

Rural Regeneration Cumbria - the regeneration company forged by Cumbria County Council and the North West Development Agency - is using its foot-and-mouth recovery money for the Farming Connect Cumbria programme.

Under the scheme, farmers can get up to five days free, in-person advice from one of 38 professional agricultural advisers to plan the future of their farm and access £6.7 million of grants. The grants are available for improving the farm's technical efficiency - with things like better milking parlours, to improve animal welfare or the farm's environmental outputs.

RRC calculates Farm Connect will safeguard 750 jobs, provide almost 1,600 businesses with advice and assist at least 200 young farmers to start businesses or expand.

"This scheme is not for diversification," stressed RRC agricultural programme manager Richard Lancaster. "This is a support programme for farmers who want to carry on farming but, if they don't, the advice is there to help them diversify and access other money."

Without support, Mr Lancaster predicted Cumbria's farming sector would stagnate in the face of globalised food prices, undistorted by production subsidies.

"We cannot afford for our industry to stagnate," he said. "We produce the best products in the world bar none but we have to improve the way we do it. This is the catalyst to help us do that... to help farmers move their businesses forward."

The scheme has been designed following a survey carried out two years ago by the Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency (CREA) with the National Farmers' Union and HSBC bank. Farmers made it plain they wanted cash to help them keep farming and not more diversification schemes.

Following 12 months' worth of negotiating with the EU over state aid rules, RRC is now able to answer that call thanks to NWDA cash and CREA, which will be delivering the programme.

Farmers will be able to get a maximum of £16,000 per project but at least 60 per cent of the project's total cost will have to be funded with their own money, whether that be from a bank loan or their own reserves.

However, farmers are not limited to one project, they could have several and draw down a maximum of £30,000 of grant aid. The deal is even more generous for young' farmers - those aged under 40 who have started out in the last five years. They can get up to half their project funded instead of the normal 40 per cent.

CREA's Farm Connect manager Nancy Tweddell said the programme would improve the efficiency and performance of farms. It would also help people meet new waste water regulations and cross compliance' environmental conditions linked to the single farm payment.

"We are the only county in England to have anything like this to help the ordinary farmer," she said. "It's really exciting."

To sign up for Farm Connect contact Ms Tweddell on 01768-891444.