Rural Payments Agency, DEFRA grants, Countryside Stewardship, and Sustainable Farming Incentive, £2.6 billion in annual government funding for the sector, and 70% of eligible producers don't claim their full entitlements. STERLING, OTTO, and STERLING run the full sweep daily.
in annual DEFRA grant funding. 70% of eligible producers are under-claiming.
Food production and agriculture businesses operate across multiple government funding schemes, need finance that matches seasonal revenue cycles, and often have food technology innovation that qualifies for R&D credits. STERLING, OTTO, and STERLING handle all three, autonomously, every day.
Rural Payments Agency, DEFRA capital grants, Countryside Stewardship, Sustainable Farming Incentive, Farming in Protected Landscapes, STERLING monitors all active schemes and scores eligibility against your land type, farming system, and production profile. Most producers are claiming one scheme. STERLING finds the other three.
STERLING, DEFRA & RPA STERLING INTELLIGENCEHarvest finance, seasonal working capital, grain store construction, polytunnel installation, and agricultural equipment, OTTO holds specialist agricultural lenders who understand seasonal cash flow, BPS payment cycles, and land-secured lending. Finance that works with your harvest calendar, not against it.
OTTO, AGRICULTURAL & SEASONAL FINANCEFood processing technology development, crop yield innovation, precision agriculture systems, fermentation process improvement, all potentially qualifying R&D. STERLING analyses your development activity against HMRC criteria and identifies claims most food businesses never consider. ERIS returns 27% as cash for loss-making companies.
STERLING, FOOD TECH R&D CREDITSDaily DEFRA scanning, RPA scheme monitoring, Countryside Stewardship matching, and SFI entitlement tracking. Every qualifying scheme, found and flagged.
Seasonal working capital, harvest finance, agricultural equipment, and 144+ specialist lenders who understand farming cash flow cycles.
Food tech R&D credits, process innovation claims, ERIS scheme analysis, and AIF deadline tracking. Hidden credits surfaced automatically.
Daily grant brief, combined finance + tax + grant intelligence, deadline calendar, and autonomous coordination across all agents.
STERLING scans all active DEFRA capital grants, Countryside Stewardship agreements, Sustainable Farming Incentive options, and Rural Payments Agency entitlements daily. Matched to your land classification, farming system, and eligible actions. Alert fires when a qualifying window opens, with the deadline and payment rates already loaded.
Agent: STERLINGFood processing innovation, new preservation technologies, crop science, precision fermentation, and sustainable packaging development, STERLING identifies qualifying R&D activity and structures the claim. Food manufacturing is one of the highest-density sectors for unclaimed R&D credits in the UK.
Agent: STERLINGHarvest costs, seed and input purchasing, crop insurance premiums, and seasonal labour, OTTO matches working capital facilities that align to your cropping calendar and BPS payment schedule. No agricultural business should run into a cash flow gap between seasons when the right finance facility exists.
Agent: OTTOTractors, combines, grain storage, irrigation systems, polytunnels, and processing equipment, OTTO holds agricultural asset lenders who understand land-secured values and seasonal income patterns. Hire purchase, finance lease, and CFHL products matched to your asset and cash flow profile.
Agent: OTTO"STERLING identified three Countryside Stewardship options we hadn't applied for. The combined annual payment was £18K we had been leaving on the table every year."
£2.6B Annual DEFRA grant funding, 70% of eligible producers under-claiming"OTTO found us a harvest finance facility that bridged the gap between input costs in spring and grain sale proceeds in autumn. It changed our business model."
Daily STERLING scans RPA, DEFRA, and Countryside Stewardship, every scheme, every day"We invested in a new food processing line with novel technology. STERLING identified the development work as qualifying R&D. The claim was £38K."
27% ERIS cash credit for loss-making food tech companies investing in R&D"SME Growth Team's morning brief covers our grant entitlements, finance position, and R&D intelligence in one summary. That used to be three separate conversations with three different advisers."
70% Eligible farms and food producers not claiming their full government entitlementsSubmit your details and we'll assess your food production or farming business, identify every qualifying DEFRA scheme, R&D credit, and finance opportunity, and have SME Growth Team operational within days.
The AI operating system that runs your farm or food business's entire commercial intelligence layer. Grants, finance, tax, and compliance, always on, always learning.
Explore SME Growth Team →