General Articles

Funding for Forestry Busineses

by David saunders

Funding is now available for capital investment in your South East forestry business. This is particularly focused on investment in adding value to woodland produce or to improve the economic value of your woodland. This funding is available mainly through the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE). A good number of businesses around the region have now received funding through this route in the past year. Grants have been given to businesses who were investing in the following types of projects:
•Firewood processors to improve the efficiency and safety of firewood business
•Woodchipper for a woodfuel business to supply quality chip
•Mobile sawbenches to add value to timber at source
•A marketing project for wood products from a small local group of forestry contractors.
•Buildings for woodchip storage for a woodfuel supply business
•Infrastructure for the expansion of a business making sweet chestnut paling fencing.

There are currently 3 routes to getting funding. There are 14 Leader groups in specific geographic areas spread across the region. These deal with projects requesting grant funding up to £50,000. For those outside
Leader groups looking for up to £20,000 there will be one final round of the South East Woodland and Timber Fund in October 2009, managed by the Forestry Commission.
This funding is competitive, so whilst most forestry businesses will be eligible for funding all applications will be submitted to a Regional Appraisal Panel and funding cannot be assumed.

For more details on eligibility for these schemes see

http://www.forestry.gov.uk/england-grants

This article was posted on 24 November '09
 

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