A ban on muck-spreading this autumn has been lifted by the Government in a victory for farmers. 

Food producers have been grappling with rising costs for fertilisers, fuel and animal feed due to the war in Ukraine. 

Farmers have argued that they should be allowed to use manure as an organic alternative to artificial fertiliser, for which gas is a key ingredient, as it becomes more scarce.  

The cost of fertiliser, essential for growing crops and grass for livestock, has more than quadrupled in the past year in some instances following sanctions on Russia. 

Tom Bradshaw, deputy president of the National Farmers Union, said the move provided much-needed clarity for concerned farmers and growers, some of whom had warned about food shortages. 

They had not been permitted to spread manure on their fields in the autumn through the so-called farming rules for water. 

The Environment Agency previously said that the rules were designed to prevent water pollution from agriculture, and the practice could be harmful. 

Farmers still have to adhere to strict rules around how and when to spread the muck, however.  

A reprieve for application of urea was also included in the measures from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. 

Urea fertilisers emit ammonia, a pollutant that the Government says can “cause significant long-term harm to sensitive habitats”.

Defra agreed to calls for a delay to a ban on the use of solid urea fertilisers by a year, until 2023, due to current market conditions.

Mr Bradshaw said: “Farmers and growers will continue to have the flexibility to use the right product at the right time.”

The NFU president, Minette Batters, thanked ministers for the changes, adding: “Farmers are experiencing unprecedented costs when buying fertiliser, alongside tightening supplies, and it’s critical that the Government put in place measures to mitigate some of these effects.”