To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what resources the Government have allocated to support the Year of Food and Farming initiative (a) in total and (b) in relation to facilitating the access of children to farms. (136759)

DEFRA has worked closely with the Department for Education and Skills, the Department of Health, and other stakeholders to support the Year of Food and Farming (YFF). We have provided financial support to develop the programme, including £130,000 of funding last financial year to support the start-up phase. In addition, DEFRA has lent a member of staff to the Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) to work on the initiative. However, the YFF is an industry-led campaign, and the bulk of funding and sponsorship is coming from industry partners.

DEFRA is committed to developing the understanding young people have of where and how their food is produced. To that end, we provide approximately £1 million a year in payments to farmers who provide educational visits to their farms as part of their agri-environment scheme agreements. In addition, in this financial year, DEFRA will provide £146,000 for the Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme (CEVAS), which provides training to farmers who provide educational access visits. This amounts to 50 per cent. of the scheme's funding.