Food producers are struggling with rising costs for fertilizers, fuel and feed due to the war in Ukraine.
Farmers have argued that they should be allowed to use manure as an organic alternative to artificial fertilizer, for which gas is a key ingredient as it becomes increasingly rare.
The cost of fertilizer needed to grow crops and grass for animals has more than quadrupled in the past year in some cases following sanctions in Russia.
Tom Bradshaw, vice president of the National Farmers Union, said the move provided the necessary clarity to concerned farmers and growers, some of whom had warned of food shortages.
They were not allowed to spread manure in their fields in the fall through the so-called cultivation rules for water.
The Environment Agency had previously stated that the rules were designed to prevent water pollution from agriculture and that the practice could be harmful.
However, farmers must follow strict rules about how and when to spread the mud.
The measures of the Ministry of Environment, Food and Agricultural Affairs included a postponement for the application of urea.
Urea fertilizers emit ammonia, a pollutant that the government says can “cause significant long-term damage to sensitive habitats.”
Defra agreed to calls for a one-year delay in banning the use of solid urea fertilizers by 2023 due to current market conditions.
“Farmers and growers will continue to have the flexibility to use the right product at the right time,” Mr Bradshaw said.
NFU President Minette Batters thanked the ministers for the changes, adding: the consequences”.
