Farmers in Zone 1 are encouraged to register online for the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme by the deadline of 31st August 2022.
Failure to apply before the deadline date may preclude those farmers in Zone 1 from being eligible for agriculture support payments from 2024, as participating in the scheme will be a prerequisite for receiving agriculture support payments going forward.
The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) is responsible for the phased roll out of the scheme, starting with Zone 1 in the south east in autumn 2022. Farmers in the remaining three zones will be contacted to apply to the scheme at a later date.
The SNHS is a free service which will provide farmers with the following:
- Detailed information on the nutrient status of their soils
- Runoff risk maps for nutrient loss to waterbodies for each field sampled
- Estimates of carbon stored in their soils and as above ground biomass for each farm
- Training on the interpretation of soil nutrient reports and generation of farm nutrient plans (provided by CAFRE).
DAERA have confirmed that individual farm data collected through the SNHS will not be used by for enforcement of regulations.
The SNHS is one of the most comprehensive regional soil nutrient sampling schemes to be undertaken anywhere in the world. As such, Northern Ireland will be leading the way on establishing an extensive baseline of soil nutrients and below and above ground carbon stocks across all farms. Not only will the information help inform management decisions at farm level to optimise nutrient applications and improve farm profitability, but by doing so it will also help to improve water quality and contribute to achieving climate change targets.
To find out more visit Soil Nutrient Health Scheme | Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (afbini.gov.uk)
