Northern Irish farmers located in zone two of the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme have been urged to apply before the 31 August deadline.
The objective of the scheme is to test all, or the vast majority, of the 700,000 fields used for farming in Northern Ireland, in order to help farmers manage their nutrient applications.
If farmers in zone two do not register, they will fall short of the eligibility criteria which must be met to receive future agriculture support payments.
These include the Farm Sustainability Payment, Beef Sustainability Scheme and Farming With Nature Scheme.
The three new payments will be significant income streams for farmers going forward, replacing the majority of support currently offered by the BPS.
This year, zone two of the scheme invites registrations from farm businesses across Fermanagh, the west of County Armagh and South Tyrone.
To date over 6,000 farmers in zone one have received soil analysis results for their farms, including pH, phosphorus (P), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg) and sulphur (S), together with crop specific lime and fertilizer recommendations.
Project lead Dave Foster explained: “The scheme will provide farmers with important information on soil nutrient levels, for each field on their farm.
"Farmers will also receive a baseline estimate of the amount of carbon stored in their soils, hedgerows and trees.
He added: “This information will help them more accurately match nutrient applications to crop need, thereby increasing efficiency, reducing excess run-off to watercourses and improving their economic and environmental sustainability.
"It will also support them in contributing to the climate change agenda established under the NI Climate Change Act."
The scheme, delivered by the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), is being rolled out in stages using a zonal approach over the next four years and farmers from other zones will be contacted to apply at a later date.
It will see NI setting a high standard as the first region to establish an extensive baseline of all farms on soil nutrients, below and above ground carbon stocks, helping to improve water quality and the progression towards climate change targets.
Farmers in zone two can register to the scheme by logging on to DAERA's online services website. The deadline is 31 August 2023.
