Soil Nutrient Health Scheme

Areas of Expertise: Grassland and Plant Science

Service: Research & Development

The Soil Nutrient Health Scheme is the largest baseline soil sampling programme ever undertaken. The £37M DAERA funded scheme is being managed by AFBI and due to its scale and complexity it is being rolled out on a zonal basis, with all the zones completed by 2026.

Registration is open from Monday 16 June and will close Monday 1 September 2025. This is the last opportunity to register for the scheme and ensures that you meet the conditionality for the Farm Sustainability Payment Scheme.

The SNHS is one of the most comprehensive regional soil nutrient sampling schemes to be undertaken anywhere in the world.

With the potential to sample approximately 700,000 fields it will provide the farmers of Northern Ireland with:

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)

This information will allow farmers to optimise the application of crop nutrients to their soils and help increase farm profitability. This will result in potential reduction in nutrient loss to waterbodies thereby contributing to achieving the targets of the Nutrient Action Programme. It will also provide a baseline assessment of farm carbon stocks in soils and hedgerow and contribute to the transition to Net Zero farming in Northern Ireland.

SNHS overview

Zones

As of May 2025 over 400,000 fields have been tested for soil nutrients which equates to an over 90% uptake in Zones 1, 2 and 3.
The main sampling period runs from November - February.

All eligible farmers within Zone 4 will be notified by AFBI of registration details (eligible farmers in other zones will already have received this information and registration detail can be found here).

Registrations to Zone 4 of the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme opens in June to September 2025.

Soil analysis results include:
pH, phosphorus (P), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), Calcium (Ca) and sulphur (S), together with organic matter estimation (LoI) and crop specific lime and fertiliser recommendations.

NB: The SNHS is a voluntary scheme, however participation is planned to be a condition for the receipt of the Farm Sustainability Payment. This requires registering for SNHS and completing the CAFRE training course.

SNHS Zonal Map

View the SNHS Maps for Zones 1-4

If fields are already registered for the Scheme and are unsampled, there is no need to re-register them, they will be sampled at the first opportunity. Farmers registered with SNHS who have not yet been sampled and are concerned, should contact RPS.
E: afbi@tetratech.com T: 02896 928 388

Farmers who have queries regarding their report or maps should contact the AFBI SNHS Helpdesk:

E: snhs@afbini.gov.uk
T: 028 9025 5212

See where the samplers are working currently using the
Sampler Location Map

Training

Training provided by CAFRE has been created to help farmers understand their soil analysis report, nutrient management, the role of carbon and provide guidance on completing a nutrient management plan. Training can be accessed here: CAFRE Training

Latest News

Zone 3 Uptake

Registration for Zone 3 of the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme closed at the beginning of September 2024. There were 138,248 fields from 5927 farm businesses registered representing 90% of fields in Zone 3.
Read about Zone 3 uptake

More News

Co Down farmer reaping the benefits of soil scheme results
SNHS Active 'Zone 3' Registration Open
Active Zone 3 Soil Sampling Registration Open for Farmers
Farmers invited to apply for a major soil sampling scheme
Soil Sampling Scheme now open for 'Zone 3' farmers
Deadline approaching to register for Zone 3 of SNHS
Castlewellan farmer putting SNHS results into action
Soil Nutrient Health Scheme research ‘maps the way ahead’

Research

Visit an overview of the research programme covering soil, water quality and carbon.

Water Quality Researchers:
Taylor Harrison (AFBI), Kevin Acheson (UU), Thomas Service (AFBI), Paddy Jack (AFBI)

Farmer case studies

View case studies from year 1 of the project featuring farmers from Co Down. David Hall (Rathfriland), Adrian McGowan (Killinchy),
John Milligan (Castlewellan).

Contacts & Further Information

If you would like any further information please contact the
AFBI SNHS Helpdesk
T: 028 90 255212 E: SNHS@afbini.gov.uk

DAERA have provided further information and FAQs on the scheme