CNUM1: Assess nutrient management and produce a review report
What you must do to get paid for this action and advice on how to do it.
This is an action in the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme: expanded offer for 2024. You must read the SFI scheme information to understand the scheme rules and how to apply.
Duration
3 years
How much you’ll be paid
£652 for the assessment and review report per year
Action’s aim
This action’s aim is that you assess your current approach to nutrient usage and effectively plan how to:
- manage your nutrient usage more efficiently and effectively
- optimise your use of organic sources of crop nutrition
Where you can do this action
You can do this action on all agricultural land located below the moorland line. The nutrient management (NM) assessment and review report should cover all of the relevant areas of your farm.
This is an ‘agreement level’ SFI action. This means you apply to include it in your agreement instead of entering specific areas of land.
You can only apply for this action:
- if at least one land parcel is linked to your Single Business Identifier (SBI), so it’s shown on your digital maps
- in one SFI agreement – once you’ve included it in an agreement, you cannot apply for this action again until after its 3-year duration in that agreement ends
Eligibility of protected land
| Protected land | Eligibility |
|---|---|
| Sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) | Eligible – you do not need to get SSSI consent for this action as it’s an assessment and review report |
| Historic and archaeological features | Eligible – you do not need to get a HEFER for this action as it’s an assessment and review report |
Available area you can enter into this action
Not applicable as this is an agreement level SFI action.
Rotational or static action
Not applicable as this is an agreement level SFI action.
What to do
You must arrange for a member of the BASIS Professional Register who’s qualified under the Fertiliser Advisers Certification and Training Scheme (a ‘FACTS qualified adviser’) to visit your farm to:
- assess your current nutrient use and needs for your farm
- identify and discuss opportunities to increase efficiency of your nutrient usage, and maximise the use of natural sources of crop nutrients on that land
- help you produce a written NM review report
You must make sure that the FACTS qualified adviser does what’s required above.
If you’re a FACTS qualified adviser, as defined above, you can complete this action yourself.
You can use an existing written NM review report, informed by an NM assessment, to get paid for this action if it was:
- carried out by a FACTS qualified adviser
- written within the last 12 months
If you need to take soil samples on areas within a land parcel containing historic or archaeological features, including scheduled monuments, you must follow the requirements explained in section 5.6 ‘Land with historic or archaeological features’.
When to do it
You must make sure that a FACTS qualified adviser visits your farm to:
- complete the NM assessment and help you produce a written NM review report within 12 months of this action’s start date
- reassess your nutrient use and needs for your land and review your NM review report in each subsequent year of this action’s duration
How to do it
It’s up to you how you do this action, as long as you:
- follow this action’s requirements – these are identified by a ‘must’
- do the action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim
Advice to help you do this action will be published before applications are fully launched from summer 2024. It will not be part of this action’s requirements.
Evidence to keep
You must keep:
- a written record of your NM review report, including the NM assessment
- evidence that the adviser is a FACTS qualified adviser, such as their name and BASIS or FACTS registration number
You must supply this evidence if we ask for it.
Other actions or options you can do with this action
You can do the following actions or options on the same area in a land parcel as this action. Some actions or options can only be done on the same area if they’re done at a different time of year to this action. For example, winter cover followed by a summer companion crop. Read ‘What to do’ and ‘When to do it’ to find out when this action must be done.
| Scheme | Action or option codes |
|---|---|
| SFI actions | All SFI actions, except CMOR1, MOR1 or NUM1 |
| CS options | All CS management options |
| ES options | All ES revenue options |
| SFI pilot standards | All SFI pilot standards |