New soil management options within the UK’s farming support schemes are providing a significant uplift in demand for precision soil sampling services, says Agrovista Precision manager Graeme Barrett.

Farmers stand to make significant economic and productivity gains by using such techniques and acting on the resulting advice, he adds.

Scotland’s Preparing for Sustainable Farming includes soil sampling and analysis among the funded options, backed by a £30/ha payment incentive. Graeme also expects a precision element for soils will soon be available under England’s Sustainable Farming Incentive and eventually in Wales’ Sustainable Farming Scheme.

“Scotland’s PSF has an incentive of £30/ha for soil sampling, provided it includes phosphorus, pH and carbon/organic matter measurements, which we offer in our standard package, along with magnesium and potassium,” says Graeme.

“However, the £30 payment also covers an upgrade to our silver soil health analysis, which covers a full nutritional, physical and biological soil analysis on a field level, providing much more information.

“Farmers also stand to make significant savings on fertiliser – our standard is £10-15/ha per year. As a result, some farmers are using those savings to access our gold test, which provides an additional detailed report on practical solutions.

“It’s not surprising that more and more farmers are now going down the precision route. Even where they are not getting their soil testing paid for, it will help them secure their support payments, and we’re confident that the benefits of fertiliser savings and enhanced crop performance alone will outweigh the cost.”