Soil Nutrient Health Scheme (SNHS) training sessions for farmers in the Co. Down area will kick off next week.

Provided by the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE), the sessions are free and can be done face-to-face or online.

The training is completed over two evenings, aiming to offer a convenient option for local farmers seeking to enhance their knowledge on the scheme.

The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has said that participation in SNHS will be a condition for the receipt of the new Farm Sustainability and Farming with Nature Payments.

These payments are the replacements for Single Farm Payment and the Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS).

This requires both registering for the SNHS and completion of the training being offered by CAFRE. Failure to complete both elements may affect future payments, the department warned.

Face-to-face training sessions are available in the Co. Down area on different dates and in different locations:

Strangford Arms Hotel, Newtownards: Tuesday, January 9 and Tuesday, January 16 or Tuesday, January 30 and Tuesday, February 6;
Bannville Hotel, Banbridge: Thursday, February 11 and Thursday, January 18 or Thursday, February 1 and Thursday, February 8;
Kilmorney Arms Hotel, Kilkeel: Tuesday, January 16 and Tuesday, January 23 or Tuesday, February 6 and Tuesday, February 13;
Mourne Country Hotel, Newry: Thursday January 18 and Thursday, January 25 or Thursday, February 8 and Thursday, February 15;
Millbrook Lodge, Ballynahinch: Tuesday, January 23 and Tuesday, January 30;
Maginn’s Bar, Castlewellan: Thursday, January 25 and Thursday, February 1.

Countryside Services Ltd recently held training sessions in Ballynahinch and Castlewellan for two groups of farmers.

The training took place over two evenings with one farmer saying that the training helped him to make sense of his soil analysis report.