Farmers using plant protection products (PPPs) are being reminded to register their details on a new government database by 22 June.
Announced last month, any business which uses PPPs professionally must register under the Official Controls (Plant Protection Products) Regulations 2020.
The new database is being compiled by Defra and covers England, Scotland and Wales.
Farmers need to fill out a spreadsheet with their business name and address, plus details of how much product is used, stored and applied annually.
They must register every address where PPPs and adjuvants are stored, records are kept, they are applied.
For example, if the PPPs are stored at two addresses and the records kept at a separate office, all three addresses must be registered.
Once completed, the spreadsheet then needs to be emailed to Defra.
David Hurst, farming consultant at Strutt & Parker, is reminding farmers to complete registration by the 22 June deadline.
"The announcement – which will include livestock farmers as well as arable growers – was somewhat of a surprise and we are aware that many producers have yet to fill out the form.
"This will require a bit of looking back through previous records, which is a pain, but the form does at least make clear that a rough estimate will be adequate."
A business that has PPPs and adjuvants applied by a third party must also register their details.
A contractor who applies the product on behalf of a farmer does not need to register the address of their clients, but they should register the address of their own storeroom.
When answering the question on the quantity of PPPs applied in a typical year, Defra advised that contractors should include the total amount of PPPs and adjuvants applied for all clients.
Mr Hurst explained: "It will not be a problem if there is an element of double-counting because the client is also required to register the quantities."
The form to register can be downloaded on the Gov.UK website, and email address to return it is: GB-OCR-Notification@defra.gov.uk.
