New fertilisation act sets farm emission accounts from 2027

Owners and users of farmland and forestry land, and businesses selling, supplying, buying or receiving material with fertiliser value, fall under the new fertilisation act (gødskningsloven)Retsinformation, adopted by Folketinget on 3 September 2026. Its purpose is to protect nature, the environment, the climate and human health through sustainable management of nutrients and greenhouse gases, including prevention of air, soil and water pollution from fertiliser, limits on odour, dust, flies and unhygienic conditions, cuts to greenhouse-gas emissions from fertiliser, livestock and land operation, best available techniques and public participation. Matters regulated by the livestock-farming act and the environmental-protection act stay outside.

The planning period is the calendar year, 1 January to 31 December. The minister for nature and animal welfare may set an EU- and convention-driven framework for nutrient and greenhouse-gas emissions, with duties to supply the data to set it, and may set leaching limits, emission quotas with transfer rules, placement and documentation conditions for mitigation measures, year-to-year flexibility, plant-cover duties on special areas, nitrogen and phosphorus ceilings per hectare, organic-fertiliser spreading limits and erosion-prevention duties.

Registration is mandatory in the new Register for Udlednings- og Gødningsregnskaber once a holding's livestock produce or receive manure, processed organic fertiliser, digested biomass or other organic fertiliser above 1,000 kg nitrogen a year, above 100 kg nitrogen per hectare on standard-norm land, or where the holding covers 10 hectares or more of standard-norm landRetsinformation; smaller holdings may register voluntarily. Registration requires a CVR number, takes effect for the whole planning period of notification, and a certificate is issued. Anyone conducting VAT-liable trade in fertiliser may check in the register whether a buyer may buy nitrogen fertiliser free of duty under the nitrogen-tax act. Suppliers of nitrogen- or phosphorus-bearing material with fertiliser value must register separately in the Leverandørregister for gødningsleverancer from the first delivery and report each delivery, split by taxed and untaxed nitrogen fertiliserRetsinformation.

Covered holdings must draw up field and emission plans for all farmland in ministerial forms, keep field-level records of fertiliser allocations and other activities, and file emission and fertiliser accounts for the closed planning period with the ministerRetsinformation. The emission account states the field plan, cultivation history, crop choice, measures, fertiliser allocations, other field activities and natural conditions; the fertiliser account states nitrogen and phosphorus consumption, herd, housing and production-area data, total and harmony area, and tenancy and manure agreements. Filings may be required on honour and conscience. All plan, account and record documents with annexes must be kept for at least five yearsRetsinformation.

Breach of a section 6 measure that harms the climate or environment must be offset by sufficient measures in a later planning period. Control authorities may enter public and private property without a court order, take samples, demand material and information including accounts, and publish named control results and sanctions. Fines apply to registration, planning, accounting, retention, reporting and access breaches; intentional or grossly negligent breaches causing harm or significant gain carry up to two years' imprisonment, with a five-year limitation period and corporate liability. Expropriation is available to implement measures and, under the CAP-administration act, to take farmland of material importance for binding climate targets (never to promote state afforestation), with full compensation.

The act takes effect on 1 January 2027Retsinformation, repealing the farm-fertiliser-use actRetsinformation. It does not apply to the 2019-2020 through 2026-2027 planning periods, which stay under the old rules; existing registrations carry over. The nitrogen-tax act's 1 August deadlines move to 1 JanuaryRetsinformation.

Basis: the adopted fertilisation act with its registers, accounts, control, penalty and commencement provisions.