The Spanish Agricultural Guarantee Fund (FEGA), on the occasion of the modifications included in Royal Decree-Law 4/2023, has published an explanatory note regarding the entry into force of the Digital Farm Notebook (CUE) that facilitates the understanding of the standard depending on the size and intensification of the farms, and the type of information that must be completed.

In general, the entry into force of the digital notebook entry obligations can be considered to be delayed until 1 January 2024 for large holdings and until 1 January 2025 for small farms.

As stated above:

• • – Large farms: those of more than 30 hectares of permanent arable land or pasture, 10 hectares of permanent crops, 5 hectares of irrigated land or a greenhouse plot (whatever its size), must:

○ From 1 September 2023 (start of the 2024 CAP agricultural year):

≫ make the annotations of the eco-schemes they apply for for irrigated arable land and woody crops, i.e. record the applications of fertilisation in crop rotation or direct seeding systems in irrigated crops or the dates of establishment of green and inert covers, the width of the cover and the free width of the crown projection, and the type of maintenance performed on the green roofs.

○ From 1 January 2024:

≫ fill in the rest of the information established in the regulations, such as phytosanitary treatments, other information required for CAP aid and the application of fertilizers, including that carried out through irrigation.

○ In reference to the provision of a subscriber plan fertilization:

≫  from 1 September 2023, record the applications of synthetic fertilizers that occur in specific cases to verify compliance with certain CAP aid for the 2024 or 2025 marketing year.

≫  from 1 January 2024, record certain fields of the fertilisation plan for large farms applying for eco-schemes requiring sustainable input management.

≫  from 1 September 2024, record certain fields of the fertiliser plan for the rest of the large farms that do not apply for eco-schemes requiring sustainable input management.

Source: MAPA

• – Small farms: all other farms, must:

○ From 1 September 2024 (start of the 2025 CAP agricultural year):

≫ record the information required for CAP support for the 2025 marketing year, i.e. record fertilisation applications in crop rotation or irrigated no-till systems or the dates of establishment of green and inert covers, the width of the cover and the free width of the crown projection, and the type of maintenance performed on the green roofs.

○ From 1 January 2024:

≫ complete the rest of the information (phytosanitary treatments, other information required for CAP aid and application of fertilizers, including fertigation).

• In reference to the provision of a subscriber plan fertilization:

≫ from 1 January 2025, have such a plan in those farms that are required

Source: MAPA

The central administration, through the autonomous communities (with the exception of Catalonia, Castilla León and Navarra), will make available to farmers a model of Digital Farm Notebook (CUE) that will be completely free, although farmers may use other models of private companies as long as they are approved by the administration. The data must be uploaded within a maximum period of one month.

It is also important to know that failure to complete the digital notebook will entail sanctions, which will vary according to autonomous community and may even lead to the loss of the CAP.