The Official State Gazette has published today the royal decree approved yesterday by the Council of Ministers that modifies various regulations on the information system of agricultural holdings to introduce the voluntary nature of the use of the digital farm log.
This initiative is part of the 43 measures committed by the Government last April to respond to the concerns of farmers and ranchers expressed in the mobilizations of the first months of 2024.
Royal Decree 1054/2022, of 27 September, which regulates the Information System of Agricultural and Livestock Farms and of Agricultural Production, as well as the Autonomous Register of Agricultural Farms and the Digital Farm Log, which is now being modified, provided that the use of the Digital Farm Log began to be compulsory from 1 September 2024, with a staggered entry into force, and exempted certain farms due to its small size.
However, in application of the commitment made by the Government, the aforementioned royal decree has been modified to change the approach in the use of the digital exploitation notebook, which becomes voluntary on a temporary basis and until the next programming period of the Strategic Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), from 2027.
Thus, farmers who, in accordance with the regulations on plant protection products, fertilizers or CAP interventions, have to fill in a farm register will be able to choose whether they prefer it to be through the use of electronic or paper-based means.
This amendment has implications for other related regulations relating to the sustainable use of plant protection products, and in particular Royal Decree 1311/2012 of 14 September and Royal Decree 9/2015 of 16 January.
The entry into force of the voluntariness of the use of the digital notebook is done retroactively on July 1, 2023, to avoid any type of harm to farmers that may arise from the delay in the publication of the rule.