Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title

Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilising products and amending Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 and (EC) No 1107/2009 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003 (Text with EEA relevance)

4.Where the substance or one of the substances in the mixture is intended to improve the EU fertilising product’s nutrient release patterns by delaying or stopping the activity of specific groups of micro-organisms or enzymes, that substance shall be an a nitrification inhibitor, a denitrification inhibitor or a urease inhibitor, and the following rules shall apply:U.K.

(a)

The nitrification inhibitor shall inhibit the biological oxidation of ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) to nitrite nitrogen (NO2-), thus slowing the formation of nitrate nitrogen (NO3-).

The ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) oxidation rate shall be measured either by:

(i)

ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) disappearance, or

(ii)

the sum of nitrite nitrogen (NO2-) and nitrate nitrogen (NO3-) production with respect to time.

Compared to a control sample where the nitrification inhibitor has not been added, a soil sample containing the nitrification inhibitor shall show a 20 % reduction in ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) oxidation rate based on an analysis carried out 14 days after application at the 95 % confidence level.

At least 50 % of the total nitrogen (N) content of the EU fertilising product shall consist of the nitrogen (N) forms ammonium (NH4 +) and urea (CH4N2O).

(b)

The denitrification inhibitor shall inhibit the formation of nitrous oxide (N2O) by slowing down or blocking the conversion of nitrate (NO3-) to dinitrogen (N2) without influencing the nitrification process as described in PFC 5(A).

Compared to a control sample where the denitrification inhibitor has not been added, an in vitro test containing the denitrification inhibitor shall show a 20 % reduction in rate of the release of nitrous oxide (N2O) based on an analysis carried out 14 days after application at the 95 % confidence level.

(c)

The urease inhibitor shall inhibit hydrolytic action on urea (CH4N2O) by the urease enzyme, primarily targeted to reduce ammonia volatilisation. Compared to a control sample where the urease inhibitor has not been added, an in vitro test containing the urease inhibitor shall show a 20 % reduction in the rate of hydrolysis of urea (CH4N2O) based on an analysis carried out 14 days after application at the 95 % confidence level.

At least 50 % of the total nitrogen (N) content of the EU fertilising product shall consist of the nitrogen (N) form urea (CH4N2O).