The short answer. Our minimum project area is 150 hectares. It is the smallest area over which a measured round makes economic sense once the fixed work of a round is counted, and it does not have to be your whole farm. You choose which fields are in. Start with the block that matters most and bring more land into the programme in a later round if you want to.
Why there is a minimum
Every round carries fixed work whatever the area: agreeing field boundaries, designing the sampling, a team on farm, laboratory batching, the report. Spread over 150 hectares that work is a large share of the bill. Spread over 1,500 hectares it is a small one. Below 150 hectares the fixed work dominates and the price per hectare stops being honest value, so we do not quote it. Above it, larger holdings cost materially less per hectare, which is why we quote the holding rather than publish a single rate. What sets the price per hectare explains the three things that move it.
It does not have to be the whole farm
Many farms start with a block rather than the holding: the rotation they are changing, the land they are least sure about, the fields that go first in a dry year, or the ground a buyer or a lender is asking about. That is a sound way to start, because the point of measuring is to find out what your management is doing to your soil, and the fields where you are changing something are where the answer is.
Fields added later get their own baseline from the round they join, and are then measured in the same autumn–winter window as everything else, so the whole holding ends up on one comparable record.
What your SBI number is for
Your SBI number identifies the holding and its registered land parcels, which is why it is the first thing we ask for and why a quote can be written from your SBI number and your hectares alone. The short call at set-up then agrees which fields are in and how the sampling team gets access. Sampling itself takes about half a day on farm, and the only other thing we need is the records you already keep.
What 150 hectares gets you
A result for every field, not one average. Physical samples are analysed in an ISO-accredited laboratory and tied to satellite imagery at 100 readings a hectare, so a 150-hectare block carries around 15,000 readings and a map of where carbon is being held or lost. The error is measured against samples the AI never saw and deducted in full, so every figure comes with its accuracy stated. And every round is measured to full Registry standard whichever tier you are on, so if a buyer asks for emissions data or a credit market opens, you step up rather than start again.
The results are yours. If you stop working with us you take your baseline and every measurement with you.
Larger holdings
The per-hectare cost falls as the area rises, because the fixed work is spread over more ground. For large farms we can also support a self-sampling capability to reduce cost further. Arable, grassland restoration, re-wilding and afforestation are all measured the same way, to the same standard, so mixed holdings are not a problem.
How the quote works
Send us your SBI number and your hectares and we will send a written quote within two working days. The price depends on the size of the holding, the number of fields and the tier you choose. A small deposit secures your place in the sampling season; the balance for the baseline round is invoiced once it is complete, and annual monitoring is invoiced each year on your normal account. We charge for the service and never take a commission on your carbon.
Questions we are asked about the minimum
I farm less than 150 hectares. Can I still take part?
Below 150 hectares a measured round does not make economic sense for you, and we would rather say so than quote it. Get in touch and we will talk it through honestly.
Can I add fields later?
Yes. Fields added later get their own baseline from the round they join and are measured in the same window as the rest of the holding from then on.
Does grassland count?
Yes. More than 250 projects in 11 countries cover arable, grassland restoration, re-wilding and afforestation, all measured the same way.
How do I get a quote?
Send us your SBI number and your hectares and we will send a written quote within two working days. Get a quote.
Part of our guide to soil carbon measurement for farms. Related: what sets the price per hectare · why once a year · for farmers.
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