Nitrogen standards: how FairGrow calculates with the Dutch RVO tables

For plots in the Netherlands, FairGrow calculates the legal nitrogen usage standard per plot, with the official Tabellen mest of RVO, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, as the only source. Here you can read where every number comes from, how the standard for your plot is derived and what FairGrow does and does not do for you.

Open crop registration Tabellen mest at RVO

The source

Every standard comes from the RVO Tabellen mest

Every year the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) publishes the Tabellen mest. FairGrow uses Table 2 (nitrogen on agricultural land), Table 2g (the same standards in an NV area, 20% lower), Tables 2a to 2d (potato varieties and surcharges), Table 3 (nitrogen-demanding crops) and Table 9 (effective nitrogen). The standard for animal manure and the nitrogen differentiation scheme come from the RVO website itself.

Every Wednesday FairGrow checks whether RVO has replaced a table. A new version is first checked automatically and compared with the previous one, and only used after an administrator has approved it. The previous version is kept, so a calculation from last year can always be traced back.

Your plot

From plot to nitrogen standard

The standard depends on three things: the crop on your plot on 15 May, the soil type and whether your plot lies in an NV area. FairGrow takes the crop from your crop registration and looks up the matching row in Table 2. If a crop fits more than one row, for example a potato whose variety sets the standard, FairGrow asks you once to choose.

With every standard you can see how it was derived: which table, which row, which page, which soil type and whether the plot falls in an NV area. A surcharge, such as nitrogen differentiation on clay, only counts once you confirm that you meet the conditions.

Your farm

Your allowance is a farm total

For each plot FairGrow multiplies the standard by the number of hectares on 15 May. If you grow another crop after the first one, that follow-up crop counts again. The sum of all plots is your nitrogen allowance. FairGrow also calculates your allowance for nitrogen from animal manure: 170 kg per hectare of agricultural land, plus up to 80 kg per hectare from Renure.

The law looks at the total of your farm, not at each plot separately. Using more than the standard on one plot is not an offence as long as your farm as a whole stays within its allowance. That is why FairGrow always shows both: per plot and for the whole farm.

NV areas: where the lower standard applies

In areas where there is too much nitrogen or phosphate in the water, the nutrient-polluted areas (NV areas), the nitrogen usage standard has been 20% lower since 1 January 2025. FairGrow uses the national RVO map and calculates which share of each plot lies in an NV area. If half or more lies inside, the NV standard applies; this is set out in the Dutch Manure Act implementing regulation (article 24, paragraph 4). If 45 to 55% of a plot lies inside, FairGrow asks you to confirm which standard applies.

In RVO’s Mijn percelen you can see for yourself whether your land lies in an NV area. When in doubt, that map prevails.

Sources and licences

FairGrow does not take numbers from commercial databases. These are the sources, and how we use them:

Source

What FairGrow does with it

Licence

RVO, Tabellen mest 2023-2026Tables 2, 2a to 2e, 2g, 3, 6 and 9: the standard per crop and soil type, the variety classes, the lower standards in NV areas, manure production per cow and the availability coefficients.Government information, with attribution

RVO, Tabel 1 Wanneer mest uitrijden 2026The periods in which you may spread manure and mineral fertiliser, per soil type and for grassland or arable land.Government information, with attribution

RVO, Gebruiksnormen mestThe standard of 170 kg nitrogen from animal manure, the Renure allowance and the reference date of 15 May.Government information, with attribution

RVO en WUR, Derogatie 2022-2025The higher manure standard for grazing livestock farms with a permit, the phase-out per year and the zones around Natura 2000 where it did not apply.Government information, with attribution

RVO, StikstofdifferentiatieThe extra nitrogen on clay for high-yielding crops, after registration with RVO.Government information, with attribution

RVO, NV-gebiedenThe national map of nutrient-polluted areas. FairGrow calculates which share of your plot lies inside: at half or more, the NV standard applies.Public Domain Mark

RVO via PDOK, Natura 2000The boundaries of the Natura 2000 areas. FairGrow calculates the distance from your parcels to nature and draws the zones.Public Domain Mark

PDOK, Bestuurlijke gebieden (Kadaster)Province boundaries, to determine whether sand lies in the north, west and centre or in the south of the country.CC0

RIVM, AERIUS opendata 2026Nitrogen deposition per hectare of nitrogen-sensitive nature (2024) and the critical deposition value per habitat type.Government information, with attribution

RIVM, Depositiekaarten GCN/GDNDeposition on your farm: measured in 2024, and the forecast for 2030 and 2035.Government information, with attribution

CBGV, Adviesbasis bemesting grasland en voedergewassen 2026Agronomic nitrogen advice for grassland and maize. Advice, not a legal standard.Reuse permitted with attribution

RVO, Grondsoortenkaart (RVO, Alterra, WUR)The soil type per plot (clay, peat, sand, loess) from the map RVO itself uses for the manure rules. When in doubt, what RVO shows in Mijn percelen applies.No usage restrictions

Provincies, GrondwaterbeschermingsgebiedenThe groundwater protection areas from the environmental ordinances of Overijssel, Gelderland, Utrecht, Noord-Brabant and Limburg. Only for 2023 to 2025: the lower standard of Table 2g-2 (2024) and no derogation.Provincial maps

What FairGrow does not do

FairGrow does not give legal advice and does not file anything for you. The Gecombineerde opgave (annual declaration) and your manure records remain your responsibility.
The soil type comes from your own plot details or a soil map. Legally, RVO’s soil type map in Mijn percelen counts, so check the soil type FairGrow shows.
A surcharge only counts once you confirm that you meet the conditions. FairGrow cannot check whether you have registered.

Legal standards: RVO, Tabellen mest. This is an aid calculation: no rights can be derived from it. The usage standard applies to your whole farm. FairGrow gives no legal advice; the law, the official RVO tables and your own data at RVO prevail.

FAQ

Which nitrogen standard does FairGrow use?

The legal usage standard from Table 2 of the RVO Tabellen mest, or from Table 2g if your plot lies in an NV area. The standard belongs to the crop on 15 May, the soil type and the year.

What if RVO changes a table?

FairGrow checks every week whether there is a new version. A new version is checked and approved first, before FairGrow calculates with it. The old version is kept.

Why does FairGrow ask me to choose a row?

Some crops have more than one row in Table 2, for example potatoes with a high or low standard per variety, or spinach as a first or a follow-up crop. You choose once; FairGrow remembers your choice.

Is animal manure counted separately?

Yes. Besides your total nitrogen allowance there is a separate limit of 170 kg nitrogen from animal manure per hectare of agricultural land, plus up to 80 kg per hectare from Renure.

Can I exceed the standard on one plot?

The law looks at your whole farm. More nitrogen on one plot is not an offence as long as the total of your farm stays within the allowance.

See the nitrogen allowance of your own farm

Record your plots and crops in crop registration. FairGrow calculates the legal standard per plot and the allowance for your whole farm.

Open crop registration