The calibration of sprayers will be carried out on-site at the farms

Farmers may request on-site calibration of their plant protection product application equipment at their holdings, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food (MAF) announced.

The requirements and procedures for conducting periodic inspections of plant protection product application equipment (PPPAE) are set out in Ordinance No. 5 of 3 February 2016 of the MAF.  According to the document, the owners of the equipment must contact the territorial units of the General Directorate “Agriculture and Regional Policy” - Testing and Certification Centre in the city of Ruse or in the city of Plovdiv and request an inspection by completing an application form.

After a schedule is drawn up, a team is sent on site to the farms, equipped with mobile stations fully fitted with the necessary measuring instruments to verify the serviceability and safety of the PPPAE. The duration of the inspection of each machine is between 90 and 120 minutes.

Upon successful completion of the inspection, the owners are provided with a certificate and a sticker confirming that the technical inspection has been passed in relation to operator health, crop protection and environmental protection.

Pursuant to Ordinance No. 5, periodic inspections of new plant protection product application equipment are carried out up to 5 years after its purchase. After 2020, a requirement was introduced for the equipment to be inspected every 3 years.