As Europe strengthens its approach to soil health, reliable data and independent verification are essential to delivering meaningful environmental outcomes.
Whether it is a farmer changing agricultural practices to improve soil fertility, an industrial operator remediating contaminated land, or a carbon project developer working to support climate commitments, each faces the same important question: how can they be sure their efforts are delivering the intended results?
The answer begins with understanding the soil.
Soil performs a wide range of ecological and economic functions, including supporting food production, biodiversity, water retention and carbon storage. It is also a critical asset for farmers, landowners, industries and infrastructure developers, influencing productivity, environmental risks, resilience to drought and flooding, and land asset value. Yet despite its importance, the European Commission estimates that 60–70% of EU soils are in an unhealthy state, reflecting one or more forms of soil degradation.¹
Europe is now taking steps to address this challenge. The EU Soil Monitoring Law, which entered into force on 16 December 2025, establishes a common framework for monitoring and assessing soil health across Member States. It covers agricultural land, forest and urban areas, recognising that protecting this vital resource extends far beyond farming. ¹
However, understanding the condition of Europe’s soils is only the starting point. The next challenge is using reliable data to inform decisions, track progress and demonstrate that interventions are delivering measurable improvements.
Understanding what lies beneath
Soil health is complex. Two fields may look identical above ground while having very different conditions below the surface. One might have good organic matter levels but still contain chemical residues. Another might be free of contamination but suffer from poor structure or low biological activity.
For organisations responsible for managing land, measuring one indicator rarely provides the complete picture.
Effective soil assessment starts by identifying the questions that need answering. Is contamination affecting the suitability of land for development? Are agricultural practices improving soil health? Are soil organic carbon levels increasing? Is biodiversity recovering following restoration activities?
Answering these questions requires an appropriate combination of field investigations, physical and chemical testing, and biological analysis.
As the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification (TIC) company, SGS brings together global expertise and specialist capabilities, supporting organisations throughout the soil health journey, from initial assessment and measurement to long-term monitoring and independent assurance.
These services include soil sampling and site assessments, soil health and quality analysis, soil organic carbon measurement, contaminant testing and biodiversity assessments. Specialist capabilities such as environmental DNA (eDNA) and soil microbiome analysis provide additional insights into the biological communities that contribute to healthy, functioning soils.
Together, these capabilities provide stakeholders with a reliable baseline and scientific insights needed to identify risks, plan interventions and evaluate their effectiveness.
Seeing soil differently
Since September 2026, Genesis, a soil intelligence solution that brings together soil data, satellite imagery and contextual information, has added a new dimension to SGS’s soil health and decarbonisation solutions. By combining laboratory analysis with satellite imagery and contextual data, Genesis helps turn complex soil measurements into clearer, comparable insights, making it easier to see how soil conditions differ, how they are changing and where action can have the greatest impact.
Monitoring change, not just measuring conditions
A single soil test provides a snapshot. Understanding whether soil is improving, deteriorating or responding to an intervention requires consistent monitoring over time.
This is particularly important for regenerative agriculture, where changes in management practices can influence soil structure, biological activity and organic carbon. It is equally relevant to industrial sites, where monitoring may reveal contaminant migration or demonstrate the effectiveness of remediation.
Meaningful comparisons depend on consistent sampling methods, appropriate analytical techniques, and reliable laboratory results.
SGS supports organisations with environmental and soil health monitoring, soil organic carbon measurement, biodiversity assessments, precision agriculture services and contaminant monitoring. These capabilities help land managers and businesses identify emerging risks, adjust their approach and evaluate progress against their environmental objectives.
SGS’s involvement in a major European soil monitoring programme illustrates the importance of consistent scientific data at scale: selected by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, SGS is analysing more than 35,000 soil samples collected across the EU. Drawing on specialist expertise and laboratory facilities in Portugal and Hungary, the programme helps establish reliable baselines for organic carbon, biodiversity, and pollution risks.²
These measurements contribute to a better understanding of European soils and provide a foundation for assessing environmental change over time.
SGS IN ACTION
35,000+ soil samples
Supporting European soil monitoring
Selected by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, SGS is analysing more than 35,000 soil samples across the EU to establish baselines for organic carbon, biodiversity and pollution risks. The project draws on SGS’s specialist laboratories in Portugal and Hungary.³
Making soil carbon claims credible
As organisations develop their climate strategies, interest in soil organic carbon and regenerative agriculture continues to grow.
However, demonstrating changes in soil organic carbon requires more than a single measurement.
Robust soil organic carbon assessments require representative sampling, appropriate laboratory analysis and consistent methodologies. Parameters such as bulk density are important to quantify soil organic stocks, while monitoring over time helps establish whether carbon stocks are indeed changing.
Satellite data, digital technologies and modelling can complement field-based measurements and support assessment across larger areas. Nevertheless, physical sampling and laboratory analysis remain essential for validating estimates and provide evidence to support credible environmental claims.
SGS provides integrated soil carbon services, including soil organic carbon testing, baseline assessments, bulk density measurements and ongoing monitoring. These capabilities can also support carbon-removal approaches such as enhanced rock weathering.
These services help organisations establish sound measurement programmes and generate the reliable data needed to assess their progress towards climate and sustainability objectives.
Looking beyond carbon: Managing emerging environmental risks
Carbon is only one part of the soil health picture.
Contaminants such as PFAS, metals, hydrocarbons and microplastics can affect soil quality, create environmental liabilities, trigger regulatory compliance requirements, and complicate decisions about land use and remediation. At the same time, changes in soil biodiversity and microbial communities can influence the essential functions that soils perform.
These challenges require analytical approaches suited to the specific risks being investigated.
For example, conventional targeted PFAS analysis goes up to a certain level of contamination. SGS’s PFASafe® approach draws on more than 20 years of PFAS testing expertise and uses a four-step methodology covering a range of analytical methods designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of PFAS risks beyond standard targeted analysis.
Combined with specialist contaminant testing, environmental risk assessment, microbiome analysis and long-term monitoring, these capabilities help organisations make better-informed decisions about environmental protection and responsible land management.
From measurement to independently verified outcomes
For organisations investing in soil health and decarbonisation, collecting reliable data is essential. Demonstrating that reported outcomes are supported by credible evidence is the next step.
Independent validation and verification help establish whether reported results are supported by appropriate measurements and methodologies. This is particularly important for soil carbon projects, regenerative agriculture initiatives and land-sector greenhouse gas programmes, where the credibility of reported outcomes is important to investment decisions, carbon markets, and other stakeholders.
As a Validation and Verification Body (VVB) for VCS and other programmes, SGS provides independent validation and verification services for carbon projects. Its capabilities span from soil carbon to regenerative agriculture and land-sector greenhouse gas programmes.
By combining scientific measurement, ongoing monitoring and independent assurance, SGS helps organisations build confidence in reported environmental performance and substantiate sustainability claims with credible evidence.
SGS soil health and decarbonisation solutions
From soil data to trusted outcomes, SGS’s integrated approach supports organisations throughout the soil lifecycle.
1: UNDERSTAND
Establish reliable baselines through soil sampling, site investigations and laboratory analysis covering soil health, contaminants, carbon and biodiversity.
2: MONITOR
Track changes in soil conditions, identify emerging risks and evaluate the effectiveness of land-management, remediation and restoration measures.
3: VERIFY
Independently validate and verify soil carbon, regenerative agriculture and land-sector greenhouse gas outcomes in line with recognised frameworks.
Turning soil intelligence into meaningful action
The growing focus on soil health presents an opportunity to rethink how organisations manage one of their most valuable natural resources.
Whether improving agricultural productivity, managing contaminated land, developing infrastructure or advancing carbon initiatives, the underlying requirement is the same: reliable information that supports better decisions and provides confidence in the results.
Through its global network of laboratories and specialists, SGS combines soil testing, environmental monitoring and independent verification to support organisations across agriculture and food, infrastructure, mining, energy, manufacturing, and environmental management.
Aligned with the Nature pillar of SGS’s IMPACT NOW for sustainability programme, its soil health and decarbonisation solutions help organisations understand their soil conditions, monitor change, and demonstrate credible environmental outcomes.
As Europe strengthens its approach to soil health, the opportunity goes beyond collecting more information. It lies in using that knowledge to protect land, manage environmental risks and build more resilient and sustainable operations.
Discover SGS soil health and decarbonisation solutions.
Please Note: This is a Commercial Profile
About SGS
SGS is the world’s leading Testing, Inspection and Certification company. We operate a network of over 2,500 laboratories and business facilities across 115 countries, supported by a team of over 100,000 dedicated professionals. With more than 145 years of service excellence, we combine the precision and accuracy that define Swiss companies to help organisations achieve the highest standards of quality, compliance, and sustainability.
Our brand promise – when you need to be sure – underscores our commitment to trust, integrity and reliability, enabling businesses to thrive with confidence. We proudly deliver our expert services through the SGS name and a portfolio of trusted specialised brands, including Applied Technical Services, Brightsight, Bluesign, and Nutrasource.
SGS is publicly traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange under the ticker symbol SGSN (ISIN CH1256740924, Reuters SGSN.S, Bloomberg SGSN SW).
References
- European Commission, Soil Monitoring Law
- SGS, SGS Awarded Major EU Tender to Advance Soil Quality,
18 February 2025.
