Terms of the funded testing program
These terms apply to the 300 grant funded soil DNA tests offered to 150 Australian farm businesses under the Future Drought Fund Drought Resilience Innovation Challenges pilot program. They do not apply to paddock baseline tests bought directly, which are covered by our sale terms.
On this page
Who can take part
The funded testing program is open to Australian farm businesses that meet all of the following.
- The paddocks you want sampled are in one of the 55 participating local government areas listed on the eligibility section of our home page, across Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales.
- Those paddocks are on one of the target soil orders listed on the registration page at the time you register. Places are limited and each soil order is funded to a quota, so the list can change as quotas fill; the list shown when you register is the one that applies to you. You do not need to know which order you are on. We check it from your property location when you register.
- You can nominate two paddocks on the same property, one that performs and one that does not.
- You are able to have the samples taken, either by requesting a kit and taking them yourself, or by hosting a MADE field officer who collects them in person. We tell you which applies to you when we confirm your place.
One place per farm business. Places are not transferable and have no cash value.
What you receive
Each of the 150 funded places covers:
- Two soil DNA tests, one for each nominated paddock, at no cost to you.
- A sampling kit with a soil probe, sample bags, instructions and prepaid return postage.
- Access to the CoreLog app for logging and locating your samples in the field.
- A written report comparing the two paddocks, emailed to you, covering what the DNA found in each, where they differ, and options you can discuss with your agronomist.
There is nothing to buy afterwards and no obligation of any kind attached to accepting a place.
What is not included
The funded place covers the DNA analysis and the report written from it. It does not include:
- The mineral panel. Grant funding covers standard soil chemistry on a selected group of samples across the program, chosen by us. Where it has not been run, your report is written from the DNA results alone. You can add the mineral panel to your own samples for $229 per sample plus GST. It covers soil texture, pH and electrical conductivity, exchangeable cations and cation exchange capacity, available phosphorus, available nitrogen as nitrate and ammonium, and organic matter, run by an accredited laboratory. Order it for one paddock or both.
- Sampling of more than two paddocks. Further paddocks can be purchased at the paddock baseline test price.
- On-farm visits, agronomic consulting, or implementation of anything the report suggests.
How places are allocated
Places are allocated as registrations are received, subject to eligibility. Because the program is designed to cover a spread of regions and soil types rather than cluster in one district, we may prioritise registrations from areas or soil types that are under-represented at the time you apply.
Registering does not guarantee a place. We confirm your place in writing before any kit is posted. If we cannot offer you a place we will tell you, and you are free to buy a paddock baseline test instead.
Registrations close when the 150 places are filled. The funded program ends on 30 June 2028 and all sampling, analysis and reporting must be complete by that date, so registrations will close well before then.
Taking and returning your samples
There are two ways your samples get taken.
- MADE collects in person. At some sites a MADE field officer takes both samples on your property. You do not need a kit and there is nothing to post.
- You request a kit and take them yourself. The kit has a soil probe, a bag for each paddock, instructions and a prepaid return satchel. You log both samples in the CoreLog app so each one carries its paddock and location, and post them back together.
We confirm which applies to you when we confirm your place. Either way the analysis and the report are the same.
We can only report on what arrives at the laboratory. Samples that are contaminated, mislabelled, insufficient in volume, or that do not yield enough DNA to sequence, may not produce a usable result. Where that happens we will tell you and, if a funded place is still available, offer a replacement kit. We cannot guarantee a replacement.
Turnaround depends on sample volume and the time of year. We confirm an expected date once your samples reach the laboratory.
Your results, and what we do with them
Soilbiome.ai Pty Ltd owns the soil test results and the microbiome data generated from your samples. You receive your report, and you are free to use it however you like, including sharing it with your agronomist, adviser, agent or anyone else.
Because this program is funded by the Australian Government, the data does not stay only with us. Under the funding agreements behind the program:
- The results and reports produced under the project must be made available to the Commonwealth of Australia free of charge, and the Commonwealth holds a permanent, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free licence, including the right to sub-license, to use, reproduce, adapt, publish and communicate that material for any purpose.
- That licence includes a right for the Commonwealth to release reporting material to the public under a Creative Commons Attribution licence.
- Results also feed the national soil microbiome database the project is building, aligned with the Australian National Soil Information System.
By taking a funded place you accept that your results may be used in those ways.
Your farm is not named
Before any result leaves us for the Commonwealth or for the national database, we strip the identifying details. Your farm name, your paddock names, your contact details and your property’s precise location are removed. What goes on is the soil result itself with the soil type and the general region it came from. Nothing we pass on names you or your property.
Using your data in the app is your choice
Separately from the funded program, the CoreLog app can use your results to improve what it shows you and other farmers. That is opt-in. The app asks you before it uses your data that way, and you can decline and still receive your report and keep your funded place. You can change your mind later in the app.
Your personal information is handled separately from your soil data. We deal with personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles. Our privacy policy sets out what we collect, who we share it with and how to get at it.
Results are information, not advice
Soil DNA test results, scores and management options provided by SoilBiome.ai are general information based on the samples supplied. They are not agronomic, financial or legal advice and do not account for every condition on your property.
Crop and soil outcomes depend on seasonal conditions, management and other factors outside our control, and no particular yield, financial return or soil improvement is guaranteed. Always confirm any change to your input or rotation program with your own qualified adviser before acting.
To the extent permitted by law, SoilBiome.ai excludes liability for loss arising from reliance on these results. Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies any guarantee, right or remedy you have under the Australian Consumer Law that cannot lawfully be excluded.
Changes to the program
The program is funded under the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, through the Drought Resilience Innovation Challenges pilot program, and is delivered inside a project led by MADE (Mollongghip & District Enterprises Pty Ltd). SoilBiome.ai provides the soil DNA testing and analysis.
If the funding is reduced, suspended or ends, or if the project scope changes, the number of funded places and what they cover may change with it. We will publish any change on this page before it takes effect, and we will honour any place already confirmed in writing wherever we are able to.
Questions
Email orderkit@soilbiome.ai with any question about these terms or about a registration.