On 12 March 2026, the Danish Network for Soil Health (Dansk Netværk for Jordsundhed, DNJ) was officially launched at its first meeting. 42 participants from universities, ministries, agricultural organisations, industry, foundations, municipalities and NGOs attended the online meeting, marking Denmark's participation into the EU Mission Soil as the latest country to establish a national mirror group.

The network is coordinated by DCA – Danish Centre for Food and Agriculture at Aarhus University and is officially affiliated with the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science.

A mandatory task – and a major opportunity

Niels Gøtke, Head of Division at the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science, opened the meeting and set the scene: mirror groups are national coordination bodies that EU member states are expected to establish as a link between the European soil mission and national efforts.

"The purpose is to bridge the gap between the EU's soil health goals and what we do at a national level – to facilitate knowledge exchange, provide input to policy and raise awareness about the importance of soils. There is a much greater recognition of the importance of soils now, and I very much hope that this network will contribute to that," said Niels Gøtke.

The ambitions for the network extend beyond its coordinating function. DNJ aims to help establish Danish living labs where sustainable solutions are developed and tested in practice, strengthen the link between Danish soil research and EU policy development – including the Soil Monitoring Law and the upcoming CAP cycle 2028–2034 – and put soil health on the broader Danish agenda as a fundamental prerequisite for food security, climate action and biodiversity.

European Commission: Living labs and mirror groups are the key instruments

Luis Sánchez Alvarez from the European Commission's Mission Soil Secretariat provided an overview of the mission's status and ambitions. With a total budget of EUR 800 million and around 80 ongoing projects, Mission Soil is now at cruising speed. 45 living labs have already been established with over 500 sites, and the network is expected to surpass the target of 100 by 2030.

"Mirror groups are national coordination bodies expected to contribute to the implementation of the mission objectives across sectors and policy areas. They should mobilise support from governments, industry and academia to effect practice change to improve soil health," explained Luis Sánchez Alvarez. He invited the Danish mirror group to share national actions and investments that could serve as exemplary cases for other member states, and to connect Danish farming networks with the living labs framework.

Danish research at the forefront – but living labs are missing

Niels Halberg from Aarhus University presented the university's broad engagement in Mission Soil and highlighted the need for a systems approach: "Soil health challenges cannot be addressed in isolation – they must be seen in the context of the whole farming system, crop rotations and business viability. Collaboration with farmers, advisors and local stakeholders is essential."

He noted that Denmark does not yet have a formally recognised living lab in the Mission Soil network, but that two applications are in development. Halberg also emphasised the importance of a landscape perspective in Danish soil management – particularly relevant in the context of the Green Tripartite agreement on peatland rewetting.

We must act now – not wait for data

Mogens Humlekrog Greve from Aarhus University presented the work on implementing the EU Soil Monitoring Law in Denmark and raised an important concern: monitoring is not expected to begin until 2028, and the first results will only become available in the early 2030s. If practice changes are not initiated until then, fewer than 12 years will remain to achieve the target of healthy soils by 2050.

"We should define 'soil care practices' that can change soil management now – in parallel with the monitoring process, not as a consequence of it," said Mogens Humlekrog Greve.

What happens next?

The network plans to hold 3–4 meetings per year, with the next meeting scheduled for 4 June 2026. A dedicated website is under development. Organisations and individuals who have not yet signed the Mission Soil Manifesto are encouraged to do so via the Soil Mission Platform. 

Those interested in joining the network are welcome to contact the secretariat at DCA, Aarhus University.

Contact: Thomas Bohsen (tb@dca.au.dk) & Jesper Emborg (je@dca.au.dk), Secretariat for the Danish Network for Soil Health, DCA – Danish Centre for Food and Agriculture, Aarhus University.