U.N. food agencies are reportedly discussing with North Korea a joint dispatch of inspectors to survey this year’s crop harvests in the North.

U.S. broadcaster Voice of America says the two agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Program, made the announcement Wednesday.

FAO economist for Asia, Cheng Fang, says that if an agreement is reached with North Korea, the surveys can take place as early as this month. He added that September is the best time to inspect crop harvests and agricultural productivity.

The FAO and WFP have run the crop surveys once or twice a year since 1995, at the invitation of North Korea. The North then refused the survey from 2005 until last October.

The suspension of fertilizer aid is believed to have played a part in weak North Korean harvests this year.