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One of the important take-home messages from the discussion with Jim Sutter is that consumers are becoming more concerned as to how their food is produced. Sustainability is an attribute of growing importance that encompasses activities to maintain productivity and concurrently reverse environmental degradation. Marttin observes that intensive agriculture has successfully applied technology to enhance productivity over past decades. In the future, independent farmers and agribusiness companies will have to balance output with sustainability. As a farmer and businessman, Marttin appreciates shifts in consumer motivation that are influenced by social media and the involvement of both the public sector and private investors.
 Agriculture can make a major impact on sustainability by sequestering carbon dioxide. Currently with depleted soils, farmers rely on fertilizers derived from fossil sources to obtain acceptable yields requiring application of herbicides and pesticides. Achieving the genetic potential of GM seeds adds to the cost of production and creates a cycle of chemical dependence and net release of carbon dioxide.
Progressive farmers are now recognizing the need to employ regenerative agricultural practices to enrich soil, enhance yields over the long term and reduce carbon dioxide release. It is estimated that ten percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 were derived from agriculture. It is possible to sequester from 0.2 to 3 metric tons of carbon dioxide per acre using a combination of no-till cultivation and planting a cover crop following harvest, a practice termed ‘regenerative agriculture’. Since 2017, five percent of farmers have adopted cover crops that may include triticale, wheat, cereal rye, white clover, annual rye grass, buckwheat, millet or sorghum. Selection of a cover crop depends on season, climatic conditions, soil type and the potential for grazing or cropping. Some operations in the U.S. have used regenerative systems since 2017. It has been shown that almost all farmers applying soil-health management practices, achieve higher net income than their peers using conventional cultivation.
Francis Childs a proponent of regenerative agriculture in Western Iowa harvested a record 440 bushels of corn per acre in 2020. Other farmers are following his lead and will profit from increased yield, lower application levels of fertilizer and the possibility of selling carbon credits. A progressive farmer n Iowa estimates an annual potential income of $150,000 from participation in a program managed by Locus Agricultural Solutions. This company undertakes the certification of carbon sequestration and markets credits to carbon emitters including IBM, Marathon Oil, Microsoft, JP Morgan Chase and others. A commercial rate for soil sequestration is now in the region of $20 per metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent.
The Administration has incorporated carbon dioxide sequestration in soil as a part of the U.S. contribution to reducing global warming. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) Chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry and Senator Mike Brown (R-IN) have introduced the Growing Climates Solutions Act, designated S.1251, to establish a standardized private carbon credit market. Concurrently USDA will use the Conservation Reserve Program to reduce carbon dioxide emission. It is estimated that this program offsets the release of the equivalent of 12 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. By expanding the program an additional three million metric tons could be retained in soil. The USDA is also creating a carbon bank by drawing on the $30 billion administered by the Commodity Credit Corporation.
It is essential that standards should be developed to ensure that regenerative farming practices are beneficial and to quantify the amount of carbon dioxide sequestered. A carbon credit program organized by the Chicago Climate Exchange that operated for seven years in the 2000s foundered due to a lack of credible standards. Rabobank has established a carbon bank as a pilot scheme that clearly defines procedures and measurement to be applied to sequestration. With the prestige of Rabobank, investors and contributors will be assured of value from their contributions that will be carried over to their products and company image.
Recognizing a market opportunity, Pete and Gerry's Organics LLC introduced the Consider Pastures™ brand as a specialty egg. Contract suppliers will be required to follow regenerative practices as advocated by the Savory Institute under their Land-to-Market program. Consider Pastures™ eggs are derived from free-range flocks and the combination of USDA certified organic status, access to pasture and regenerative certification. Initially Consider Pastures™ are marketed to a demanding but limited demographic at a shelf price of $6.50 in New England states.
Marttin considers that multinational retailers and food manufacturers will progressively require higher levels of sustainability in their supply chains. As corn and soybeans are derived from certified programs incorporating cover crops and no-till cultivation, egg producers may well derive a valuable premium from sourcing feed ingredients conforming to accepted standards of regenerative cultivation. This approach if it receives consumer acceptance may result in horizontal integration between agricultural enterprises and existing specialty egg producers.
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