Can regenerative agriculture build meaningful amounts of carbon in the soil

In the right places, with the right incentives and quantification technology, yes, it can. And it can build resiliency on-farm cascading, to the larger ecosystem.

It's undeniable that modern farming practices have led to a significant loss of soil carbon and ecosystem degradation. Scientists and farmers have shown multiple examples where sustainable farming methods like cover cropping and reduced/no-till farming can help restore ecosystems. But can large-scale projects truly reduce emissions and build soil carbon?

In our recent journal article, "Solutions and insights for agricultural monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) from three consecutive issuances of soil carbon credits," published in the Journal of Environmental Management, we analyze our first three carbon credit issuances. Our findings support that large-scale projects can meaningfully build carbon in soil - with the right incentives.

Our first three carbon credit issuances total nearly 300,000 credits, the largest amount of high-quality ag soil carbon credits issued repeatedly at scale, translating to real impact and millions directly in farmers' pockets. As our methods and soil carbon science continues to evolve, our research shows the impact per acre is even largerthan initially calculated, with third-party validation from the Climate Action Reserve. With Indigo's carbon credits priced between $60-$80 per credit and climbing to the $100 mark- the upside is significant. As demand for soil carbon credits grows, so does the incentive for farmers to adopt regenerative practices, especially given challenging markets with low commodity prices and rising costs.

Key Study Findings:

• Sophisticated MRV Technology: Indigo has developed advanced tools for efficiently monitoring agricultural projects at scale, ensuring durability and managing variability in impact.
• Nearly 400,000 tCO2e Impact: The project's total impact has been substantial, with nearly 300,000 carbon credits issued.
• Localized Solutions: Results show that the impact of farming practices varies by geography, underscoring the need for tailored solutions for different regions, ideally down to the field level.
• No-Till and Cover Crops: These practices contribute the most to soil carbon at the project scale, with cover crops having one of the highest impacts per acre across a range of geographies
• Outcome-Based Incentives: By focusing on outcomes, we ensure the right solution is applied to the right acre.

Trust in Science-Backed Solutions

Scientific learning is critical for scaling solutions that generate genuine impact. Take medicine, for example: a new drug isn't used immediately after discovery; it must first go through rigorous testing to ensure it's safe, effective, and scalable. Rigorous, peer-reviewed research is critical for advancing trust in climate solutions.

The challenge of regenerative agriculture - like other nascent climate solutions - is balancing lengthy scientific research timelines with commercialization, given the urgency of the challenge we face. Decades of research have shown important demonstrations of the impact of various sustainable farming practices. Some areas have strong evidence while others have only a few studies. A key question that many scientists asked was whether it would be possible to generalize and scale learnings from these studies. Rather than waiting for someone else to solve it, we chose to roll up our sleeves, experiment, gather evidence, and share results with the broader scientific community to build greater confidence in a game-changing climate solution, while driving progress. And to be clear, the answer is "yes" it's possible to have impact at scale, with appropriate guardrails and a focus on the areas that we have the greatest certainty can have the greatest impact.

We launched our Sustainability Solutions - Carbon and Source - 5 years ago, built on that knowledge, and focused on the areas with the greatest certainty. We've learned a tremendous amount in those subsequent years and worked hard to use those learnings to improve our programs. With this latest paper, we are sharing these learnings with the broader scientific community, as part of our ongoing effort to advance soil carbon science.

At Indigo Ag, science is foundational to our business. It's why customers and partners trust us. Our program started with a focus on practices and regions where there was greater scientific certainty, but we've expanded upon this with better science. Through research grants & R+D, we have gathered data to build on areas that have been under-researched, and we've advocated for universities and government to fill the gaps in knowledge. We prioritize transparency and partner with leading academics to ensure integrity and drive progress in regenerative agriculture and carbon markets.

Science and Program Design Enable Scalable Impact

After three issuances of carbon credits, Indigo has developed a scalable, repeatable process in which we have confidence that the results are driving impact.

Ensuring you are measuring real change is a common criticism within many nature-based climate solutions. As an example, one might measure soil carbon stocks in a field and then re-measure that field again in five years. While an increase might be measured, it's challenging to make a claim for a variety of reasons. It's difficult to discern whether the increase was caused by a farmer using more sustainable farming techniques, or a few years of exceptionally good weather. This measurement could ignore potential increases or decreases in other greenhouse gases that are involved in land management, like nitrous oxide.

Carbon by Indigo has multiple tactics to address these challenges. In addition to multiple eligibility criteria and checks we use to ensure that practices in our carbon credit program are neither common in a region nor were occurring historically on a field, we implement a sophisticated "counterfactual baseline" where we use the current season's weather and a record of historical management to project forward what would have happened if a farmer had not started using more sustainable practices on a field. We aggregate all of this at the project scale, and we calculate the impact net of all key sources of emissions and sinks. Finally, we take deductions based on the level of certainty we have. Like an insurance pool, the bigger a project gets, the lower the risk. The better the methods get, the greater the certainty and lower the deductions would be.

Flexible Solutions for Farmers and Companies

At Indigo, we understand that decarbonization requires multiple approaches, with carbon credits being just one tool. We're using science, technology, and markets to give farmers the choice to participate in the programs that reward them best for the ecosystem benefits they provide. The same MRV engine we describe in the journal article for carbon credits also helps supply chains incentivize sustainable practices, whether it's cotton for clothing, rice for food, or corn for biofuels. Our flexible Sustainability Solutions help companies meet their goals while improving farm profitability and resilience.

Beyond Carbon: Social and Economic Impact

The benefits of our solutions go beyond emissions reductions and carbon removals. It is well documented that regenerative agriculture positively affects ecosystem services and the environment, such as improved water quality and reduced erosion. Further, we ensure that our projects have positive effects on farmer resiliency and rural communities. Farmers receive the majority of the value generated by our programs.

As we've matured our program over three issuances, our program has grown more inclusive to generate even greater social impact. Since we initially rolled out Carbon by Indigo, we have adjusted our minimum acre requirements that unintentionally excluded smaller farmers to ensure that the vast majority of farmers can participate. We've also expanded the list of geographies and crops we can support to include even more. As ecosystem markets grow, we believe it's important that they do not perpetuate structural barriers that historically underserved producers have often encountered. Through engagement and dialogue with groups like the National Black Growers Association and a grant with the National Indian Carbon Coalition; we've adjusted core program eligibility requirements to be inclusive to farmers across the continental US.

Science requires continuous improvement

The publication in the Journal of Environmental Management is only our latest contribution to scientific literature. Previously, we've published about program design and methodology implementation, ecosystem model calibration and validation, and even emerging laboratory analysis techniques to measure soil properties. We'll continue to share science and invite scientists to engage with us to answer their questions or help us identify areas where we can improve. As we learn more, we can do even more to help farmers, our soils, and our planet.

Ready to get involved in our Sustainability Solutions? Get in touch with our team.

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