Diversification is key for farmers looking to improve their profitability and mitigate risks. Additionally, with climate change affecting the industry, it is now more important than ever to consider environmental impact.
The land sector has a unique opportunity to address the effects of climate change, by taking carbon out of the atmosphere and locking it into the soil and biomass. Regenerative land management practices have the potential to sequester billions of tonnes of atmospheric CO2.
This is where Agricarbon comes in, offering farmers the ability to measure and monitor their soil carbon stocks, providing data that can be used to make informed decisions about their farming practices, which can also be monetised by the carbon markets or through net-zero strategies.
Soil health is an essential part of the farming ecosystem. Sustainable farming practices that sequester more carbon, are known for providing benefits such as increased water holding capacity in the dry season, flood resilience, better structure, and acting as a reservoir of organic N, P, and other nutrients for plant productivity.
Improved soil health leads to increased soil carbon, enhanced biodiversity, and supporting microbial activity and biological diversity. This results in positive impacts on the environment and farm economics.
Renewable energy projects are another way farmers can diversify their income streams. Combining solar panel projects with regenerative food crop production is a practice known as Agrivoltaics. By establishing a soil carbon baseline for the land around and underneath the solar panels, farmers can optimize land use, reducing their carbon footprint while increasing profitability.
By using Agricarbon’s services, farmers can use their data to make informed decisions about their farming practices, take climate-positive action, and monitor their progress towards net-zero.
In Scotland, funding for soil sampling is available from the Scottish Government, covering basic nutrient tests and a comprehensive soil carbon stock baseline from Agricarbon. We have already worked with many farms in this capacity and are eager to help more farmers establish their carbon baseline (www.agricarbon.co.uk/scottish-grant)
By measuring and monitoring soil carbon levels, farmers can optimize land use, reduce their carbon footprint, and increase profitability while promoting soil health, biodiversity, and even renewable energy projects. With funding available for soil sampling in Scotland, now is the perfect time for farmers to start measuring their soil carbon and taking positive action toward a more regenerative future.
This article was written in the Summer of 2023 for the Scottish Land and Estates Magazine: Land Business
Dr Harry Kamilaris is a passionate Sustainability expert with a Doctorate in atmospheric and environmental sciences from The University of Edinburgh. Specializing in bioeconomic farm-level modelling, he has a masterful understanding of sustainable agriculture practices. Now serving as a Senior Business Development Consultant at Agricarbon, Harry applies his talents to the critical innovation of soil carbon measurement.