A new report from American Farmland Trust aims to demystify ag carbon markets and answer the questions many producers have raised about the opportunities.
Such markets have been growing in recent years, but there’s still a lot of confusion surrounding them. So, AFT decided to clarify what’s out there in its latest offering, “Top 10 Things You Wanted to Know About Ag Carbon Markets.”
Michelle Perez, AFT water Initiative director and co-author of the guidebook, told Agri-Pulse some AFT staff have heard from “frustrated farmers who are saying, ‘People are calling me nonstop and offering me a new different program, and they can't answer basic questions I have.’”
Among the questions asked and answered in the report: “How many ag carbon markets are there, and how do they differ; what the heck is additionality, why is it so important, and how does it affect me; am I eligible to participate, and what are the current ag carbon markets paying for (practices or outcomes)?”
Bianca Moebius-Clune, who leads AFT’s national climate and soil efforts, said AFT is trying to spur farmers to participate in the markets. “There's so much opportunity out there,” she said.
The markets are new, adding to the confusion in the marketplace.
“The newest generation of ag carbon programs that are getting all the attention has only been around since 2016,” with 11 of the 19 programs launched as recently as 2021, the report says. “Some offer offset credits, some offer a variety of inset programs, and others do both.” In general, the markets are currently focused on two climate-smart practices — reduced tillage and cover crops — in row crops.
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