How Regenerative Agriculture Platforms can help Enterprises in Agribusiness

Regenerative agriculture has gained significant attention in recent years as a sustainable alternative to traditional agriculture practices. Regenerative agriculture platforms are playing a crucial role in driving this transition by providing the farmers and enterprises wit tools and resources to implement regenerative agriculture practices. 

According to a recent survey by the Sustainable Food Trust, 85% of consumers want to see more regenerative farming practices in the food system and 80 % are willing to pay a premium for sustainably produced food. 

By investing in regenerative agriculture platforms, enterprises can support the growth of a more sustainable and equitable food system, while also mitigating climate risk and improving supply chain resilience. In this post we will explore the future of regenerative agriculture platforms for enterprises in agribusiness and how they can transform the industry. We will delve into the challenges, the innovations that will shape their development and the benefits of these platforms.

How Regenerative Agriculture Platforms Drive Innovation? 

Regenerative agriculture platforms have the potential to drive innovation in the agribusiness industry by enabling new farming practices that prioritize soil health, biodiversity and ecosystem services. They provide farmers and enterprises the tools and resources to implement these regenerative agriculture practices and foster both knowledge sharing and collaboration among the various stakeholders. 

Regenerative agriculture goes beyond organic and sustainability. It employs farming and grazing practices that restore the degraded soil, improve biodiversity and increase the soil organic carbon to create long term environmental benefits. Regenerative agriculture platforms can drive innovation by the use of regenerative practices in farming. The practices of cover cropping, intercropping, reduced tillage and agroforestry help farmers to build soil health, increase biodiversity and sequester carbon. These practices create a diverse and resilient ecosystem. Specifically, regenerative agriculture seeks to move away from synthetic fertilizers, monoculture crops and industrial production methods to techniques that minimize chemical use and enhance soil health. This results in producing healthier food and simultaneously increasing yields and profit for the farmers. 

Regenerative agriculture platforms can also drive innovation by fostering knowledge sharing among farmers, research institutions and other stakeholders. They can facilitate partnerships to enable development of new technologies and approaches that can further advance regenerative agriculture.

According to Nielsen, 75 % of millennials are altering their buying habits with environment in mind. Enterprises in the likes of Pepsico, Unilever, Walmart and General Mills believe that consumers will be soon looking into purchasing regeneratively produced food because of their benefits. The technology advances in satellites, sensors and blockchain can significantly contribute to building a regenerative agriculture platform that can track the performance of food producers by monitoring everything from carbon soil sequestration to carbon emissions to water usage and biodiversity.

How can these platforms improve environmental and social outcomes in agribusiness? 

Today, we know that regenerative agriculture is no more an elusive concept, it is a proven solution and answer to the future of farming. As defined by One Planet Business for Biodiversity (OP2B), regenerative farming aims to enhance the farm ecosystem rather than exhaust it through nature-based solutions. 

Regenerative farming on 40% of the world’s cropland would save around 600 million tons of emissions. 

In order to reach the Paris agreement, these practices need to be scaled faster and move from the existing covering of 15% to 40% by 2030.

Regenerative agriculture practices

• such as conservation tillage and cover cropping help to sequester carbon in the soil and reduce use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. This leads to reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and improved water quality, less agriculture runoff and nutrient pollution. 
• Regenerative agriculture prioritizes soil health and promotes growth of healthy plants which in turn provide habitat for a variety of wildlife species. Additionally, regenerative agriculture practices such as agroforestry can create new habitat for a variety of wildlife species and provide benefits like improved soil health and erosion control. 
• Regenerative agriculture platforms have the potential to promote social justice and equity in agribusiness by supporting small holder farmers and indigenous communities. They provide better access to markets and finance as well as training and best practices on the climate smart practices. This empowers the farmers and improves their livelihoods. 

Opportunities with Regenerative Agriculture Platforms 

Regenerative agriculture platforms have the potential to create new markets for regeneratively produced food products and carbon offsets providing economic benefits for farmers and promoting sustainable and resilient food systems. 

Regenerative food products 

According to a report by Grand View Research, the global market for regenerative agriculture is projected to reach $103.01 billion by 2028. 

 According to a survey by Hartman group, 66 % of US consumers are interested in regenerative agriculture and would be willing to pay more for food produced using regenerative practices. 

Regenerative agriculture platforms can connect consumers with producers who use regenerative farming practices. These platforms promote the benefits of regenerative agriculture such as increased soil health, biodiversity and resilience to climate change. 

Carbon Offset Markets 

According to Allied Market research, the global voluntary carbon offset market size is expected to reach $6.5 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 6.5% from 2019 to 2026. 

Regenerative agriculture platforms can also help farmers generate revenue by selling carbon offsets. Regenerative practices such as cover cropping, reduced tillage, crop rotation can help sequester carbon in soil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon offset markets allow farmers to sell credits based on the amount of carbon they sequester, providing additional revenue stream. 

Value Chain Integration. 

Regenerative agriculture platforms support value chain integration that helps farmers to capture more value from their products. These platforms can create more transparent and equitable value chains by connecting farmers with downstream buyers and providing traceability and certification. This gives a greater premium for their product and also provides buyers with transparent sourcing options. 

How some food companies have supported regenerative agriculture as  apart of their sustainability commitment.

• Danone 

Danone has set a goal to transition to regenerative agriculture practices on 3 million hectares of farmland by 2030. The company is partnering with farmers and organizations to implement practices such as agroforestry, soil conservation and crop diversification. 

• Nestle 

Nestle has committed to use regenerative agriculture practices on 14 % of its agriculture supply chain by 2030. The company is working with farmers and suppliers to implement practices like cover cropping, crop rotation and reduced tillage. 

• General Mills 

General Mills announced a commitment to promote regenerative agriculture practices on 1 million acres of farmland by 2030. The company is working with farmers and suppliers to implement these practices through diverse crop rotations, reduce tillage and cover cropping. 

• Unilever 

Unilever has committed to sourcing all of its agriculture raw materials sustainably through regenerative practices by 2030. The company works with farmers and suppliers to implement practices on water management, agroforestry and soil conservation. 

TraceX works with enterprise companies and contract farmers supporting them with technology solutions to track these regenerative sustainable practices. 

Challenges for Scaling Regenerative Agriculture Practices 

• The need for research and development to scale implementation. 
• Data collection and aggregation should be accurate and economically viable. 
• Investment barrier in terms of infrastructure, training and equipment. 

Technology and Digital solutions for farm management

• Traceability is  a pre-requisite for data measurement, monitoring and validation 
• Policy support is important for scaling these practices and government can be enablers for farmers to adopt these practices and incentivize them. 

Despite these challenges, there are opportunities for scaling these platforms through public-private partnerships, impact investments and innovative business models. Companies can partner with farmers to provide the financial and technical support for adopting these practices. Impact investors can provide funding for regenerative agriculture platforms and projects which can generate both financial returns and have a socio-economic impact. Innovative business models like D2C sales and value chain integration can help farmers capture value from their regeneratively produced products. 

Bringing together the stakeholders across the value chain to collaborate and sharing knowledge is crucial to realize the potential of such platforms and counter the challenges. 

TraceX is building a Sustainable Agriculture MRV platform on the foundation of traceability, sustainability and carbon management and providing a holistic approach to farming that prioritizes health of people, planet and economy, leading to numerous benefits for individuals and communities. 

Benefits of Regenerative Agriculture Platforms

• Environmental Sustainability 

Use of less synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, conserving water and soil, promoting biodiversity and reducing GHG emissions 

• Social Sustainability 

Promote social equity by providing fair wages, improving access to healthy food and supporting rural livelihoods. 

• Economic Sustainability 

Increase farm productivity, reduce input costs, create market linkages for growth and economic stability. 

• Climate Change Mitigation 

Reduce GHG emissions, sequester carbon to mitigate impacts of climate change. 

• Food Safety 

Healthier food with reduced chemicals and use of organic practices. 

• Food Security 

Prioritizes production of healthy and nutritious food reducing hunger and increasing food security. 

Conclusion 

The transition to regenerative farming practices offers a viable path towards the goal of mitigating impacts of climate change and improve farmer livelihoods. Companies adopting these practices can take a step forward in balancing both purpose and profit and realigning their business goals with sustainability impact.