US carbon farming payouts top $5 million in 2022, Land O'Lakes says
Farmers captured 262,000 metric tons of carbon
18 May 2023
1 minute read
By: Truterra LLC, the carbon farming and sustainable agriculture unit of Land O'Lakes Inc, paid US farmers $5.1 million in 2022 for capturing and storing 262,000 metric tons of carbon via sustainable practices, Reuters reported, citing the company on Wednesday.
The payments to 273 growers enrolled in its carbon program were up from about $4 million paid out in 2021 for sequestering 200,000 tons of carbon, the U.S.farm cooperative said in a release.
The program is among a growing number of offerings from agricultural companies such as Corteva Inc, Bayer AG and Cargill Inc which aim to capitalise on rising demand for environmental credits while making farms more sustainable.
The companies tap satellite and weather data and log sustainable farming practices such as reduced tillage or planting winter cover crops to calculate volumes of greenhouse gasses captured and locked into soils.
They then use the environmental credits created to offset the climate impact of other parts of their businesses or sell them to companies looking to reduce their own carbon footprints.
Microsoft Corp is among the largest buyers of Truterra's carbon removal credits. Others, such as rival carbon farming program provider Indigo Agriculture, have sold offsets to JPMorgan Chase & Co, Barclays Plc and The North Face.
