Is climate-smart agriculture poised for a breakout year?

Ag experts and producers are sharing how they sift through the hype and find practical ways to move the needle
Ag experts and producers are sharing how they sift through the hype and find practical ways to move the needle
(Photo courtesy USDA AMS)

When you’re dealing with billions — not millions — of dollars, it’s easy to get most people’s attention.

And there have been many such cases over the past year with significant investments made to incentivize climate-smart agriculture programs and expand markets.

In recent months, $20 billion was injected into USDA voluntary conservation programs through the Inflation Reduction Act. What’s more, congressional leaders are increasingly interested in funding conservation programs in the upcoming 2023 farm bill.

On paper, climate-smart agriculture appears poised to transform how we grow food and drive U.S. farm economies forward.

Faced with a growing list of programs and promises, how do growers, shippers and produce retailers sift through the marketing and find what is useful to their own operations?

USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small read the room when she posed the question in her opening remarks at the USDA’s Agricultural Outlook Forum on Feb. 23.

“How can we take the call of climate change and turn it into a market opportunity? To get people excited about spending in a way that is responsible and investing in homegrown solutions to take on climate change?” asked Torres Small. “How can we make sure more of the food dollar returns to rural places and reinvests in the same places that are being impacted by increasing natural disasters every year?”

Related news: Latest climate-smart ag investment brings USDA total over $3 billion

Amid the clatter of fanfare around new program rollouts and the stress of growing and bringing highly perishable produce to market in an unpredictable climate with economic uncertainties, fresh produce leaders don’t have the luxury to chase trends and entertain lofty notions. The industry needs innovations that are road-tested and ready to hit the ground running. 

It's a tall order to say the least, but a $3.2 billion influx from the USDA in late 2022 is a start.

The promise of climate-smart commodities

The $3.2 billion in USDA funding back projects and initiatives under a program called Climate-Smart Commodities. The initiative seeks to bring money back to rural communities using a two-pronged approach.

First, the program funds expanded markets for American farmers and ranchers who produce what the USDA has dubbed a “climate-smart” commodity.

Second, Climate-Smart Commodities leverages the resulting ecosystem benefits from climate-smart production to provide tangible benefits to the farmers themselves.

But what exactly makes a commodity climate-smart?

It is basically any agricultural product that is grown or produced with cultivation practices that sequester carbon or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Common examples of climate-smart agricultural practices include crop rotation, conservation tillage, water conservation and nutrient management. These practices vary widely depending on the style of farming or ranching, the kind of foods being produced and the location. 

Related news: Retailers, tech experts, growers discuss solutions for food waste, insecurity

This model also rewards different-sized farms, including small to mid-sized operations, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

This has the potential to bolster farm incomes, as 89% of all U.S. farms were identified as small family farms in a 2021 USDA Economic Research Service Study. Despite the prevalence of small farms, these operations produced only 18% of the total value of U.S. agricultural production and operated just under half of U.S. agricultural land (45%). 

The Climate-Smart Commodities strategy also leans into innovation and the creative potential of additional profit opportunities.

“Instead of two or three ways to generate profit and income on a farm, we have five or six or seven different ways,” Vilsack said at the USDA’s Agriculture Outlook Forum. “Each farm becomes a center of entrepreneurship. We establish an agriculture commodity partnership initiative — all about sustainable agricultural practices that the market values and benefits, being able to tell their customers that what they're purchasing in terms of their food products have, in fact, been produced in a sustainable way.”
 

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack speaking at the Ag outlook Forum
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack speaking at the Ag Outlook Forum. Photo courtesy USDA AMS.

A panel of agriculture experts including scientists, policy advisers, industry leaders and advocates shed light on what opportunities they see in the new program during the Agriculture Outlook Forum discussion, “Creating Value and Economic Opportunity Through Climate Smart Commodities.”

“Farmers and ranchers are sitting at the front lines of climate changes and the impacts of that,” Gloria Montano Greene, USDA deputy undersecretary, said in the panel discussion. “We also know that ranchers and farmers are uniquely positioned to address climate change while continuing to feed the world.”

The expectation is to support expanding markets and help farmers and ranchers diversify their income streams under a wide umbrella of agricultural ventures and approaches, Greene added.

So, what are growers waiting for?

Barriers to adopting climate-smart ag practices

“We’re fundamentally asking [farmers and ranchers] to make a historic change in their operations,” Tom Ryan, president of ag sustainability company Truterra, said in the panel discussion. He compared it to transitioning from horses to tractors in a shift from farm practices that spanned generations.

He sees the main obstacles to adopting climate-smart agriculture practices on-farm as a combination of financial, technical and operational barriers.

Growers need financial assistance, community resources and support, along with the ability to implement operational efficiencies, to succeed at changing how they produce food, Ryan said.

“The No. 1 barrier is getting folks to take the plunge and adopt [climate-smart agricultural practices]. It is not easy,” Cristine Morgan, Ph.D. and chief scientific officer at the Soil Health Institute, said in the panel discussion. “There is a lot of technical information that needs to be gained and shared among those who have been successful.”

Related news: Climate-Smart program rewards must outweigh risks to earn grower participation

As is often the case in farming specialty crops, there's no one-size-fits-all approach. What works for a Northwest fruit grower probably won’t be relevant for a Southeast onion farmer.

“It’s regional. Our climate, our soils and our cropping systems all combine into very specific technology to make the adoption of the programs beneficial economically and biophysically to the system,” Morgan said. “The No. 1 barrier is the technology and adoption.”

“So often, we approach agriculture as a zero-sum game. It is not,” Cornelius Blanding, executive director for Federation of Southern Cooperatives, said in the panel discussion.

“I think this is an opportunity for all producers to be engaged and interact with technology. I think this is the first time that some of the small producers will be measuring or monitoring their efforts sequestering carbon,” Blanding continued. “We haven't looked at that in the past, so there is an opportunity, but I think there is a lot of work to do. This is a pilot project, and we're excited about it. We must look at the data that exists out there in order for this to benefit all.”
 

Cashing in on climate-smart and sustainable practices

Growers can now quantify sustainable on-farm practices and how they reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Through the USDA program, farmers can gain financial incentives for these efforts through a diverse range of programs, pilots and market reward schemes tailored to different agricultural models and agricultural commodities.    

“If you treasure it, you measure it,” Morgan said. “You change the practice, and this is how it improves or changes your soil functioning. We want to tie that together, because we think it makes a very strong market for someone to be able to say, ‘OK, here is where my soil is today. This is how good it can get. As I implement the practices, what are the changes and what do they mean to the market?’”

Beyond market incentives, the benefits to tracking sustainable growing practice metrics and data are far-reaching. New York-based vertical farming and agtech company Bowery Farming sees benefits to leveraging data right now from its network of indoor farms across the U.S., growing to create a traceable and stable supply chain.

Headshot of Katie Seawell
 Katie Seawell. Photo courtesy Bowery Farms

“Powered by the proprietary BoweryOS, [our newest farms] will leverage billions of data points collected from Bowery’s network of farms to grow a reliable supply of consistently delicious produce year-round and will lay the groundwork for the next chapter in smart, scalable indoor farming,” Katie Seawell, chief commercial officer for Bowery Farming, told The Packer.

Despite the benefits, it can be challenging to quantify production practices or develop goals.

While Kwik Lok is excited about developing new materials and sources to keep food fresh while supporting a circular economy, the produce packaging company is still exploring methods to track and measure greenhouse gas emission within its organization.

“Kwik Lok is just getting started in this area,” said Karen Reed, global director of marketing and communications. “We are learning about the best way to collect information about carbon emissions, how to analyze our data and what the best practices are for reporting.”

But there are advantages to staying in a growth mindset.

“There is new information every day. Collaborating with industry organization and nonprofits can help you keep up with the latest developments and make it easier to prioritize the options your company might want to explore,” Reed said.

Packaging company IFCO Systems sees the potential for produce growers to leverage relationships with partners across the supply chain to track, measure and ultimately work toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the entire produce supply chain.

“Our business model is built on the principles of the circular economy, where products and materials are constantly reused,” Inigo Canalejo, vice president of ESG at IFCO, told The Packer. “I see produce traceability fundamental to achieving [the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals of] halving per capita global food waste by 2030. 

“A large part of food waste still happens along production and supply chains,” Canalejo continued. “Here, digitally enhanced IFCO reusable packaging with supply chain tracking presents an opportunity to provide our customers detailed product traceability from farm to fork.”

Tracking soil carbon in real time

California grower Braga Fresh recently partnered with predictive agriculture company Agrology to install a regenerative agriculture technology platform to track and quantify soil carbon in real time.

Braga Fresh has been field-testing the Agrology platform to measure soil carbon respiration changes based on cultural practices employed in its regenerative farming trials, according to a news release.

“Soil health and testing has long been a part of the Braga Fresh organic farming program, and quantifying these practices with real-time data is key,” Eric Moran, vice president of environmental science and resources, said in a release. “The Agrology soil carbon monitoring system is the best tool we’ve seen to help us evaluate our regenerative trials.”

Braga Fresh Arbiter System
Braga Fresh Arbiter System. Photo courtesy Braga Fresh

The Agrology arbiter carbon monitoring system helps growers track and quantify soil carbon in real time. Agrology’s machine-learning model tracks and interprets data to monitor growing challenges such as soil carbon flux and soil microbiome health. Arbiter issues weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual carbon reports, enabling growers like Braga Fresh to report on and quantify carbon emissions, according to the release.

“Braga Fresh has ambitious plans to enhance soil carbon sequestration and cut carbon emissions and we are honored that they are testing our technology in their fields,” Adam Koeppel, Agrology CEO and co-founder, said in the release. “Sequestering and keeping carbon in the soil is the best way to remove atmospheric carbon rapidly and affordably, and that’s where regenerative agriculture practices come into place.”

Braga Fresh installed the Agrology soil carbon monitoring system in July 2022 as part of a regenerative trial program. In addition to soil carbon respiration and soil health, Agrology’s ground-truth sensors and tech platform help Braga Fresh manage multiple factors including crop irrigation, water management, insects, plant disease and air quality, according to the release.

Trialing regenerative practices is helping Braga Fresh identify feasible low-tillage practices for fresh vegetable production — no small feat — while maintaining the quality and food safety expectations of retailers and consumers.

 

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