The farmer is a key player in agricultural sustainability, providing solutions capable of generating new opportunities. Regardless of their region, rural producers are able to reduce carbon emissions by carrying out certain agricultural practices considered “carbon-smart”. This ability of agriculture to capture and sequester carbon in the soil makes it possible for farmers to access different carbon markets.
Although the carbon market is not something new, payment for carbon credits generated in agriculture is recent, a practice already adopted in some countries. Simply put, a carbon credit is a tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2) that has been sequestered or reduced. As it is a recent practice, it may still raise doubts, however, the great possibilities that this market offers are visible. That is why the farmer must surround himself with partners who are already seeing these new opportunities.
What are Carbon Credits in agriculture?
It is important to understand that any agricultural crop is part of the entire carbon cycle. For example, when the producer cultivates a soybean plant, it is the same as practicing carbon sequestration on a small scale. This is because plants use carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air during photosynthesis and when they reach senescence (the final stage of biological development), their carbon-based structure begins to decay. At this time, part of the carbon is released into the air and part is sequestered in the soil.
Grasses quickly absorb CO2 from the air in their process of photosynthesis, however, they tend to release it quickly when they decompose. At this time, the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices, such as direct planting and crop rotation, already adopted by most farmers, is a way of keeping carbon sequestered in the soil. Such agricultural practices make it possible for rural producers to transform carbon sequestration into carbon credits.
How can I get carbon credits?
To participate in the carbon market, it is necessary to participate in carbon projects. There are countless projects in execution, but the most common of them is related to the need for the farmer to change some type of management of his agricultural system. But how to identify whether a new agricultural practice can generate carbon credits?
For a sustainable carbon reduction and removal practice to qualify, and have the potential to generate carbon credits, it must meet certain criteria, such as:
1. Actual reduction and removal: the new agricultural practice to be implemented on the property must actually reduce emissions and/or enable carbon removal.
2. Additional: the reduction and/or removal of carbon, due to the implementation of the new practice, needs to be additional. This means that it is necessary to remove and/or reduce the emission of more carbon, due to the implementation of the new agricultural practice.
3. Permanent: the new agricultural practice implemented must be able to maintain the reduction of emissions and/or the removal of carbon.
4. Verifiable: The new agricultural practice implemented needs to be verifiable. This means that it is necessary to quantify the reduction and/or removal of carbon. This measurement is performed before and after the implementation of the new agricultural practice.
5. Leakage: Leakage means that the carbon reduction process must not result in the creation of more carbon; i.e. to reduce and/or remove carbon in area A cannot occur due to increased carbon emission in area B.
Thinking about the future
The Brazilian farmer feeds Brazil and exports more than 200 agro products to more than 80 countries. The country also has the largest commercial cattle herd in the world, in addition to being one of the largest producers of pork, poultry, eggs and milk. For every four agribusiness products in circulation in the world, one is Brazilian. We went from 21 million tons of grain in 1970 to more than 240 million tons of grain, which means that the Brazilian farmer knew how to save the land and be productive, using science and his competence.
We can cite efficient production in the various agricultural crops, enabling sustainable production; the integrated management of pests and diseases, increasing control efficiency and generating productivity; and crop-livestock-forest integration, enabling the production of grains, meat, milk and wood in the same area. All these practices, as a consequence, generate more sustainability, more production and less CO2 emissions. Agriculture, with the adoption of Direct Planting and the Direct Planting System, made it possible to reduce fuel consumption, soil disturbance and, as a result, lower CO2 emissions.
Brazil has one of the agricultures with the lowest emission of greenhouse gases (GHG). Today, in the world, we are a population of 7.8 billion and the projected number for 2050 is 9 billion. In the face of this, great challenges and enormous opportunities arise.
The Brazilian rural producer has always been a pioneer in new developments and opportunities for agribusiness. In the not so distant future, it will be possible to look at carbon as a new “culture”, similar to the other crops that farmers produce on their properties. Certainly, in addition to exporting food to the world, Brazil will export “sustainability”, from the different carbon markets.
