What is AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures?

AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures is a program aimed at developing viable business models to help field crop farmers reach the targets for reducing agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Our governments are aware of the impact of climate change and will continue to tighten regulations in the coming years. The challenge for farmers is twofold. They have to:

1. Adapt to climate change

2. Change course when GHG reduction targets change

So, how can we turn these challenges into opportunities? That’s where AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures comes in.

What is AgroCarbone?

The AgroCarbone approach is the result of a collaboration between Sollio Agriculture, Coop Carbone, and farmers, supported by financial partners Desjardins and Lallemand. The goal is to help farms reduce their GHG emissions and/or use their agricultural soils to sequester carbon.

The process will take three years and will involve five main steps:

1. Preliminary analysis

2. Solution prioritization (business models)

3. Feasibility study

4. Experimental protocol design

5. Pilot projects

The results could be used to develop new carbon offset protocols for the agricultural industry that put more money back in farmers’ pockets.

Keep checking our news section for the latest developments.

The AgroCarbone approach

Farmers are saying—and showing—that they want to reduce their GHG emissions. And since Sollio Agriculture is committed to helping farmers adopt more sustainable practices, we dug a little deeper into offset credits to see if we could find anything that might interest our members.

We analyzed current carbon offset projects in the agricultural sector and found that:

· Right now, GHG reduction projects in agriculture are few and far between, and not always well defined.

· The agricultural carbon credit segment is not yet well regulated. Current efforts often lack the structure and precision to ensure financial viability for farmers who want to sequester GHGs.

After looking at existing programs, we realized that a challenge this big had to be tackled as a team, and that we’d need a partner with expertise in the field. Coop Carbone was that essential partner.

Finding realistic solutions

Right now, we have various models where farmers are dependent on a third‑party organization to manage their carbon credits.

But our vision is to come up with models that will let farmers keep hold of the reins. That means models in which they:

· Are compensated for implementing new practices

· Get to choose which practices to adopt

· Retain control of the carbon credits they earn

· Have the option of carbon insetting, an approach that keeps carbon credits within the agri‑food industry

With AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures, farmers come first.

The decision will come down to financial viability. The goal is to offer a range of solutions tailored to the needs and realities of different farms.

Making it happen, together

Since the launch of AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures in the spring of 2023, Sollio Agriculture has called on its network of cooperatives to get farmers involved in the process. So far, the response has been very positive, particularly at Agiska, Avantis, Novago, Uniag and Vivaco.

Our agri‑advisors are also very much on board and are helping us keep an ear to the ground.

We’re lucky to have all these experts on hand to keep the project moving forward and make sure farmers’ real needs are being met.

By combining our efforts, we can have a major impact on agricultural GHG emissions and move the needle in the right direction.

Join the network of farmers who are learning more about AgroCarbone Grandes Cultures and helping to make it happen.