THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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December, 2024…
While there currently is not a generally recognized standard that is “regenerative,” farmers can adopt or expand various conservation practices, secure grants and collaborate with fellow farmers to invest in tools.
Recently, I spoke to an investor looking for a fund to help farmers transition to regenerative agriculture. The investor thought there was a clear set of procedures to give farmers a measurable reward in a predictable amount of time. This line of thinking is common, but there currently is not a generally recognized standard that is “regenerative.” There are practices that might work in one location but not another, and there have been attempts to measure and monetize components, such as carbon credits.
Building soil health and cutting inputs will have huge long-term benefits, but there isn’t a standardized premium to index potential near-term ROI, especially for third-party investors.
Farming Is Changing…
At a recent regenerative agriculture conference (of which the primary attendance was not farmers), a farmer recalled a conversation he overheard between two relatives weighing the pros and cons of adopting no-till farming practices. The audience was amazed this conversation took place 45 years ago, and the family had been using these practices for over four decades.
This disconnect is typical. In the current hype around regenerative ag, we should not miss the long view that farming is changing and will be more diverse in terms of species grown and potentially carbon negative in terms of how we grow. Fewer inputs will be used through advancements in technology.
Every field has different soil and different needs, and a regenerative plan needs to account for that. At the farm gate, the work needs to be monetized based on standards that have value in the marketplace, which currently don’t exist, and impact the production economics by lowering costs, building soil health and managing water.
3 Actions You Can Take Now;
- Expand use of regenerative practices. There is currently a lot of grant funding for conservation practices. Now is a good time to get started, but don’t get bound into long-term contracts that are going to lock up your data or rights to sell ecosystem credits in the future.
- Don’t be afraid to measure. The future will be in selling products from your farm based on how the crop was produced, as well as selling water, carbon and other credits. The key is to get yourself in a position to reap this value without being committed to companies and organizations still trying to figure it out.
- Band together and invest in the tools. Groups of farmers working together can coordinate ways to invest in the enabling tools that will lower barriers to entry, collect data, talk to potential downstream customers who might want to pay premiums and share best practices on what it takes to adopt new practices.
By Pete Nelson,
Source: www.agweb.com
