Farmers Edge has announced the general availability of its Smart Carbon program for certain agricultural markets in North America, helping farmers in North America create potential new carbon offsets.
The program combines hardware, software, agronomy, and hands-on customer support to create a “connected acre” providing farmers and their advisors a 360-degree view of their carbon footprint with data from soil to sale.
The company says it has been helping farmers implement climate-friendly practices since 2005, and has experience managing one of the major carbon offset programs in the world, the Alberta Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction Regulation.
Based on this work, Farmers Edge says it will expand its sequestration and emissions-reduction projects to other provinces, including Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
In the U.S., the company is planning projects based on the United States Department of Agriculture-NRCS foundation of greenhouse gas management.
Additionally, Farmers Edge is currently developing broader-based protocols to be used across North America.
“As stewards of the land, farmers play a leading role in ensuring stability of the global food supply and the health of our planet; they need collective support to do this,” says Wade Barnes, Farmers Edge chief executive officer and founder. “We provide a simple and transparent program that rewards farmers for land stewardship and removes the hassle of dreaded paperwork. We can validate their digital environment assets in near real-time, reducing risk and creating verified, high-quality carbon offsets. Farmers are part of the climate change solution.”
Farmers Edge is also developing a system for food companies and elevators to purchase low-carbon grain, the company says.