The Rise of Carbon Farming: Reducing and Offsetting GHG Emissions in Agriculture

Dive into the THRIVE Global Impact Challenge focus areas with this article series from SVG Ventures | THRIVE. We will explore the five critical themes shaping a sustainable future. This fourth article in the series will discuss the growing effects of greenhouse gas emissions and how to mitigate them.

While the agricultural sector contributes roughly 10% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the United States, it presents a unique opportunity to significantly reduce atmospheric carbon through innovative techniques and land management strategies. Understanding the diverse sources of GHG emissions within agriculture is the first step towards harnessing this potential and fostering a more sustainable food system.

Soil Degradation?

Soil acts as a natural reservoir, storing the carbon dioxide plants absorb as they grow. This captured carbon, primarily from decomposed organic matter, can be locked away for millennia. However, the conversion of natural ecosystems like forests and grasslands disrupts this vital function. Estimates suggest that over the past 12,000 years, agricultural expansion has released a staggering 110 billion metric tons of carbon back into the atmosphere, primarily through the breakdown of soil organic matter.

Yet soil is also one of the best carbon sinks. Scientists estimate that agricultural soils could capture over a billion additional tons of carbon annually with improved management practices. Techniques like cover cropping, which involves planting deep-rooted plants that enhance soil carbon storage, are showing promise. Additionally, introducing beneficial microbes that consume and store carbon, or adopting no-till practices that minimize soil disturbance, can further boost soil's carbon sequestration potential.?

Livestock Digestion

Each year, a single cow emits 220 pounds of methane through belching, a potent greenhouse gas contributing to global warming. While methane breaks down in the atmosphere quicker than carbon dioxide (CO2), its impact is far more severe. Over a 100-year period, methane traps 28 times more heat than CO2, significantly accelerating the rate of warming. This highlights the substantial role livestock plays in greenhouse gas emissions, prompting researchers and agriculturalists to explore mitigation strategies to reduce this environmental impact.

Feed additives are emerging as a promising strategy to reduce methane emissions from livestock. These additives act as methane inhibitors within the ruminant digestive system, effectively reducing the amount of methane belched by animals. Several innovative ingredients are being explored, including red seaweed (known for its natural bromoform content), specific fatty acids, and synthetic options like 3-nitrooxypropanol (3NOP). Research into other potential feed additives, such as essential oils and bacteriophages, is also ongoing.?

Nitrous Oxide Release?

Nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas often overlooked, primarily originates from agricultural soil management. Fertilizer application, cropping practices, manure handling, and residue burning all contribute to N2O emissions. Several natural processes exist for removing N2O from the atmosphere, including bacteria that can reabsorb it or use ultraviolet radiation to break it down. Nevertheless, minimizing emissions through sustainable agriculture practices is crucial for mitigating climate change.?

Other Solutions to Reduce GHG Emissions

Beyond the agricultural sector, a range of innovative solutions hold promise for tackling the challenge of atmospheric carbon. These solutions go beyond simply reducing emissions; they actively aim to sequester carbon, capturing and storing it away from the atmosphere. This captured carbon can be locked away in various forms, creating a negative emissions effect that helps mitigate climate change.

• Direct air capture is the use of chemical or physical processes that extract CO2 directly from the ambient air. The extracted CO2 must then be sequestered in a long-term storage to remove it permanently from the environment.?
• The ocean has also emerged as a possible solution to capture carbon. Whether it’s from farming seaweed that absorbs carbon or injecting captured carbon into deep-sea rocks, it’s another innovative solution that has been explored recently.?
• Carbon-negative materials, which sequester more carbon than was emitted during their production, have emerged as another promising solution. From innovative bio-based materials crafted from fungi or special fast-growing wood to utilizing waste products and even recapturing carbon itself in new products, these solutions offer a path towards a more sustainable future.

THRIVE Partner Initiatives

THRIVE’s corporate partners have been leading the charge to reduce GHG emissions and have implemented a variety of solutions to tackle this problem and mitigate climate change:

• Corteva is committed to a 65% intensity reduction target for Scope 1 and 2 emissions (direct and indirect emissions) by 2030, consistent with the 1.5-degree pathway identified in the Paris Agreement.? Corteva Agriscience
• Bayer wants to help reduce GHG emissions in major agricultural markets, per kilogram of crop yield, by 30% by 2030. This includes Bayer helping farmers to use climate-friendly methods, such as reducing plowing and using digital solutions to reduce CO2 emissions. Bayer | Crop Science
• ICL’s sustainability vision includes a medium-term target to reduce 30% of its total Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 2030 and a long-term goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. They have already achieved an 18% reduction in GHG emissions since their 2018 baseline. Their commitment to sustainability has been confirmed by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), which is a partnership between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resources Institute (WRI), and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). ICL Group
• Intel has announced their plan to achieve net-zero emissions across their global operations by 2040 and they’re committed to working with their value chain to achieve net-zero upstream greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.? 英特尔
• Microsoft is committed to removing more carbon than it emits and becoming carbon-negative by 2030. For this they will reduce their GHG emissions by more than half, removing the rest, and then removing the equivalent of their historical emissions by 2050.? 微软

Innovative Startups Decarbonizing the Future

In the last few years, many startups have been created to address these issues, working to reduce and offset carbon emissions with a variety of different solutions. The below startups were finalists in the 2023 Global Impact Challenge for their innovative work in reducing GHG emissions:

• Labby: Specializes in digitizing the dairy farming industry to improve profitability, reduce greenhouse emissions, and enhance animal health. Labby
• Circularity2: C2 will be “first to scale” in delivering high-integrity biochar for carbon dioxide removal, through a proprietary US network of “localized biochar ecosystems”.
• GreenPod Labs: An Agritech startup developing active packaging to extend the shelf life of fruits and vegetables at ambient temperature. GreenPod Labs
• UCROP.IT: enables verified sustainable agriculture on a global scale to be shared amongst farmers and companies ucrop.it
• Carba: Cleantech leader fighting climate change, burying carbon, selling removal credits. Our reactor turns biomass into solid carbon for underground storage.? Carba, Inc.

Join the 2024 THRIVE Global Impact Challenge

This year, for our 2024 THRIVE Global Impact Challenge, we are looking for the most groundbreaking startups working to reduce GHG emissions. If you’re a startup working on offsetting or reducing carbon emissions, or if you know someone who works in this sector, we invite you to apply here.

Attend the 2024 THRIVE Global Impact Summit

If you want to learn more and participate in conversations with AgTech leaders about soil health and biodiversity, check out the 2024 THRIVE Global Impact Summit, with early-bird tickets still on sale here.?

About the Authors

Victoria Ivanova: Global Accelerator Manager, SVG Ventures|THRIVE

Sofia Aguilera Program Associate, SVG Ventures|THRIVE