A new global initiative which merits farmers for adopting regenerative agriculture techniques is in the pipeline.
Regenagri helps farms and agribusinesses transition to more holistic farming methods that increase biodiversity, sequester carbon and improve soil health and water management.
Using the service, farmers can get guidance on adopting new techniques, take self-assessments, benchmark their data and track progress through an online tool.
Improvements
Harry Farnsworth, sustainable agriculture projects lead at Control Union UK, is leading the project and says the initiative aims to start the conversation around regenerative farming practices and how they can tie into an individual farm business.
He says: "The idea is to get people learning about regenerative agriculture. It is about how the principals of regenerative agriculture effect real-time on-farm practices."
The easy-to-use online tool allows members to track the improvements made by adopting principals including cover cropping, tillage practices, buffer strips, rotation and livestock grazing patterns either at field level, farm level or across a number of businesses.
Tailored
The programme has been developed to provide flexibility throughout, identifying that each farm, soil type or climate will vary in its potential, says Mr Farnsworth.
"It is based on the need to go beyond sustainable."
There is also potential for the initiative to tie into future strategies including the Environmental Land Management scheme and Farm to Fork, he adds.
Pilots
Members of Regenagri's governance team include the Soil Association, Sustainable Food Trust, Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group, Cool Farm Alliance, Agrimetrics and Control Union.
The scheme, which covers all sectors, is being piloted on UK farms, in Brazil and plans to extend into India.
Businesses pay an income-based annual membership fee which includes access to the digital hub, comparative benchmarking data, performance tracking and access to advisory support.
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For more information visit: regenagri.org
