Growing Returns

Digging deep: Separating soil carbon facts from fiction

By Alison Eagle / Bio / Published: December 4, 2025

Authors: Alison Eagle, Jocelyn Lavallee, Renske Hijbeek

Dec. 5 is World Soil Day.

Soil is one of our best allies in tackling climate change, but it’s also one of the most misunderstood. Myths about what soil can (and can’t) do still shape global debates. That’s why scientists from Environmental Defense Fund and Wageningen University dug into the data to bring clarity. Because sound science is the foundation of sound policy.

Why soil matters.

Healthy soils are essential for climate change mitigation and sustainable food production. But while improving soil carbon is part of the solution, it’s not a silver bullet. Real progress requires a whole food-system approach that balances production, consumption, and land use – while cutting emissions across agriculture and beyond.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged carbon sequestration, European Union, soil | Comments are closed

Collaboration between food companies and banks can accelerate regenerative agriculture in Europe and beyond

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: July 15, 2025

The widespread adoption of regenerative agriculture practices in Europe could strengthen crop resilience to extreme weather and support the long-term sustainability of farms, communities and ecosystems – an urgent need as the region faces record-breaking heatwaves. Despite the benefits of adopting cover cropping, no-till, nutrient management, alternative manure management and other regenerative practices, many farmers are hindered by financial barriers, including high up-front costs and risks.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural banks, agricultural finance, European Union, farm finance, financial resilience, food companies, regenerative agriculture | Comments are closed

Modernizing agricultural insurance to strengthen farmers’ ability to adapt

By Vincent Gauthier / Bio / Published: June 26, 2025

Last year, the U.S. faced its fourth most costly year of extreme weather, contributing to more than $20 billion in agricultural losses. As this trend of increasingly extreme weather continues, modernizing agricultural insurance in the U.S. is a crucial step toward protecting farmers’ financial stability and reducing the risks they face when transitioning to climate-resilient practices.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged ag insurance, agricultural finance, crop insurance, farm finance, financial resilience | Comments are closed

Without financing solutions, farmers have to leave money — and environmental benefits — on the table

By Guest Author / Published: March 11, 2025

This op-ed was originally published in Hoard’s Dairyman. Since its initial publication, the financial uncertainty for farmers engaging in conservation practices has grown substantially. Ongoing trade negotiations, tariffs and blocked funding for existing U.S. Department of Agriculture contracts for conservation expenses and the uncertainty of future funding for conservation programs intensify the financial challenges faced by dairy farmers.

Dairy farmers are already part of a high-risk industry — the experience shared below shows how difficult it can be to align funding opportunities with farms’ financial needs. Now, farmers are being left to absorb that risk with less support. To continue producing food for their communities and responsibly stewarding natural resources, farmers will need more flexibility from financial institutions and greater investments from stakeholders advancing sustainable agriculture.

By Alice Crothers

Posted in Agriculture, Food / Tagged agriculture, climate resilience, farm finance, farmers, farming, farms, food, food production, food security, sustainability | Comments are closed

Measuring soil carbon is economically feasible

By Emily Oldfield / Published: January 21, 2025

There’s widespread consensus that climate smart agricultural practices like cover cropping, reduced and no-tillage and crop diversification can help farmers adapt to climate change and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Yet confidence in the impacts of these practices as a climate solution has been undermined by reliance on models to determine how much carbon has been accrued or retained in soils.

Soil organic carbon accounting and crediting relies on models because of the belief that direct measurement is too costly and cannot provide a practical solution to any large-scale measurement, monitoring, reporting and verification (MMRV) program for tracking soil carbon outcomes.

But that assumption may be wrong. Working with a team of researchers from the University of Illinois and Yale School of the Environment, Environmental Defense Fund found that a rigorous approach to soil carbon quantification that relies on taking soil samples before and after practice adoption across a large number of farm fields is economically feasible.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged carbon, economics, measurement, soil | Comments are closed

Two ways to improve soil carbon measurement

By Anna Raffeld / Bio / Published: April 25, 2024

Carbon markets and carbon monitoring programs track changes in cropland soil carbon stock over time to determine how agricultural management practices impact carbon storage in soil.

Soil carbon stock is typically measured by taking soil samples prior to the adoption of a new farming practice, followed by additional sampling after the practice has been in effect for several years.

However, commonly used methods to measure soil carbon stocks may not accurately capture how that carbon is changing over time, potentially undermining important mitigation efforts.

We need scientifically robust and accessible ways to measure soil carbon to ensure that different practice changes deliver reliable results. New research from Environmental Defense Fund highlights two best practices for measuring carbon in soil.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged carbon sequestration, carbon storage, climate mitigation, Soil carbon | Read 1 Response

Lenders want to support farmers’ conservation efforts. Here’s how their executives can help.

By Mai Lan Hoang / Published: February 7, 2024

A new survey of agricultural lenders in the upper Midwest reveals important insights about their perceptions and support for farmers’ conservation efforts. As the first of its kind, the survey can inform agricultural lending institutions’ climate and sustainability strategy development.

Farmers rely on agricultural lending institutions for loans to cover equipment, land and operating expenses. In particular, loan officers at these institutions hold relationships with farmers and are often seen as trusted advisers and sources of information. Their perspectives and knowledge of conservation agriculture can significantly influence farmers’ progress in adopting conservation practices.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural, agricultural lenders, conservation, ecosystems, farm finance, farmers, lenders | Comments are closed

Trends to scale collective impact at the 2023 Sustainable Agriculture Summit and beyond

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: November 21, 2023

Establishing a cover crop during the cool season.In early December, the EDF climate-smart agriculture team will join hundreds of farmers, food and agriculture companies, university experts and other conservation organizations at the 2023 Sustainable Agriculture Summit, “Scaling Collective Impact: Collaborating to Accelerate Agricultural Sustainability.” This conference is one of the largest annual gatherings of people working to improve sustainability in U.S. agriculture, and the discussions held in the conference sessions and hallways reflect the major trends, opportunities and challenges facing those who share this goal.Here are some expected “hot topic” discussions at the conference and throughout the agricultural sustainability movement as we approach 2024.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural finance, agriculture, farm finance, sustainable | Comments are closed

Five ways U.S. agriculture can adapt to climate change

By Eileen McLellan / Bio / Published: November 10, 2022

Farmers have a long history of steadily increasing crop yields through technological innovation and improvements in management practices. However, as climate change makes weather more extreme and variable than ever before, productivity progress will likely stall by 2030 — even if the U.S. maintains past rates of R&D investment and innovation. Adaptation efforts must begin now to protect food supplies and farmer livelihoods.

Adaptation options can be deployed at various scales to combat the unknown challenges ahead.

Posted in Agriculture, Food / Tagged adaptation, agriculture, climate change, cover crops, food | Comments are closed