Agricultural company “Baltic Agro” has become a strategic partner to the authors of the CO2 certification programme “Agreena”, according to “Baltic Agro” board member Ainārs Upmanis.
“Agriculture is responsible for a portion of global greenhouse gas emissions, but in the context of the European Green Deal, the sector has the opportunity to be a significant part of the solution to the climate crisis. Agricultural soils, which play a vital role in providing food for the world, are also a significant carbon sink – by introducing environmentally friendly farming methods, we can turn soil into a natural carbon sequester,” explains Ainārs Upmanis, board member of “Baltic Agro”.
The Danish company “Agreena”, founded by two best friends, Julie and Ida, offers one of the few financial reward schemes in the world to help farmers on their path to sustainable carbon farming by selling the earned CO2 certificates. CO2 certificates are issued for practices such as cover cropping and the implementation of minimum tillage or direct seeding.
“Carbon farming is a new field, and we are pleased to partner with an entity like “Agreena” to also help Latvian farmers seize this opportunity and receive support for the transition to eco-friendly agriculture. It is clear that this transition will impact farmers’ businesses and will require additional costs, but we are ready to help them learn and implement these new practices,” says A. Upmanis.
“This is the beginning of a long-term partnership and a huge step for Baltic agriculture, as farmers in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia can now contribute to the transition to more sustainable farming,” notes “Agreena” Chief Commercial Officer Niels Vittrup (Niels Vittrup).
“Joining our soil carbon certification programme could influence long-term climate investments and increase the profitability of farms in the future, as fuel and labour costs will decrease, soil quality will improve, and biodiversity, water retention, and nutrient content in the soil will increase,” lists N. Vittrup regarding the benefits.
“Baltic Agro” is also thinking about reducing its own ecological footprint at its premises, which is why the first solar panels have been installed at one of the company's service centres. The generation of solar energy on the company's real estate is also planned to be implemented elsewhere in Latvia.
“Agreena” has developed the world's leading soil carbon certification programme. The Denmark-based company works with farmers in 17 European countries. The “AgreenaCarbon” programme facilitates farmers' access to the voluntary carbon market and associated carbon certificates through a multi-step process that handles everything in one place: data collection, verification, issuance of carbon certificates, and the generation of related revenue. Farmers input their data at the beginning of the harvest year, and “Agreena” takes care of the rest.
“In our opinion, carbon farming will become common practice in the future, but currently, the industry is in its infancy in this direction. We would not offer this innovative solution to our farmers without a trusted partner. “Agreena” was one of the first companies in the world to work on soil carbon research, and they are the most experienced and knowledgeable experts in Europe. We see great added value that we will now be able to provide to farmers together with “Agreena”,” says a satisfied A. Upmanis.
“AgreenaCarbon” programme is certified according to the ISO 14064-2 standard. It is currently undergoing “Verra” accreditation, which will provide farmers with access to the largest pool of potential certificate buyers. Farmers who are accepted into the “Agreena” programme retain control over their own certificates. Each participating farmer can decide whether to sell, keep, or request that “Agreena” sell the accumulated certificates on their behalf.
All agreements regarding the carbon certificate programme will be concluded with “Agreena”, which is accredited in accordance with international standards. The company’s certification programme and carbon certificates are verified by “Det Norske Veritas” (DNV).
Existing and potential participants of the “AgreenaCarbon” programme can apply for the 2023 carbon sequestration programme. Enrolment for this year's programme will continue until June, but it is recommended to start the process earlier to allow for the necessary preparatory work.
About Agreena
Agreena provides one of the first programmes in Europe that makes it easier for farmers to receive and trade carbon certificates. Agreena helps farmers successfully transition to more environmentally friendly farming practices. Currently, more than 600,000 hectares in 14 countries are managed using eco-friendly farming through the AgreenaCarbon programme. AgreenaCarbon allows farmers to benefit from climate-related activities every year.