South Africa has launched its first internationally recognised carbon offset programme for the agricultural sector.

Environmental consultant Climate Neutral Group (CNG), which successfully listed the programme under the Verra Carbon Standard, on August 18 advised that farmers practicing regenerative agriculture could now earn extra income through the programme.

The consultancy encouraged farmers to apply to the AgriCarbon Programme before September 30 here to maximise their carbon credit income for accumulating carbon in their soil over the past five years and receive their first payment as soon as 2022.

CNG said this was the first project in the world to be approved for Verra Pipeline Listing using the new Verra carbon methodology “VM0042: Improved Agricultural Land Management”.

For most farmers, transitioning to regenerative agriculture has been driven by increasing input costs, declining soil quality, and in response to battling drought conditions. Now, at long last, there are also direct financial benefits available to regenerative farmers in the form of carbon credit revenue.

“Any farmer that is currently, or planning to, carry out regenerative practises on their farm and is able to submit soil data to us every year, can participate in the AgriCarbon Programme,” explained CNG agriculture project coordinator Nyasha Shumbayarerwa.

CNG project manager Gray Maguire added that the priority was to enrol regenerative famers with existing soil data to ensure these early adopters get to maximise their benefit for being pioneers in the sector.

The AgriCarbon Programme, run by CNG, works by providing famers with an additional source of income by helping them certify and sell highly sought-after agricultural carbon credits.

CNG determines the amount of carbon credits generated on the farm through the soil data received, which is then submitted to the carbon auditor and finally the Verra carbon standard.

Including multiple farms under the AgriCarbon Programme substantially reduces carbon development and auditing costs per farm, thereby maximising income to the farmers.

By joining the programme, farmers avoid the complexity and high-cost barriers of certifying carbon credits themselves, so they can focus on the health of their soil and business.

“Companies in South Africa and across the world are committing to net-zero carbon emissions and are searching for carbon credits of the highest quality. They are turning to agriculture to purchase credits that support farmers in transitioning toward farming practises that remove carbon from the atmosphere and enrich the soil.

“CNG, together with its partners, has the support, technology and finance that enable farmers to generate high quality carbon credits that companies want to buy,” stated CNG South Africa country director Franz Rentel.