Skip to content

Hear from growers: why embrace carbon farming

ARTICLE SUMMARY:  Growers decide to adopt carbon farming practices for a number of reasons. Learn more about the “why” from some of Carbon by Indigo’s recent participants.

The promises of carbon farming are big and exciting. Improved soil health! Reduced input costs! New revenue streams! And the list goes on.

But talking about these benefits and actually implementing carbon farming is another matter entirely. The reasons growers decide to adopt carbon farming practices are as varied as the farms themselves. 

Check out why some of Carbon by Indigo’s early participants decided to rip off the band-aid and begin their own carbon farming journey - and how it ultimately paid off.

 

Chasing Greater Profitability

Steve Anderson of Anderson Farms is a fifth-generation farmer in Iowa. In 2013, Anderson saw that crop prices were falling while his input prices were increasing. He knew something had to be done to improve the economics of his operation. 

Anderson began adding carbon farming practices little by little. When he started to see reduced input costs and better soil health, he applied the techniques across all of his fields. Anderson Farm soybeans are now all no-till or planted into a standing cover crop. These methods led Anderson to experience a substantial improvement in profitability. 

“I’m sure the savings (from reduced tillage) is number one and increased yield is number two, but a little here and a little there will add up. Now I’m seeing the market close for the past year and saying ‘I’ll be darned, I made money’. It’s been a couple years, y’know?”
 

 

Cultivating a Better Crop

Kasey Bamberger and her family were inspired to try out carbon farming after they saw a neighbor’s no-till operation. A third-generation partner at Bryant Agricultural Enterprise in southwest Ohio, Bamberger knew that soil erosion and weed pressure were consistent problems across the family’s fields. By incorporating cover crops, they saw effective weed suppression and a healthier overall crop within the first year of implementation.

 

What’s more, Bamberger and her family received positive feedback from buyers as well as the local community on what they were doing. Carbon farming, supported by a partnership with Indigo, allowed Bryant Agricultural Enterprise to improve their own crop. But it also allowed Bamberger and her family to be part of an industry-wide solution and an opportunity to impact the future of farming.

“We saw that consumers were starting to not only demand that their food was grown in a healthy way…but that we were challenging ourselves as growers to make sure that we were doing all we could to help combat our carbon footprint.”
 

 

Developing New Revenue Streams

Chris Lehe raises popcorn, soybeans, and dent corn on a 4000-acre operation in Brookston, Indiana. When one of Chris’ landlords wanted to switch to no-till for conservation purposes in 2018, Lehe started to implement the practice. 

Upon learning more about Carbon by Indigo at a sponsored marketing seminar in 2019, Lehe decided to try cover crops as well…and now gets paid for his carbon farming efforts. Lehe notes that a primary reason for working with Indigo was the value in getting compensated for true environmental impact - not just the simple adoption of practice changes. Lehe’s operation is in the early days of carbon farming, and he expects to expand the practices as the benefits and associated credit payments continue to increase.

“The potential for revenue with Indigo far exceeds what the potential would be with someone who’s just going to pay you for switching practices. We’re actually getting paid for what we’re accomplishing.”

 

 

Related Post