US – Nestle, a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation, has partnered with Grassroots Carbon to support regenerative land management practices and remove carbon in Nestlé’s US beef supply.
According to Grassroots Carbon, the partnership will help ranchers measure the amount of carbon captured when transitioning to more sustainable methods such as rotational grazing and cover cropping.
The partnership will also involve payment to ranchers for sustainable grazing and other regenerative land management practices.
“The collaboration aims to incentivize farmers to enhance soil health and sequester carbon from the atmosphere,” the soil carbon credit startup said.
Nestlé has committed to invest US$1.3 billion by 2025 to accelerate climate-smart farming practices across its global supply chain.
Both Grassroots Carbon and Nestlé recognize the critical role that agriculture, particularly livestock production, plays in the ecosystem and the subsequent impact on climate change.
Grassroots Carbon works with ranchers to measure and certify carbon storage and monitor and measure carbon levels in their soil.
As climate change intensifies, grasslands are considered a more resilient form of carbon sinks compared to forests, according to a study from the University of California, Davis. With the current path of carbon emissions, grasslands will be the only viable net carbon dioxide sink through 2101.
The partnership will measure and certify additional carbon sequestered over 15 years with investments from Nestlé helping defray the expenses ranchers incur when implementing regenerative land practices.
Grassroots Carbon has dispersed over US$2 million in payments to ranchers for regenerative land management since January 2022 and has a pool of over 20 carbon credit buyers.
Nestlé, on the other hand, has expanded the use of sustainable grazing within its dairy supply chain.
The company said on its website it has worked to improve manure management, use more cover crops to protect soil, and implement practices like silvopasture, where trees are introduced into areas used for livestock grazing
Earlier this month, the company said it would expand regenerative agriculture practices for wheat used in its DiGiorno pizza brand.
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