Have you taken up the new carbon credit actively supporting local farmers?

Have you taken up the new carbon credit actively supporting local farmers?

The carbon credit ledger that is actively supporting local producers?

A new type of carbon credit has taken off in Australia, with the first set of credits quickly being snapped up by buyers keen to reduce their carbon footprint, and know the story behind each of the credits generated.

Eco-CreditsTM are the very first fully farmer-owned carbon credits in Australia, representing not only one tonne of carbon drawdown per credit, but the tireless efforts of local farmers actively improving their on-farm biodiversity and local ecosystems as a whole.

Victorian organic dairy farmers Stephen & Jo Ellen Whitsed and family have produced the first set of EcoCredits sold by ORICoop, and are already seeing the benefits they can bring not only to themselves, but fellow producers.

“The more credits sold, the more that assists farmers in their transition to better, which means more money directly into farmer’s pockets,” Stephen said.

Eco-CreditsTM can be sold anywhere in the world, so that has its own bonus as well.”

While Stephen and his family had already been focusing on increasing the carbon levels in his soil, he believes the income from Eco-CreditsTM could encourage those new to the organic, regenerative agricultural space to improve their farming practices even more.

“We were farming that way anyway, we bought a Soil-Kee Renovator, we were using that to increase multi-species planted into our soil, while also increasing carbon for the overall benefit of our soil,” Stephen said.

“If you’ve got higher carbon levels, you’ve got a better soil, you hold more moisture in your soil for longer so you don’t need to irrigate as often.  That’s a big cost savings for us especially this year when we start to irrigate with the increased price of diesel. We were heading down the path of improving our soils even though we were organic, and increasing our carbon, and when the opportunity came to get paid for our carbon credits, well we were doing it anyway and it’s a great opportunity, so we jumped at it,” he said.

“If we could potentially diversify our income from selling carbon credits we may not milk as many cows, because we currently milk 160 cows on 160 acres, so we’re pushing our country especially under an organic method. So we may reduce our stock levels back a little bit which in turn helps your soil with your farm anyway. And for the person that’s just starting afresh, it’s certainly something that you’d change your farm practice and head that way.”

Stephen & Keenan Whitsed - with one of the tools in their farm management system

Stephen & Keenan Whitsed – with one of the tools in their farm management system

Stephen has four soil dedicated testing zones on his properties in the region, which undergo annual soil testing. By design, Eco-CreditsTM avoids many of the greenwashing and double-dipping claims made for some conventional carbon credits. They are also future-proofed for potential soil carbon changes due to seasonal variation, or natural disasters such as the flooding, fire, and debris from storms faced by Stephen on his family farm based at the headwaters of the Murray River.

 

“Around half the EcoCredits we’ve produced are kept in our buffer reserve in case our carbon levels decrease in a specific year. The Eco-Credits are verified each year, and the footprint of each farm is factored into the number of credits that are released to the market. This ensures that each farm considers it’s footprint before releasing any credits to the marketplace. The environment certainly plays a part in it or if something happens and you have a drought or a fire or a flood or whatever it might be, there is potentially a concern as to reducing carbon levels” Stephen said.

For more information, or to purchase EcoCredits to meet your business offset goals whilst supporting local organic producers bettering their communities and the environment, click here.  Or contact ORICoop directly for more information.

Email – admin@organicinvestmentcooperative.com.au

 

Assessing the renewed pasture growth

The Organic Industry needs your voice – now more than ever ….

The Organic Industry needs your voice – now more than ever ….

We are writing to you as constituents, businesses and producers that are involved in the organic industry across Australia.  We ask you to support the future of our country’s clean and green reputation, and the urgency in preserving our ecosystems and local food security.  The organic industry provides a model for the rest of agriculture, that is localised, transparent and without the additional dependency or high externality costs of conventional agriculture.  Our industry needs your support – and we look forward to adding your voice to our charter.

For too long Organics had been thought of as a niche market or component of Agriculture, but if one takes a world view instead of looking at the microcosm of Australia, we have entities such as the EU wanting to transition 25% of their Agriculture to Organics by 2030 via The Green Deal and Farm to Fork initiatives

Organic and regenerative farming systems can:

  • provide a neutral or positive environmental impact with added benefit of providing co-benefits to the environment and humanity
  • help to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts that are already proven by scientific publications
  • reverse the loss of biodiversity via organic standard provisions and verified by academia indicating 30% more biodiversity on organic farms
  • ensure food security, nutrition and public health, making sure that everyone has access to sufficient, safe, nutritious, sustainable food production systems that have been vetted by good science.
  • preserve affordability of food while generating fairer economic returns, fostering competitiveness of the international supply sector and promoting fair trade

In so doing Organics addresses triple bottom line objectives including:-
Organic Farming enables and accelerates the transition to a fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food system.  Government investment is required to address deficiencies in advisory services, financial instruments and more importantly participatory research and farmer led innovation are needed instrumentally as they can help resolve tensions, develop and test solutions, overcome barriers and uncover new market opportunities.

Background

  • Value of the organic sector in Australia $3.65B(AU) and worldwide over $88B(AU)
  • Urgency of climate change and the direct impact on agriculture sector
  • Importance of biodiversity value and enhancement on private land
  • Synergy across different sectors including energy, agriculture, health
  • Rewarding land stewardship through ecosystem management outcomes
  • Pioneering industry and independent of Government (historically)
  • Established Net-Zero pathway for agriculture and business to transition

Key Requests from the Organic & Biodynamic Industry to the Federal Government:-

  • One single National Organic & Biodynamic Standard owned by Industry, with the full support of the Federal Government (regulated by State Government)
  • Endorse domestic regulation in Australia. Knowing it’s direct impact and barrier on domestic and international trade entrants and international equivalency markets
  • Improve the integrity and traceability of the organic supply chain domestically and for all imported goods (and reduce the level of fraud and risk to existing businesses)
  • Rewarding producers for their ecological stewardship together with a simple mechanism to ascertain and transition carbon footprint beyond Net-Zero in agriculture and business
  • Ascertaining a biodiversity value on farmland and conversation area (private & public land)
  • State recognised Government bodies that support the growth of organic agriculture 
  • Facilitate a Sensitive Site register provided by State Governments as part of ‘right to farm’
  • Endorse a roadmap in climate resilience, adaptation and long term business resilience planning for regional communities & local economies.   
  • Invest in Research & Development for key biological outcomes across the agriculture sector
  • Provide regular and rigorous data capture through ABARES with tailored organic data for on-farm production, business, supply and export.

The time is now….

Agriculture in Australia is at a crossroads.  Producers are attempting to increase their yields with reducing on-farm profitability while managing higher climate risk exposure than ever before.  We need to capture premium markets (like organics) and empower producers with better business profitability and diversified income streams.   Our Country needs best in class producers that are resilient against natural disasters and rewarded with better crops, profitable and diversified businesses,  healthier and improved natural ecosystems.  We need to review the existing farming model that reflects a more sustainable and resilient farming infrastructure that invests in the next generation of producers, better markets with full consideration of the impact on the environment.

Key Considerations:-

  • True cost of ecosystem services in our waterways, agricultural land, biodiversity and food production should be clearly understood and be a driver of change
  • Research and Education on the importance of carbon reduction, repurpose and offset to underpin regional resilience and transition agriculture beyond net-zero
  • Opportunity to strengthen cross sector links between health, education, agriculture & economics 
  •  Structures that underpin the food security of our country ahead of dependency on large scale, low value commodity markets that may be affected by external pressures

References from around the world:-

Your CALL to ACTION:-

Add your name HERE to our growing list of supporters, so a bipartisan voice can advocate for healthy agriculture and business production systems for the long term.

If you would like more information or to be kept up to date please subscribe to our blog HERE

We look forward to speaking with you further about how you can support the organic industry more in your region.

Sincerely in Action

ORICoop Board

https://www.organicinvestmentcooperative.com.au/

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How to ensure your carbon credits are worth the investment

How to ensure your carbon credits are worth the investment

With recent questions over the legitimacy of the Australian carbon offset scheme, it’s never been more important that carbon emissions are offset with legitimate credits and are free of greenwashing.

Unfortunately, few offerings in the market consider the natural environmental variables faced by the landowners generating the credits, and have the data transparency and accuracy required to inspire confidence that the investment is actually achieving its drawdown goal.

But the recently-released Eco-Credit by ORICoop is addressing many of these key issues in the current carbon offset market.

The farmer-owned credits are backed by extensive data collection and have been developed in accordance with the conditions, biodiversity and operations of each farm they’re provided by. Their transparency of data and the ability to directly purchase Eco-Credits from each farm means investors avoid the greenwashing associated with other carbon credit offerings.

ORICoop EO Carolyn Suggate said ‘All farms are assessed as to their suitability for the program, based on their existing farming practices, the area of the farm and the intentions of future management.’

“We don’t want producers to be at risk from any carbon credit program, to overstate their carbon drawdown, or to be exposed by a natural disaster or severe weather event should the carbon levels in their soil or biodiversity decrease,” Ms Suggate said.

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These limits are a key part of the design- providing investor security, and lessening the risk of overstating any values, especially following farming challenges or natural disasters that can negatively impact soil carbon improvement efforts such as the extensive flooding occurring throughout NSW and QLD recently.

“Through a collective of the credits, ORICoop’s specialist advisory committee oversees each of the credit applications and validation reports. This includes assessing the management practices, the land management zones, the footprint of the farm business plus the soil testing and results. For each project we determine suitable buffers that enable producers to bank a portion of their credits – the credits are validated annually, and depending on buffer limits, a portion is liquidated at the producer’s discretion,” Ms Suggate said.

Each Eco-Credit represents 1 tonne of CO2 drawdown, in addition the credits represent measures each local organic producer has undertaken to actively improve soil carbon, water efficiency and biodiversity within their properties and farming practices.

Michael Coleman, Managing Director of Box Forest Consulting, said the costly setup and operating design of the ACCU market may be resulting in poor outcomes for both producers and investors.

“If it turns out that ACCU projects are not delivering contracted reductions, despite high costs of participation, that’s the worst of both worlds. Hopefully the regulator will improve market integrity, and not just by adding more layers of consultant reports,” Mr Coleman said.

“A simpler, more transparent certification process, with low verification costs, can also offer greater integrity. Certification gets done and reported in a way all users understand and accept. Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCM) should be designed with that in mind, which is what ORICoop has set out to achieve.”

Iain Smale, of Pangolin & Associates, said the Eco Credit will be popular for investors by providing other options for carbon credits which also offer a local impact, which is especially important given per-capita carbon emissions in Australia are amongst some of the highest in the world.

“With the Eco-Credit, you’re having a bigger environmental impact than just a carbon credit,” he said.

The environmental impact of our producer operations is key for Australian-owned organic dairy processor & manufacturer Paris Creek Farms. Paris Creek Farms’ Marketing & Communications Manager Alex Donovan said they are committed to increasing the sustainability of their operations, actively working with their producers to achieve this with Eco-Credits initially playing a vital part.

“With bio-dynamic and organic practices, we’re already using one of the most sustainable and regenerative methods of farming in the world, but we are striving to be even more sustainable. Our ultimate goal is to have our farmers generating their own Eco-Credits,” Ms Donovan said.

Ms Suggate said there are many ways the agriculture sector is transitioning beyond net-zero, and that collaboration to improve trust, legitimacy and the urgency for improving how sustainably we produce food is vital, especially after considering the ‘business as usual’ impact on the environment and the urgency of our changing climate as seen recently by some of the worst floods in history.

“We need science to be well funded to enable technology to be more accessible and trusted across the industry. This includes the measurement capability, satellite data, plus legitimate footprint data for farms across all commodities,” Ms Suggate said.

“In the meantime, our organic farming ORICoop members are dedicated to measuring and validating their soil tests and farm footprint. As their credits are validated, these producers form part of the organic farming ecosystem that invests into best practice, research and sustainability programs through a legitimate farmer-led carbon credit based on international guidelines,” she said.

“That includes soil carbon and biodiversity, rewarding producers for sustainable land stewardship practices, while offering these credits to businesses looking to offset their carbon footprint with legitimate credits that are traceable back to each farm that has generated them.”

If your business is committed to achieving net-zero, offset your carbon emissions directly with credits you can trust – register here now.

Is this the new normal – ORICoop Flood Response …

It was the weather forecast we didn’t want to hear.  More rain.  Alot of it – measured in metres..  More incessant weather.  Already rain-soaked pasture and farmland.  Exhausted communities that have faced bushfires, previous floods and now the 2022 devastating floods.

My farming grandfather always told me he set aside a shed full of hay for that ‘bad year’ to share with a farmer in need, or to get his farm through a difficult patch.  He had a flood plan farming on a floodplain.  He also had a bushfire plan (as his upper area had bushland surrounding), he also transitioned and diversified his dairy farm to include other enterprises when the dairy sector failed.  This was in 1960.  Now in 2022 there has never been more pressure in farming to be resilient against every natural disaster, each year.  We are ready.

ORICoop is an Organic Farmers Cooperative.  We have organic and biodynamic producers across the country that connect and care about other like minded producers.  We have done this before.  We will do it again.  In 2019 we raised over $100,000 in cash and grants, we more than trebled these funds through physical donations of hay, fodder and biological inputs, in-kind support and many generous supporters to bushfire affected producers, exceeding $500,000 of support directly to producers.  This included fodder donations that went from a certified organic or biodynamic farm – to organic producers in need.  Some may not have stayed in business if we hadn’t of been there.


It is seriously overwhelming.  Tonight it has been detailed that 2,000 of 3,500 homes in Lismore may be uninhabitable.  What does that mean for these communities?  For these families.  For local producers.   And what about the landholders who are yet to reclaim their land – or wait for the flood waters to recede as their crops are under 3m of flood water.  Some have lost their entire herd.  Or have nowhere to house them while the land recovers?  There is much to do….. We are ready….

We know it’s a long road back.  However we have these producers’ backs.  We are a Producers Cooperative.  We have other producers that know what natural disasters look like.  They have been there before.  Sometimes it’s a phone call.  Reaching out to ask ‘R U ok’?  How can we help?   What do you need?

  • For flood affected Organic Producers – you can register for help HERE
  • For donors, businesses or supporters – you can DONATE here
  • For those keen to help – either in person or remotely – you can REGISTER here

** For existing organic or biodynamic producers interested to donate fodder, agistment, seeds or other farm related generosity –contact us directly HERE


We call on the Federal and State Government to support these communities, producers and businesses in their journey back.  How can Australia better support these at-risk communities for the long term.  To distribute the risk from consumers and business – and to empower producers to transition to climate resilient farming systems.  These communities cannot carry this burden on their own.  We believe it is a national responsibility – to carry the burden of natural disasters.  To build a pool of resources and people that can help when it’s needed.  And fast.   We all need to understand the call of the new normal.  Sadly this is not as it has been.   

We are so incredibly proud of the producers that we have supported previously.  Of their courage to keep going.  Of their willingness to accept offers of help.  For the organic producers that have contacted us to donate hay, fodder or agistment.  And the many people that have shared our posts, helped us with marketing, or raised funds in your business.  We thank you.

Sandra – Plateau Organics, NSW, Bushfire Survivor

Help when help was needed.  The right help, compassion, and commitment for those of us who faulted amongst the bushfires

Stephen & Jo-Ellen Whitsed, Corryong, Victoria, Bushfire Survivors

After the devastating 2019 bushfires in Corryong, ORICoop contacted us to offer help.  We needed hay and they organised two Semi Trailer loads of certified organic hay for us which was fantastic.  From that a great friendship has been formed with Carolyn and other ORICoop members and organic producers.

Cooperatives are an old way of doing business.  The old way.  That care about each other.  Look out for each other.  Share the wins.  And the losses.  Be there for your neighbour.  We endeavour to return this to farming.  In everything we do.

Join us today.

Thanks for your support.  And kudos to all those affected.  We send you strength.

ORICoop Board

 

Eco-Credits now available

Eco-Credits now available

The first fully Australian farmer-owned carbon credits, the Eco-Credit, have just been released – with tangible benefits to local farmers, business, communities and the environment.

The Eco-CreditTM scheme was created by the Organic and Regenerative Investment Cooperative (ORICoop), which aims to unite the food value chain and increase the uptake of organic and regenerative practices across Australia by increasing collaboration between farmers, businesses and consumers.

Eco-CreditTM buyers can now offset their existing carbon footprint, with full transparency as to where and how each credit is generated and determine other environmental co-benefits, by visiting https://www.organicinvestmentcooperative.com.au/services/Eco-Credit

Each Eco-CreditTM represents 1 tonne of CO2 positive emission drawdown, validated annually through rigorous testing, and are provided by ORICoop’s organic, net-positive regenerative farmers who run diverse farm businesses including dairy, cropping, livestock and mixed farming systems.

ORICoop EO Carolyn Suggate said that the Eco-CreditTM  concept was developed by ORICoop in conjunction with farmers looking to advance farm system approaches to provide safe, secure and affordable food with a regenerative ecological impact.

‘The scheme links those farmers to external buyers, be that corporate, small business or Mum’s and Dad’s keen to play a role and do their bit in fostering sustainable practices and reducing their own carbon footprints’ Ms Suggate said. To activate carbon drawdown urgently we need all contributors to be empowered to participate.

Victorian farmer Stephen Whitsed is the first ORICoop producer to offer Eco-CreditsTM to the market, and aside from the environmental benefits can see immediate environmental, CSR, and other economic benefits for businesses, producers and local communities.

”It’s an environmentally-friendly credit ​​that rewards organic producers and builds stronger connections between businesses and our on-farm practices that enable carbon benefits to be exchanged. As organic producers we are looking forward to demonstrating our on-farm practices that are increasing carbon drawdown and legitimise better environmental stewardship for the long term,” Mr Whitsed said.

Mr Whitsed said the Eco-Credit process is straightforward for farmers and ‘definitely beneficial’ to his farm and environmental management, and hopes investors will benefit from their transition beyond net-zero and the planetary impact.

“The validation process is through soil testing every year, including GPS points to ensure we soil test in the same place every year. Following that we send the soil samples to a laboratory to be tested, and wait for the results,” he said.

Farmer and organic industry advocate and researcher, Greg Paynter, sees a range of benefits the Eco-Credit scheme will provide, including environmental and ecosystem functioning, farm viability and improved social and mental health outcomes for farmers where stress is alleviated by the additional revenue stream provided by the scheme as a reward for best practice land stewardship.

“It’s a dividend that doesn’t come from production output, it comes from a different stream, the productive and regenerative capacity of the land,” Mr Paynter said.

“In Australia, we are striving for $100 billion worth of production from agriculture annually, but our understanding of the research that comes out of Canada, a very similar country to Australia, is they produce that amount, but 98% of it goes into the cost of production or services to provide that production, so the net profit or return on investment of effort is not very high,” he said.

“But if you value land stewardship and make it worth something, the production of food or fibre you get from the land is a reward and you do it in a manner of organic and regenerative production systems, that conserves the basis of the production system into the future. There is talk of only 60 harvests left in some places in Europe and the soil will be destroyed, so we need to act with urgency – and what the Eco-CreditTM does is offer an incentive to do something whilst still maintaining a living.”

Fourth generation Western Australian farmer and agroecological farm system advocate Mr David McFall said the Eco-CreditTM project links businesses who want to do better, and rewards practices to adjust to the changing climate that are not seen to be outwardly ‘commercial’, especially natural capital management like tree planting, increasing biodiversity and soil carbon and water works for habitat and land cooling.

“This is one mechanism that is farmer-derived and farmer-led. It ticks the boxes in terms of accessibility and linking people who have capacity with people who want to do things in the landscape,” Mr McFall said.

“It’s a journey we’re doing for very practical reasons, there’s farmers like Stephen Whitsed and myself who want to do better, but the ‘do better’ that’s asked of farmers is not necessarily an upfront conventional outcome. So this mechanism takes the risk out of the investment and becomes a shared journey as it connects people who want to see good done, but are perhaps urban-based or don’t have access to land, develop partnerships with a farmer,” he said.

“Each farmer is motivated at different levels, and the intelligence behind this system is that it’s not just carbon, it’s approaching it from an ecosystems services platform – that’s embracing revegetation, and in time will embrace cleaner water and air, and keeps toxic substances out of our food and agricultural production systems.”

Iain Smale, of Pangolin Associates, feels the release of the Eco-CreditTM will be popular for businesses, providing alternative options for carbon credits. He also expects they will raise awareness of the growing organic and regenerative agricultural industry in Australia working to capture carbon and mitigate the key drivers of climate change, which is especially important given per-capita carbon emissions in Australia are amongst some of the highest in the world.

“With the Eco-CreditTM, you’re having a bigger environmental impact than just a carbon credit,” Mr Smale said.

“Australia as a nation in the developed world has close to the highest per capita emissions. Per person it’s around 23-24 tonnes, NZ is around half that, and a lot of Europe is less than half that. It’s because Australia has two main drivers – we’re heavily reliant on fossil fuel, coal and gas generation and it’s the tyranny of distance – people have a lot of transport miles, including for heavy transport, trains and trucks, and we don’t have any high speed rail, so much of our economy is based on fossil fuel,” he said,

**. To buy Eco-CreditsTM, register HERE

** To follow the Eco-Credit journey of this and other farms click HERE

Eco-Credits is a nationwide scheme open to organic and biodynamic producers.   Other ORICoop farmers will shortly be stating their pledges and looking to develop partnerships with businesses and processors associated with their farm.