Decarbonization of Supply Chains

 
 

Conventional approaches to agriculture have, and continue to, act as major contributors to our climate crisis. Unsustainable land use activities (such as deforestation and overgrazing) as well as degradative agricultural practices (such as intensive soil tillage, monoculture cropping, bare fallowing, and heavy reliance on chemical fertilizers and biocides) have considerably altered our terrestrial ecosystems and now play a key role in the global climate system. It is now estimated that conventional food and agriculture systems currently generate approximately 30% of our total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions[1]. 12Tree is actively working to reverse these trends and to turn agriculture from being a culprit, to being part of the solution. Rather than functioning as a source of carbon emissions, croplands, plantations, and agriculture under our auspices are quickly becoming effective carbon sinks.


OUR APPROACH TO REGENERATIVE AND CLIMATE-SMART AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES ARE ACTIVELY SEQUESTERING CARBON AND HELPING TO MITIGATE CLIMATE CHANGE WHILE MAKING CROPLANDS MORE PRODUCTIVE AND RESILIENT.

 

WHAT WE DO

Beyond unsustainable land use change, the other primary sources of GHGs in agriculture stem from nitrogen fertilizers, methane, the combustion of fossil fuels, and food waste. By understanding the emission sources of the past, we are also spearheading new waves of innovation and strategies to further decarbonize and reduce emissions within the value chains in which we work - be it by incorporating more and more renewable energy into our operations and/or relying less and less on harmful inputs and fossil fuels. By doing so we help mitigate risk exposure for companies and improve the resilience of agricultural production systems as a whole.

There is no denying that carbon markets are at a crossroads today. The total value of global carbon markets grew by over 20 percent in 2020[2], and then again by as much as 48% in 2021[3], marking a fifth consecutive year of record growth. Both compliance and voluntary carbon markets are now playing an increasingly visible role in efforts to reduce emissions, and recent studies have predicted price increases of over 100 USD per ton of tCO2e reduced or sequestered by the next decade[4]. Corporate and national net-zero commitments have become the main drivers of this increased carbon market activity in two distinct forms. First, the efforts of governments to regulate emissions through cap-and-trade schemes have created growing compliance markets, in which participants can trade carbon allowances. Second, a nascent but rapidly expanding voluntary market has now made it possible for participants to buy carbon credits that channel funds into projects to reduce or remove carbon, thus compensating for their own emissions.

It is under this context that we offer leading-edge insetting and offsetting competence and project management expertise to create real differentiating value from carbon at competitive rates for our clients and assets. This naturally necessitates a deep understanding of the current evolution of insetting and offsetting standards that we possess and reflects positively on the offtake agreements and prices from sustainably oriented buyers we have already been able to secure for some of our clients.

 

WHAT WE OFFER

  • We are spearheading the transition towards implementing better farming practices at scale that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, store additional carbon in soil and woody plants, and deliver other important environmental and health co-benefits.

  • We prevent the conversion of all natural ecosystems and sequestering more carbon on our farms via our improved practices as an important step towards shifting agricultural production towards a more sustainable pathway.

  • By spearheading the design and framework of the Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification systems that will be needed for such endeavors, we are not only contributing to and enhancing the quality of data and certainty surrounding GHG and carbon accounting, but we are now also able to track, monitoring, and evaluate for co-benefits that are usually associated with such initiatives, mainly those of positive livelihood impact to local communities and improvements to local and regional biodiversity through our increased focus on regenerative farming practices.

     

[1] P. R. Shukla et al. 2019. “Summary for Policymakers,” in Climate Change and Land: An IPCC Special Report on Climate Change, Desertification, Land Degradation, Sustainable Land Management, Food Security, and Greenhouse Gas Fluxes in Terrestrial Ecosystems (Geneva, Switzerland: International Panel on Climate Change). Available at: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/sites/4/2020/02/SPM_Updated-Jan20.pdf

[2] McKinsey Sustainability. 2021. Putting carbon markets to work on the path to net zero. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/putting-carbon-markets-to-work-on-the-path-to-net-zero

[3] World Bank. 2022. State and Trends of Carbon Pricing 2022. State and Trends of Carbon Pricing;. © Washington, DC: World Bank.

[4] T. Engin, M. Amiot, M. Evans, R. Lord, B. Burks. 2022. Carbon Pricing, In Various Forms, Is Likely To Spread In The Move To Net Zero. S&P Global Rating, ESG Research. Available at: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/insights/featured/special-editorial/carbon-pricing-in-various-forms-is-likely-to-spread-in-the-move-to-net-zero