Corteva announces expansion of Corteva Carbon Initiative for 2022 crop year

Corteva, Inc. (NYSE: CTVA) on Thursday announced the expansion of its Carbon Initiative for the 2022 crop year, supported by a strategic collaboration with Indigo Ag. Corteva’s program continues to provide a simple path for farmers to maximize the value of their soil health practices, now by producing independently verified credits measured, generated and sold through Carbon by Indigo.

Expanded farmer benefits for 2022 now include:

- Aligned Incentives: Farmers will receive 75% of the credit value so as future prices rise, they capture the majority of the upside.

- Premium Prices: Highest quality credits built on Indigo’s scientific rigor maximize the value of this opportunity. Based on market projections farmers could earn as much as $30 or more per credit, with the added security of a guaranteed minimum payment of $15/credit.

- More States: The offering is available across 11 states including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

- More Practices and More Crops: Increased nitrogen use efficiency is an eligible practice change, in addition to introducing cover crops and reducing tillage. The Initiative also now supports 17 of the most common crop types across the U.S.

- Longer Lookback: Farmers will get paid on eligible practice changes that were conducted post harvest of 2020.

Through this expansion, the Corteva Carbon Initiative's core focus remains to help farmers produce carbon credits simply and for a fair price, with programmatic and agronomic support from a Corteva advisor. Farmers are in control of their practices and can use Corteva’s free and easy-to-use digital tool, Granular^® Insights™, to securely log those practices, seamlessly measure their impact, and generate premium credits with Carbon by Indigo.

“In a fast-growing agricultural carbon credit market, Indigo’s science-based program is committed to demonstrating real climate impact in service of generating real revenue for farmers. Corteva is a partner who shares our position of farmer’s choice. As with any crop, quality drives value,” said Chris Harbourt, Global Head of Carbon at Indigo. “Mounting demand for high-quality credits has already resulted in price increases of 35% in the first year of our program – before the first credit verification is even fully complete. By collaborating with Corteva to empower farmers to become producers of the highest-quality carbon credits today, farmers stand to maximize their return-on-investment tomorrow and in the future as demand continues to climb.”  

Rooted in farmer trust and with a focus on transparency, the Corteva Carbon Initiative now harnesses the power of Carbon by Indigo’s advanced capabilities for measuring and verifying carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas abatement at scale and aligned with industry standards, signaling a meaningful step forward for establishing carbon credits as a new revenue source for farmers. The collaboration brings access to a guaranteed buyer network for independently certified carbon offsets, including leading global organizations such as Boston Consulting Group and JPMorgan Chase.

“Staying true to Corteva’s commitment of delivering farmer-focused sustainable technology to the farm gate, the Corteva Carbon Initiative continues to evolve based on farmer needs,” shared Judd O’Connor, President, U.S. Commercial Business at Corteva Agriscience. “Since we first launched in April 2021 to corn and soybean farmers in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa, thousands of U.S. farmers have inquired about our program, so we have worked tirelessly to expand access.”

The collaboration builds on both companies' efforts to leverage cross-sector industry cooperation to help farmers optimize their return on investment on soil health practices. For example, by measuring and quantifying farmers’ carbon impact in accordance with standards set by the Climate Action Reserve, a nonprofit organization that manages leading GHG offset project registries, the collaboration provides transparency and confidence in credits generated for the benefit of growers and buyers. Additionally, participating growers can unlock government funding through FarmRaise, a startup that helps U.S. farmers easily apply to federal, state and local funding for their soil health practices.