What is a farmer’s carbon footprint and why is it important? As CXCS launches its new carbon auditing service, our in-house expert Stacy Griffiths provides a simple guide to the subject.
1. What is a carbon footprint?
It’s a calculation showing the emission level of greenhouse gases by a person or business. In the case of a farmer, it’s calculated by looking at the inputs which are the sources of emissions, such as fertiliser usage, and then considering how much of this is ‘offset’ by the farm’s sequestration (the amount of greenhouse gases captured and stored).
2. How does CXCS’s carbon auditing service work?
We have partnered with an expert provider, which allows us access to what we believe is the most accurate, reliable, and in-depth calculator available. The technology crunches all the relevant data to produce a ‘carbon dioxide equivalent’ (sometimes known as a CO²E) which factors in emissions of all greenhouse gases.
3. What information would I need to provide?
If you are already a cross-compliance client, we will have some of the necessary information, but we will also need:
- Spray records
- Feed tickets
- Waste collection tickets
- Fuels/electricity usage
- Details of any construction aggregates used
- Machinery inventory
- Sequestration activities (areas of woodland, wetland, peat soils etc)
4. So, reducing my footprint is good for the planet, but will it bring business benefits?
It’s likely that, within just a few years, all buyers will make it mandatory for a seller’s farm/produce to be carbon calculated. The government has a target of reducing emissions by 78% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels, and the NFU wants the whole of agriculture in England and Wales to reach a net-zero position by 2040 (basically, where the greenhouse gases agriculture removes from the atmosphere match those it emits into it).
Farmers are already, therefore, assessing their enterprises’ impacts and making changes. Some of the benefits of calculating your farm’s emissions include:
- More efficient farming practices
- Reduced costs on items such as artificial fertiliser
- Increased farm biodiversity
- Long-term savings on energy & fuels
5. Could future support payments be linked to a farm’s carbon footprint?
If farmers are expected to pay to do the calculations and then fund the necessary changes (some of which can be large), the government should make grants and schemes more readily available. Currently schemes like Countryside Stewardship and the soon-to-be-launched Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme have/will have options and grants available to incentivise changes that will improve your carbon emissions. There are also catchment sensitive farming grants available to some farmers, aimed at improving water and air quality.
6. What are some examples of actual changes farmers can make?
Smaller, immediate actions you can take include checking the tyre pressure of machinery and farm vehicles, making sure lighting in animal housing has LED bulbs, and assessing soil test results to adjust your fertiliser policy accurately.
Bigger and longer-term changes include switching to liquid fertiliser, buying locally, changing animal feed, investing in renewable power for buildings and increasing whole farm biodiversity. You could also think about cutting down artificial fertiliser use or even completely replacing it with manures and the use of herbal leys or legume-rich grass.
7. How easy is it for a farmer to use information from the audit to make meaningful changes?
A CXCS full carbon audit will provide you with enough information to make substantial and suitable changes. You will receive recommendations tailored to the breakdown of emissions from your farm, plus short-term, and long-term options/choices that you can make to your enterprise to help sequester more and/or emit less.
8. How do I compare my results, so I know where I stand in relation to my emissions?
The best way is to calculate your carbon footprint annually or bi-annually, then compare the results year on year. This allows you to track how your changes affect your greenhouse gas outputs.
9. Are there opportunities for everyone here or just a few farmers?
We can work with any size and type of enterprise with the calculator, and all other documents in the full carbon audits are written specifically for each client, and so are unique and tailored to every farm.
Remember that carbon calculating, and emission offsetting are very new concepts in the UK, and will evolve quickly, resulting in more data and improved calculations for every business over time.
With prices starting at £350, contact us for a no-obligation quotation and find out how you can help to pave the way for a more profitable, greener, farming future.
