Agricultural market leader Cefetra is looking to build on the impact of the first of year of its programme to support farmers transitioning to more sustainable agricultural practices.
Cefetra Ecosystem Services pays farmers to reduce their carbon footprint and offers customers grains and oilseeds with Science Based Targets initiative-eligible Scope 3 reductions, covering all indirect emissions, which are achieved in the supply chain through regenerative farming.
In the push to tackle climate change Cefetra Ecosystem Services was launched by Cefetra, a group of leading companies and brands in the animal nutrition and food and drink ingredient industries, to be the bridge between their customers tasked with sourcing sustainable suppliers and farmers wanting financial returns on sustainable farming practices.
Fifty farmers, with land totalling 25,000 hectares, came on board in the first year after the launch in November 2023. Sustainability Specialist Agriculture Jason Hayward-Jones, who has led on the programme, said: “We started Cefetra Ecosystem Services to show leadership in the sector after we received feedback from customers on their concerns about emissions.
“We started it with an open mind about low carbon grains and were pleased to see the enthusiasm and uptake from leading names in food production who recognise that they have to ensure their supply chains become more environmentally friendly to be successful.
“With these commercial drivers, we needed to deliver a practical programme which customers could see was real and allowed farmers to supply low carbon grains. Some companies are producing carbon certificates so we need to make sure we are in step with the market, which Cefetra Ecosystem Services allows us to do.”
The Cefetra Ecosystem Services team are now engaging with members of the farming community to recruit a new intake for the coming year. Jason said: “For the second cohort we are looking to work with arable farmers holding 450 hectares or more, particularly those who have management systems in place to record data.
“Cefetra serves as the vital link between farmers producing low-carbon grain and the market, ensuring seamless connections within the supply chain.
“Farmers can become more environmentally friendly and climate conscious if they have the mindset to change what they are doing by reducing tillage and moving to organic fertiliser. If they are open to making these changes, they can contact us or come to one of our events to find out Cefetra Ecosystem Services can make a difference.”
Cefetra Ecosystem Services was launched as the first initiative to set high standards for climate positive supply chains and reward growers for adopting sustainable farming practices.
Partnering with agronomy firm Soil Capital, it offers a toolkit of products and services based on each farm’s data plus courses of action. Consumers receive sustainable credentials, strengthening the appeal of Cefetra’s reduced impact grains to meet buyers’ ESG goals.
• For more information go to www.cefetra-ecosystem-services.com/
