SAN FRANCISCO, May 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- I.P.Cert, a leading agricultural standards certification consulting partner, and Regrow Ag, the Agriculture Resilience Platform provider, today announced a partnership to accelerate the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices across Ukraine. The partnership will facilitate a wide-reaching sustainable farming program that rewards farmers for climate-smart practices and generates scope 3 insets.
Millions of people rely on Ukraine for agriculture. The country is one of the world’s top agricultural producers and exporters and is often referred to as “Europe’s breadbasket.” Forced to rebuild many of its agricultural systems in the wake of the Russian invasion, central to its future success is a focus on regenerative agriculture – an approach to farming that prioritizes the replenishment of minerals, organic matter, and moisture in the soil, promoting the recovery of soil fertility and allowing it to become more resilient. The practice also helps reduce GHG emissions and establishes lands and crops that are more resilient to climate change.
Raised in an agricultural family in Ukraine, Regrow’s co-founder and CEO, Dr. Anastasia Volkova, is acutely familiar with the importance of agriculture resilience for the country’s future.
“Ukraine is a pillar of the global agricultural system,” said Dr. Volkova. “The war in Ukraine has turned the attention of the world to the importance of this region with regard to food production and the interconnectedness of the global food web. Regrow’s partnership with I.P.Cert will help farmers adopt regenerative agriculture programs that can scale to meet our mutual goal of mitigating the consequences of climate change while supporting farmers in this region and empowering them to build financial and environmental resilience.”
The partnership between I.P.Cert and Regrow aims to help Ukraine’s agricultural communities adopt regenerative practices by incentivizing farmers to grow resilient crops while offering them access to new profit opportunities via scope 3 insets. I.P.Cert will initially enroll growers in a regenerative agriculture program and measure outcomes using Regrow’s comprehensive Measurement, Reporting, Verification (MRV) solution. The program will reward row crop regenerative practices such as cover crops, reduced or no-till, nutrient management including rate reductions, enhanced efficiency fertilizer and application timing. Farmers will also be rewarded for the sustainable production of corn, wheat, soybean, canola, sunflower, barley, potatoes, sugar beet, alfalfa and peas — some of the top produced and traded crops across the globe.
Oksana Prosolenko, CEO/Founder of I.P.Cert, said, “Designed to drive positive environmental outcomes in the agrifood value chain, our partnership with Regrow starts with encouraging farmers to adopt regenerative practices. As a result, they will be building agricultural resilience that is foundational towards natural resource conservation for future generations. An important effect of the partnership implementation will be the transitioning of Ukrainian small- and medium-sized farmers to climate-friendly practices in accordance with EU policies as part of European supply chains.”
The program will cover 60,000 hectares this year and is expected to grow to over 1.5 million hectares by 2028.
About Regrow
Regrow Ag powers Agriculture Resilience for today’s leading retailers, CPGs, processors, and farmers. Named one of the TIME100 Most Influential Companies of 2023, Regrow’s rapidly growing list of partners includes Cargill, General Mills, and Unilever. With Regrow’s Agriculture Resilience Platform, companies across the ag supply chain gain the ability to assure their supply chains by accelerating the needed scale of GHG emissions reduction, adoption of regenerative farming practices, and proactive adaptation to the changing climate. A World Economic Forum Innovator and member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, B Corp-certified Regrow has been named the No. 1 Most Innovative Company in Agriculture on Fast Company’s list of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies in 2023.
About I.P.Cert
I.P.Cert as the developer of the "Living Cropland" Initiative, brings a wealth of experience in agronomy, organic production, and environmental certification. With over 18 years of Team expertise, they have a strong track record in organic agriculture and carbon market initiatives. Their ability to design and implement regenerative agricultural practices, navigate complex certification processes, and connect with local farmers is pivotal to project success. I.P.Carbon specializes in providing support in the certification process according to sustainability and carbon balance criteria. During the last 10 years, successfully completed more than 200 projects of inspection of about 7,000 certifications.
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