Bayer Carbon Program Expands Eligibility, Creates New Potential Revenue Streams for Thousands of U.S. Farmers
Bayer has announced several enhancements to its Bayer Carbon Program that provide all-new opportunities for more U.S. farmers to earn incentives for implementing regenerative agriculture practices that sequester carbon while promoting soil health.
The updates include expanded enrollment eligibility that gives more farmers access to potential new revenue streams for participating. In addition, an extended historical performance period for fields with eligible practice changes and a new Nitrogen Management Program could increase a farmer’s per-acre payment potential.
“Our mission is to improve and expand our program to create additional opportunities for even more American farmers,” said Leonardo Bastos, Senior Vice President of Ecosystem Services at Bayer Crop Science. “These recent enhancements provide farmers with more options, resources and benefits so that we can meet them where they are in their regenerative journey. There’s never been a better time for farmers to explore enrolling in our program.”
The Bayer Carbon Program is part of ForGround by Bayer, Bayer’s digital platform of resources and program options, designed to help U.S. farmers realize the soil health benefits of regenerative agriculture practices, like reducing tillage and planting cover crops. The carbon program creates a mutually beneficial model that pays farmers for their efforts to sequester carbon through regenerative agriculture practices.
Farmers who enroll eligible fields, perform their selected regenerative agriculture practices and pass practice verification, have the potential to earn an annual payment of up to $12 per acre. If a farmer participates in the Nitrogen Management Program, that payment could be as high as $16 per acre in years when the enrolled field is planted with corn. Plus, depending on when the selected practices were adopted, farmers could receive a one-time historical practices payment of up to $48 per acre for implementing cover crops and select reduced tillage practices beginning on or after August 1, 2019.
Unlike some other carbon-based sustainability programs that incentivize farmers, the Bayer Carbon Program bases revenue potential on the practices performed, instead of how many tons of carbon are captured. This simple and certain approach reduces the farmer’s risk by communicating upfront at the time of enrollment how many dollars per acre they will be paid if they meet all program requirements. Farmers can choose the eligible cash crops and practices they want to adopt, while Bayer provides agronomic support, performs soil sampling and helps with data collection and verification.
These new enhancements not only open the Bayer Carbon Program to thousands of additional farmers across the U.S., but also introduce more opportunities for them to earn. These include:
- Additional States: Expanding geographic footprint to 28 total states.
- Eligible Practices: Program accepts no-till/strip-till and/or cover crop practices rewarded at $6 per acre, per practice. Plus, the addition of a new Nitrogen Management Program, rewarded at $4 per acre.
- Expanded Cash Crops: In addition to corn, soybeans and wheat, the following crops will now be eligible: barley, sorghum, oats, rye, millet, dry beans, lentils, chickpeas and peas.
- Early Adoption and Historical Payment: New this year, fields with practice change on or after August 1, 2019, may be eligible to participate, with the potential to receive up to four years of historical practices payment.
- Renewal Potential: Adjusting program performance period to five years, with the potential to be renewed for up to three additional five-year periods. As always, practices must continue to be performed during the 10-year retention period.
- Renewal Bonus: Potential to receive a one-time renewal bonus of $6 per acre, per practice, if the program performance period is renewed for an additional five-year renewal period. These updates will be supported with the launch of a simplified web experience designed to make enrolling in the Bayer Carbon Program easier.
“We listened to feedback from farmers who are already enrolled in the program and concentrated on the enrollment process to make it even simpler to understand and navigate,” said Bastos.
The new web experience streamlines the enrollment process with field-by-field enrollment and securely stores all relevant documents. Farmers can explore multiple eligibility options at once to check if they qualify for additional incentives that may be able to be stacked on top of their Bayer Carbon Program payment. Personalized assistance from Bayer experts will be just a few clicks away if a farmer needs support during the enrollment process.
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