Corporate help for soil health is on its way

Corporate interest in sustainable agricultural practices has grown in recent years, along with money to
back it.

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Why it matters: Food manufacturers say they want agriculture to use more sustainable practices and are helping the industry achieve those goals.

In March 2023, PepsiCo made a $216 million, multi-year pledge to study long-term practices geared to improving soil health, largely through regenerative measures. The money was to be split equally among three U.S.-based farm organizations: the Practical Farmers of Iowa, Soil and Water Outcomes Fund and the Illinois Corn Growers Association.

In late November last year, PepsiCo announced an additional $30 million to support nearly 40 agricultural projects in Australia, Colombia, Egypt and the U.K. Soil health was one of three pillars under that program.

In Canada, McCain Foods pledged earlier this year to acquire all its potatoes from regenerative production systems by 2030. In a Western Producer story about corporate Canada’s initiatives in sustainability, McCain was one corporate partner engaged in researching and encouraging sustainable production systems.

McDonald’s Canada and Cargill were also mentioned.

Others joining in

Before the announcements by PepsiCo and McCain, Canada’s Weston Family Soil Health initiative allocated $2 million to Soils at Guelph at the University of Guelph to support its “Aiming Higher: Soils Impact People” project. A five-year research program, it pledged to normalize discussions and understanding about soil health and ecological best management practices for agriculture and society.

“We’re connecting with the finance, insurance, ag media and municipal sectors, providing accurate-soil health information,” says Heather White, knowledge mobilization and communications coordinator with Soils at Guelph.

“Further, we’re working with farmers and their advisors to ground-truth Ontario’s new recommended soil health test (Soil Health Assessment and Plan test), providing free analysis and building the province’s soil-health database.”

When corporations invest in initiatives to support soil health or regenerative agriculture, there’s hope that they’re acknowledging its importance, says White.

Net zero targets are behind at least part of the drive for corporations. Investing in regenerative ag at the farm-level is a way to redistribute the burden of GHG emissions through the value chain.

“I can’t help but think that seeing soil and making plans and commitments to provide for its functioning on a longer-term basis will lead to good things,” says White.

“There are still a lot of questions about accountability and monitoring of outcomes of corporate investments or other cost-sharing programs. Research is needed and ongoing to find better metrics that can be used by a wide range of stakeholders.”

More the merrier

There is a negative perception of “corporate involvement” in agriculture, despite the many products derived through the private sector research and development pipeline.

What’s changing is the collaborative approach that has emerged in recent years. In 2023, five founding organizations established CANZA, the Canadian Alliance for Net Zero Food.

Arrell Food Institute, McCain Foods, the Natural Step, Royal Bank Canada and the Smart Prosperity Food Institute have created a national alliance to develop strategies in agriculture.

It may be a tall order, but Asim Biswas welcomes participation from private sector interests. As a soil scientist, he concedes that researchers can fall short when it comes to implementing the products of their work. They could use “a nudge” to move outcomes closer to use on farms.

“In many cases, a production industry doesn’t talk to the processing industry, which doesn’t talk to the retail industry and we lose ourselves in between,” says Biswas, Ontario Agricultural College chair of soil and precision agriculture at the University of Guelph.

“Finding a better approach requires added resources, allowing us to talk to each other and to make the value chain sustainable. When you connect all of those interests, you take a balance-sheet approach.
“We need to be careful but everyone could play a part in this.”