The Soil Health Institute (SHI) is collaborating with Truterra as a partner for soil metrics and sampling design for TruCarbon, the first farmer-owned carbon program in the U.S.

TruCarbon is a transformational new carbon program that will help farmers generate and sell carbon credits to private sector buyers. For the initial launch, SHI will develop the soil sampling design and methodologies for qualifying farmers to be compensated for the carbon they have sequestered retroactively, over the last five years, by adopting soil health practices in prior growing seasons.

Microsoft is the first secured buyer that will purchase the vintage carbon credits toward its ambitious commitment to be carbon negative by 2030.

“TruCarbon is like no other offering on the market because it is built with the farmer at the center, backed by the most cutting-edge technology platform on the market. That means that companies and others looking to buy trusted carbon credits can connect with farmers and support the adoption of more sustainable practices on farms across the country,” said Jason Weller, Vice President, Truterra. “We are excited to be able to bring this program to farmers through our trusted network of ag retailers, offering a competitive price and streamlined experience so that they can stay focused on farming and their stewardship.”

The earth is warming due to excessive amounts of greenhouse gases being released in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane. An important opportunity for addressing this issue is to sequester more carbon in soils, and scientists at SHI are publishing peer-reviewed studies showing that soil health systems are very effective at doing this.

“The science is clear,” said Dr. Wayne Honeycutt, CEO of the Soil Health Institute, “Storing more carbon in soils not only benefits a farmer’s bottom line, but also improves water quality and helps fight climate change. Farmers who adopt soil health practices build drought resilience, reduce erosion and minimize nutrient losses. All of us at the Soil Health Institute are excited to work with Truterra on this project because it will help achieve these on-farm and environmental benefits at scale.”

The Soil Health Institute will provide technical assistance to support the soil sampling strategy and design, field and laboratory methodologies, data analysis and quantification of the carbon sequestered in soils by participating farmers.

Interested farmers can find out more about the program and enroll here.