The "Ready or Not? Agricultural Carbon Markets and U.S. Farmers" report is the first phase of the Trust In Food team’s response to multiple sources of insight on the current carbon market landscape. We’ve conducted quantitative and qualitative research, studied farmer-focused content engagement and psychographic data unique to Farm Journal, and listened to producers firsthand on the ground. What we’ve seen adds up to a simple truth: Carbon markets are exploding, but the farmers needed to supply these markets are skeptical. 

The report builds on these signals and others, such as those from our fall 2021 survey of 500 row-crop farmers that found: 

• 60% either aren’t interested in a carbon market or won’t consider a carbon market until there is a better structure in place to support farmers’ interests.
• 75% believe costs such as time and resources required outweigh the benefits of carbon market participation.
• 88% don’t calculate carbon sequestration on their operation today. 
• 65% don’t believe customers have a right to know how they manage their farm. 

Compounding the urgency of these findings is an exponential interest in climate-smart agriculture implementation. In the next 12 months, existing carbon markets will evolve and new markets will emerge. A key success factor will be the degree to which markets meet producer needs and wants.

Trust In Food’s objective is to help leaders center sustainable agriculture programs, markets and incentives on farmer perspectives. This is both a personal mission and a business necessity to scale sustainable agriculture and make it standard practice in the industry. Organizations that prioritize helping producers understand, value and feel capable of taking the next step on their sustainability journey will be the ones to move the needle in a way that rewards farmer and rancher efforts and delivers the ecosystem services and climate goals that the public and the planet increasingly require. 

Trust In Food will advance this work by introducing the second phase of our response: A proprietary carbon insights platform designed to cultivate an understanding of farmer priorities in order to accelerate producer adoption of climate-smart agriculture. 

An extension of Trust In Food’s Human Dimensions of Change work, this platform will combine quantitative and qualitative research, psychographic and content affinity data, and farmer thought leadership to provide in-depth intelligence on: 

• producer sentiment about carbon and other ecosystem markets; 
• differentiating factors farmers evaluate when choosing a program; 
• stage of producer enrollment readiness; 
• co-affinities (e.g. behaviors or beliefs that tend to occur together) for positive or negative carbon attitudes; 
• practice adoption triggers; and 
• information on producers’ perceived barriers to marketplace participation.

These resources will advance the industry’s collective desire to create sustainable agriculture value for farmers, in addition to from farmers. As stated in the report: 

“Trust In Food recognizes that consumers increasingly want information and stories about their food. We also believe farmers are dedicated stewards of our land and waters, and that climate-smart agriculture can be a powerful force in addressing a changing climate. But we know that this will only be possible when everyone across the value chain—the farmers, ranchers and producers who grow our food, feed and fuel; the supply partners who build markets for those products; and ultimately, the consumers and other end users who benefit from them—can trust they are all working toward complementary goals …

Farmers are waiting to see if carbon markets will demonstrate shared values, shared vision and shared skin in the game. Because all of us share this planet we call home, it has never been more important to ensure that carbon market programs are designed in ways that producers can trust.” 

Providers of carbon markets, other ecosystem services markets and incentives intend to mainstream sustainable agriculture adoption. They need farmer confidence to make the leap to scalable, widely adopted programs that benefit producers and achieve environmental goals worldwide. 

Trust In Food is ready to help. Read the full Ready or Not? Agricultural Carbon Markets and U.S. Farmers report to learn more about our work on carbon.

Yours in regenerative ag,
Amy Skoczlas Cole
Executive Vice President, Trust In Food™