OCP Group SA has partnered up for an initial carbon farming and certification project across Brazil’s Mato Grosso State with Brazilian farmers’ cooperative Bioline by Invivo, and agtech company Agrorobótica.
The project initially will cover the areas of cotton, soybeans, and corn, which are representative of Brazilian agriculture, the Moroccan phosphates group said in a Nov. 22 statement, announcing the project partnership.
The partnership will encourage regenerative farming practices to enhance yield and soil quality through personalized digital solutions that are tailored to the area and the crop. To do this, the project will apply Agrorobótica’s AI-led soil analysis tool – Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) – to measure, report, and verify carbon content and sequestration potential.
LIBS is an analytical technique that uses a high-focused laser to create a micro plasma on the surface of the soil sample, in order to determine its elemental composition without generating any harmful chemical residues.
These practices enhance the soil’s capacity to sequester carbon and improve soil health and fertility, which in turn reduces carbon emissions, supports food security, and helps to increase returns for farmers, OCP reported.
The phosphates group said the carbon credits generated from the project provide a valuable source of income for the farmer and OCP will put the carbon credits that it receives from this partnership toward its own objectives of achieving Net Zero carbon emissions by 2040.
“The project stems from a shared belief that soil health management is essential to improving the environment, achieving food security, and in working towards global net zero goals. This project is just the start of a larger collaboration between OCP Group, Bioline, and Agrorobótica,” said OCP.