Agriculture and Innovation: A New Age of Agriculture
Food is ubiquitous; it connects people across the world, and it is something that each and every person on this planet depends upon. As our population continues to grow and exert deleterious pressure on our planet, it’s important that we consider how the ways in which we feed ourselves are impacting the very lands that nourish us.
With the emergence of the Agricultural and then Industrial Revolution, our food system became increasingly efficient through mechanization. The impacts on agricultural productivity were unprecedented; we were able to produce much more food in a lesser amount of time and at lower costs. Over time, our food system only continued to become more dependent on technology and more connected regionally, and then globally. But at what expense?
With time came the rise of chemical-based forms of agriculture, crop monocultures, heavy tilling, and the mismanagement and unethical treatment of livestock. These “conventional” agricultural practices have degraded approximately 75% of the Earth’s land areas and accelerated the depletion of soil carbon stocks. We are experiencing an estimated loss of 36 billion tons of soil per year and it is said that “accelerated soil erosion may be the second largest source of anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases.” This is because when soil is disrupted or degraded (often by tilling or the application of chemicals), it releases the carbon previously stored from decayed organic material.
Although the rise of technology has contributed to some of the most imminent issues we face today, is it also possible that technology might save us? The concept of “regenerative” agriculture has recently gained a lot of attention as it has been championed as a promising solution in our fight against climate change. If adopted on a large scale, it has the potential to help curb our food system’s growing, environmental impact.
In order to scale regenerative practices, many companies within our food system have turned to innovative, technological mechanisms to minimize their footprint, maximize their impact and preserve the lands that they depend upon. Prominent companies like Target, Danone (Dannon), General Mills, Microsoft and Walmart are investing millions of dollars to find sustainable, regenerative solutions that lie at the crossroads of technological innovation and natural processes. These include things like automation, robotics, biotechnological tools and soil monitoring & measuring mechanisms. Other companies are focusing their efforts on things like vertical farming and urban agriculture, the development of more sustainable sources of protein (i.e. insects) or making and spreading biochar to address the water, soil, and land quality issues that have emerged from our current food system. It has become clear that data collection and analysis have become critical components in monitoring and managing planetary health, made possible by various emerging technologies that demonstrate precision and accuracy.
There are various burgeoning technologies that are aiding in the fight against climate. A few technologies stand out in particular for their innovative application within regenerative agriculture. Market-based solutions such as Indigo Ag’s “Carbon” Initiative incentivizes growers to implement regenerative farming practices at scale through the development of a carbon market in which farmers can generate and sell verified carbon credits, which are in high demand by major corporations and other institutions. Additionally, Indigo Ag’s Terraton Challenge calls for regenerative-based innovation submissions and awards those who propel sustainable solutions forward. Together, these mechanisms encourage more farmers to make the transition to more climate friendly farming practices by rewarding their efforts.
Other more technological innovations include things like cloud based software that stores and combines data like weather forecasts and other factors to help inform better, place-specific management practices. The continual development of farm management software suggests an increase in adoption over the next few years, with companies like Grand View Research projecting $4.2 billion in sales by 2025. Even robotic worms are making an appearance in farming soils.
In July 2020, the World Climate Research Program projected that current global CO2 levels would “likely reach the doubling of pre-industrial ppm of CO2 by 2060,” (up to 560 ppm) and that our planet will likely see increased warming in the range of 2.6 °C to 3.9 °C. (36.6oF to 39.0oF). This increase in temperature would drastically alter life as we know it. The numbers tell us one thing loud and clear; we can no longer live life by the status quo. We must curb climate change before it is too late. In order to do this, our global socio-environmental systems need to be reevaluated, rebuilt, and restored. As we prepare to sustain a global population of almost 9 billion by 2030, it seems imminent that the reconstruction of our food system, a prominent source of global emissions, be of top priority as the demand for food only continues to increase.
Food production, when done in a regenerative manner, is a medium that can help mitigate many of the issues that are plaguing our planet. It has become clear that reserving soil health is a key component for a more resilient, and sustainable future. Regenerative agriculture aims to restore our agricultural lands to how they existed before the introduction of highly mechanized, industrialized, and chemical-based agriculture. The regenerative agriculture movement is a call for a food system more in tune with natural processes and for farmers to embrace a more holistic approach to growing food. This will require a combination of an older way of thinking with newly created tools in which software and other new technologies can help. The intersection of agriculture and technology provides a promising path for the future if we can harness the power of innovation to regenerate our planet.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Natalie Kra is a Sustainable Agriculture Intern at Amata Green. Ms. Kra is a graduate student at the University of Colorado, in both the Master’s of the Environment and Masters of Business Administration (MBA) programs, specializing in sustainable food systems. With a background in environmental studies and energy efficiency consulting, Ms. Kra plans to continue to use her passion to advise businesses and institutions on the ways in which sustainability initiatives can add value to the triple bottom line. She is particularly interested in the packaged food/goods space.
ABOUT AMATA GREEN: Amata Green is a sustainability consulting firm whose mission is to promote organic and sustainable food production in a regenerative and responsible manner, around the world. Amata Green is dedicated to finding solutions to the problem of agriculture’s high draw on water and depletion of the earth’s soils. We strive to empower farmers and ranchers to adopt sustainable and regenerative solutions, leading the way to healthier crops, a healthier environment and higher farming returns.