There are an estimated 600 million smallholder farmers around the world who are working to produce one-third of our global food supply. As climate challenges increase, these farmers are disproportionately affected by changing weather and rising temperatures that lead to increased droughts, erosion, pests, and disease. The stakes are high – both for keeping people out of poverty and ensuring food security. We urgently need solutions that bolster smallholder farmers’ livelihoods and tackle the growing climate crisis.
This is where carbon sequestration comes into play. It is estimated that trapping carbon in soils could remove as much as 5.5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide each year. Smallholder farmers can play an important role in contributing to these efforts.
Innovations capable of sequestering carbon and, at the same time, creating income opportunities from the trapped substance are proving that we can address both challenges in a way that ensures no one is left behind.
Carbon credits launch in the Philippines
In the Philippines, MEDA – Mennonite Economic Development Associates – is working to maintain ecological integrity within and around cacao farms and to create decent work opportunities for smallholder cacao farmers under its Global Affairs Canada-funded RIISA project. A new carbon credit initiative is now underway as part of the project, in partnership with Kennemer Foods International. Through the partnership, climate funds are earned as cacao farmers plant endemic tree species with cacao as the main economic crop, sequestering carbon that is then sold as credits on the voluntary carbon market to international buyers looking to offset greenhouse gas emissions. All earnings are shared with participating farmers – often through advance payments to support income security.
The additional climate revenue aims to incentivize smallholder cacao farmers to engage in environmentally responsible management practices. Farmers can then use the revenues they earn to enhance their cacao yields by investing in seedlings, farm tools, or fertilizer, and for basic needs such as food and education.
Carbon-rich biochar shows its impact in Ghana
Carbon is also offering new income opportunities in Ghana. Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced through the thermal decomposition of organic biomass under low-oxygen conditions. The process, known as pyrolysis, involves heating organic matter – typically farm waste – to temperatures at which it would normally burn, and then depriving it of oxygen so it does not. What would normally go up in smoke is instead preserved in solid form. This stabilized biomass, known as biochar, then becomes a form of carbon that will improve soil properties and will not decompose and be released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Greenhouse gas emissions are therefore reduced, and economic opportunities emerge for smallholder farmers through the issuance of carbon credits.
With support from MEDA’s GROW2 project and funding from Global Affairs Canada, biochar has already shown impressive impact and the potential to scale in Ghana. From January until April 2024, 10,000 bags of biochar were produced, generating over US$50,000 in carbon credits for smallholder farmers. These funds will allow them to invest in agricultural technologies, seeds, and services, setting them up for success in the upcoming production season and beyond. The initiative has become the first certified artisanal (manually produced) biochar project in West Africa.
Leaving no one behind
Innovations like those being piloted in the Philippines and Ghana are critical to incentivize smallholder farmers to adopt climate-smart practices – which often require cash investments and technical assistance upfront that are out of reach for many. Ensuring there is technical and financial support is key to getting smallholder farmers started. With less than two percent of climate finance reportedly allocated to these smallholders, we must find sustainable ways to grow these investments. Impact investment funds that target the scaling of climate innovations for improved smallholder adaptation offer a way to do this.
As climate challenges grow, investment funds to accelerate the commercialization and wide availability of these innovations will allow smallholder farmers to become more resilient, which will secure their continued access to decent work opportunities and enhance global food security. Working in partnership to fund and thereby scale the most effective innovations will help ensure climate action includes and benefits all.
