The combined carbon calculating knowledge of Australia's 12 primary industry-focused research and development corporations is being condensed into a farmer-friendly package to help producers cut their emissions.
The project will help landholders identify how to best modify multi-commodity enterprises to minimise greenhouse gas emissions, take advantage of the carbon market, or identify lower emission farm production opportunities.
The new, free, multi-sector calculator is due to be launched within six months.
It will likely have commercial support from farm services companies and agricultural software businesses who will be able to incorporate it into data platforms they already offer farm sector clients.
The "Know and show your carbon footprint" initiative will give farmers the chance to assess likely emissions across their various crop and livestock enterprises in one go.
It will also estimate the footprints of forestry enterprises and professional fishers.
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"Many growers are operating mixed enterprises or are keeping that option open to manage risk into the future, said Agricultural Innovation Australia chief executive officer, Sam Brown.
"That's why it was important for us to focus on a common and standardised carbon accounting framework.
"Growers are also concerned about potential future market access issues and being able to identify ways to reduce the carbon footprint of their entire enterprise."
The footprint calculator is expected to synchronise with farm management and accounting data held by farm accountants, banks or agronomic service providers.
This would subsequently help producers, in consultation with their farm and financial advisors, modify their farm management decisions in response to the emissions estimates for their enterprise.
Collaborating
The footprint project has being co-ordinated by AIA, the 18-month-old rural R&D corporation which promotes collaboration opportunities between its 15 foundation RDCs, including Australian Pork, Hort Innovation and Meat and Livestock Australia.
Mr Brown said the whole-of-industry carbon accounting tool should provide a better understanding of baseline carbon emissions and residual footprint for any producer's entire enterprise.
It was combining the assessment capacities of 22 existing commodity calculation systems developed in the past five or so years.
Some, including a fifth generation Dairy Australia platform, had evolved to offer significant insight into farm emissions and sequestering capabilities, but they were invariably relevant to just one commodity sector and required considerable data entry spade work.
Mr Brown told this month's ABARES agricultural Outlook 2023 conference in Canberra a lot of research had been done at a scientific and academic level to understand the carbon footprint of agricultural commodities.
"However, the tools are not readily accessible by growers and industry, which has prompted the RDCs, through AIA, to focus on a whole-of-agriculture solution."
It should also increase farmers' confidence when dealing with financial institutions, and on natural capital and asset management issues
- Sam Brown, Agricultural Innovation Australia
Using the strength of the successful commodity RDC network and its focus on fostering farm sustainability, the cross-sector platform should help growers make better market access decisions and carbon market options.
"It should also increase farmers' confidence when dealing with financial institutions, and on natural capital and asset management issues," he said.
AIA was established in late 2021 as a not-for-profit public company to help avoid RDCs duplicating their work in areas such as carbon accounting, and to facilitate joint investment and collaboration in other cross-sectoral issues of national importance.
What's needed?
It has now begun "deep dive" discussions with about 200 producers, technical service providers and agribusinesses players to get a clearer understanding of the gaps, frustrations and specific carbon information needs within different commodity sectors.
This research was due to conclude in late April, providing the parameters for the new platform.
"We start all initiatives with an in-depth discovery phase to ensure we fully understand the problem to be solved," Mr Brown said.
Analysis so far showed Australian agriculture was in a prime position to move early, and together, to create a common, consistent platform.
It could avoid the fragmentation, duplication and inconsistencies other markets were now facing.
The carbon footprint initiative had already garnered interest from supply chain organisations and commercial providers.
Private sector investors saw clear efficiencies in combining the RDCs' commodity-specific carbon research and knowledge with their own experience.
They wanted to include the carbon footprint solution in their own client service platforms.
The 12 RDCs assisting with the feedback and discovery phase are the Grains Research & Development Corporation, Meat & Livestock Australia, Australian Meat Processor Corporation, Australian Pork, Wine Australia, Australian Eggs, Cotton Research & Development Corporation, Fisheries Research & Development Corporation, Forest & Wood Products Australia, Australian Livestock Export Corporation Ltd (LiveCorp), Australian Wool Innovation, and Hort Innovation.
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Andrew Marshall
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
