Rootella Carbon

This is Tim Hammerich of the Ag Information Network with your Farm of the Future Report.

Over the past several years, several programs have emerged that offer to pay farmers for carbon sequestration. Most of these require practice changes like reducing tillage and adding cover crops. Rootella Carbon is a program offered by Groundwork BioAg that is based on their Rootella product adding more mycorrhizal fungi to the soil, which general manager Andrew Duff says will increase the amount of carbon sequestered.

Duff… “March of 2023 Verra approved a new methodology that allows for a soil amendment, specifically the fungi, to qualify the change practice. So this is a brand new methodology that's been approved. And we have created a turnkey program where we facilitate everything from beginning to end for the grower. We measure a baseline before an application of the mycorrhizae. And then, we come back a year later measuring the exact same places and determine what the additionality of carbon is in that soil, where you have treated versus untreated.”

Duff said the four year commitment requires and investment in Rootella, but expects farmers to see a one to four ton increase in carbon sequestered. He says at current prices this offers a very nice return on investment.