SWOF Pilot Program in Red River Valley Explores New Opportunities for Sugar Beet Growers to Profit from Ecosystem Services Markets
Flexibility and adaptability are critical to any successful farming operation. As Andrew Johnstad, who grows sugar beets in Red River Valley, puts it, “We have to be able to change when mother nature throws curveballs.”
Take wind erosion, a major challenge in the Red River Valley. The area has lost thousands of acres of soil to wind erosion in recent years. Cover crops, strip till, and related sustainable agriculture practices can help protect soil from the wind.
And, as Johnstad found, sustainable agriculture practices can also provide farmers with new opportunities to benefit from carbon and ecosystem markets.
In 2022, the Johnstads participated in a research and development program to test pilot farmer adoption of practices that generate verifiable carbon reductions and water quality improvements. The pilot, managed by the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund and United Sugars Corporation represented the first sugar beet fields enrolled in the broader Soil and Water Outcomes Fund.
“With strip-till sugar beets it’s a learning process,” said Johnstad, who farms with his father and brother near Beltrami, MN. “The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund helps to mitigate the risk associated with change. Their agronomy team is great to work with and the outcome payments are made quickly after sign up and verification.”
A strip-till field with cover crops on the Johnstad’s farm near Beltrami, MN
(photo courtesy of Andrew Johnstad)
Left to right: James, Dave, and Andrew Johnstad and the family dog Dierks
(photo courtesy of Andrew Johnstad)
The Johnstad's enrolled the majority of their farm in the R&D pilot in 2022, bringing more sustainable agriculture to an important supply shed for United Sugars. Initial estimates indicate that implementation of new conservation agriculture practices on these acres will sequester nearly 3,400 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e), the equivalent of taking nearly 750 cars off the road for one year.
United Sugars Corporation currently supplies approximately one-quarter of the total U.S. sugar demand. The pilot with the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund in the Red River Valley is part of United Sugars’ holistic approach to sustainable agriculture, employing a variety of practices to mitigate and adapt to climate change, promoting resilience and sustainable agriculture that will benefit consumers for decades to come.
“United Sugars is always looking for ways to support our members as they work to achieve soil and water outcomes while advancing recoverable sugar per acre,” said Donna Isakson, sales and marketing manager at United Sugars. “Trials or tests like this research and development pilot with the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund help us learn more about the opportunities that climate markets can provide for our member companies and farmers.”
United Sugars Corporation joins Cargill, Ingredion, Nutrien Ag Solutions, Hersheys, Target, and PepsiCo as leading companies working to inset corporate emissions in their supply chain by working with the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund to empower farmers to mitigate climate change, regenerate soils, and improve water quality.
The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund provides financial incentives directly to farmers who transition to on-farm conservation practices such as no till, strip till, and cover crops that yield outcomes like carbon sequestration and water quality improvement. The resulting verified environmental outcomes are sold to a diverse group of public and private beneficiaries, including corporations like United Sugars, municipalities, state departments of agriculture, and the federal government.
“As the most farmer friendly ecosystem services program in the industry today we pride ourselves on our ability to deliver practical and flexible conservation agronomy support to farmers to enhance the value of their land for years to come,” said Adam Kiel, managing director of the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund.
“The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund is excited to partner with United Sugars, its customers, and sugar beet producers to support adoption of new conservation practices that have meaningful soil and environmental impact,” said Dan Yeoman, managing director of the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund.
During the past two years, the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund enrolled more than 240,000 acres of cropland across a dozen states, with contracted farmers adding new conservation practices such as cover crops, extended rotations, and reduced tillage. This sequestered more than 211,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) – equal to removing nearly 46,000 cars from the road for one year – as well as prevented more than 206,000 pounds of Phosphorus and 3.4 million pounds of Nitrogen from entering local streams and rivers. Participating farmers received an average payment of more than $31 per acre from the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund for implementing new conservation practices.
“We are always looking for opportunities for new revenue streams and to make our operation more efficient and sustainable,” said Johnstad. “Every farmer has tough decision to make about where to invest; as members of a cooperative, we know how important programs like this are to advance new practices.”
Visit the United Sugars website to learn more about its Sustainable Agriculture initiatives.
