At the recent National Association of Broadcasters Convention in Kansas City, Associate Farm Editor Reagan Calk had the chance to visit with Bayer Director of Communications Brian Leake about Bayer’s carbon program.
“Our Bayer Carbon program is really a program that we have designed to help growers adopt some of these regenerative ag practices,” Leake said. “Whether it is cover crops, no-till, strip-till, things like that- we want to encourage farmers to adopt these practices that will ultimately help sequester carbon…”
Participating in Bayer’s carbon program not only helps farmers financially, Leake said, but also creates healthier soil for their crops and future yields.
“We pay growers on a per-practice adoption basis, per acre,” Leake said. “It is a flat rate, and it is based on the adoption of, whether they are deciding to for the first time to implement cover crops, no-till or strip-till.”
Leake said the program also offers partnerships with different companies with an interest in identifying growers that are growing products in a particular way.
“In many of these cases, these companies are seeking growers that implement these regenerative ag practices, and we are able to, in essence, connect the grower with the company looking for the products produced in that manner,” Leake said.
As consumers are having an increased interest in where and how their food is grown, Leake said this has given many companies the initiative to partner with farmers who implement particular practices.
For producers who are interested in learning more about Bayer’s carbon program, Leake said he recommends first talking with their Bayer agronomist about which practices might best fit their operation. Leake said producers can also visit https://bayerforground.com/farmers/carbon-initiative for more information.
