Tag Archive for: Soil Health

Can Humus Rescue the Future? Regenerative Agriculture Offers Openings for the Organic Sector

First of all, the term regenerative agriculture – also known as agroecology – is self-explanatory. It means restoring something that was there originally. A regenerative approach focuses on renaturing the soil and the entire ecosystem that’s so important to climate change. More precisely, this kind of agriculture aims to build up humus – which by now has shrunk to one or two percent of its original level in Europe1, yet is essential for binding CO2.
Organic farmer Benedikt Bösel, with his Gut und Bösel farm in Brandenburg, offers a model business when it comes to regenerative farming. He was one of the first farmers in Germany to convert his farm – which now covers 3,000 hectares – to regenerative agriculture and forestry. In the spring of 2018, two years after he took over the farm from his parents, he encountered a straightforward trigger for changing his approach. “The spring drought was so extreme.
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Genetically Engineered Soil Microbes: Risks and Concerns

Biotech companies are developing genetically engineered microbes for use in agriculture, including the largest agrichemical corporations — Bayer-Monsanto, Syngenta, and BASF. The first of these products are already being used across millions of acres of U.S. farmland.   

The release of live genetically engineered microbes in agriculture represents an unprecedented open-air genetic experiment. The scale of release is far larger and the odds of containment far smaller than for genetically engineered crops. 

This report provides historical context for this novel technology, insight into future trends, a summary of potential risks, and policy recommendations that would ensure robust assessment and oversight as more genetically engineered microbes move from the lab to the field.  

What types of microbes are being genetically engineered for agriculture?  

Bacteria, viruses and fungi are being genetically engineered for agricultural uses with bacteria being the most common.   

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La sequía puede ser nuestra gran oportunidad para la regeneración

Vean este increíble video que Hope hizo acerca de los beneficios de la agricultura regenerativa.

La agricultura regenerativa puede resolver 5 de nuestros principales problemas como sociedad. Ayúdanos a seguir trabajando.

 

MÁS INFORMACIÓN AQUÍ

Priorizar la agricultura regenerativa para favorecer la salud del suelo

Apoyar a las comunidades humanas y ecológicas para garantizar la calidad de las plantas y el suministro a largo plazo, es la iniciativa propuesta a través de un video por el Programa de Hierbas Sostenibles (SHP) y los productores botánicos.

Los involucrados señalan, que el cultivo de estas plantas se debe construir en comunidades agrícolas saludables y resilientes, para crear conciencia sobre los problemas de las prácticas agrícolas actuales y su impacto en el suelo, señala Ann Armbrecht, directora de Programa de Hierbas Sostenibles (SHP).

Además, advierte que aunque existen niveles máximos de residuos de pesticidas para los productos a base de hierbas, estos no abordan los impactos de las prácticas agrícolas convencionales en todo el sistema y que el uso de insumos químicos ha demostrado que causa daño a la salud de los trabajadores.

Cuidar la salud del suelo es prioridad

Esta información se dio a conocer en un video publicado por SHP, en dónde, con el ejemplo Costa Rica, expone las prácticas agrícolas regenerativas como el mulching, los procedimientos de labranza y los cultivos intercalados, que afectan fortalecen el sueño de los cultivos

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Agricultura regenerativa: devolver la vida al suelo

“El suelo es el único material mágico que convierte la muerte en vida”. El filósofo indio Sadhguru, uno de los fundadores del movimiento Salvemos el Suelo, trata de concienciar al mundo sobre la importancia de un cambio de enfoque en los problemas medioambientales: detener la degradación del suelo, una medida urgente e indispensable para ayudar a mitigar la sequía, los incendios forestales y preservar el manto vegetal de la Tierra. El movimiento, que cuenta con el apoyo y participación de las Naciones Unidas y múltiples asociaciones y centros de investigación científica, tiene como principal objetivo impulsar cambios en las políticas nacionales de 193 países para aumentar y mantener el contenido orgánico de los suelos.

Más de la mitad de las tierras agrícolas están degradadas

Según la FAO, aproximadamente el 33% de las tierras del mundo están sufriendo la erosión, la contaminación y la urbanización, y más del 50% de la superficie agrícola ha perdido su equilibrio ecológico por la acción humana.

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Village Head Wins Regenerative Farming Award

Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter

VILLAGE head for Ndlovu village outside Victoria Falls, Mr Abel Ndlovu is leading his subjects by example after he won the farmer of the year in Kachechete ward.
This comes after the community embraced the concept of regeneration pioneered by Igugu Trust, to revitalise communities to enhance their livelihoods through sustainable use of soils, pastures, forests and small grains.

Photo credit: IGugu Trust

Igugu trust was formed in 2017 to encourage care and well-being for communities and all living systems, and for the soil by providing trainings to Hwange community and other organizations on regeneration. The concept envisions a future with communal food sovereignty, individuals that are proud of their roots, deeply connected to their source of life, soil health, food systems, human health, climate health and economic viability, all dovetailing with the Second Republic’s vision for an upper middle income society by 2030.
Igugu Trust introduced the boma concept, where an un-transparent canvas sail is used to make a pen balanced on poles for the perimeter with the canvas is put right round.
Farmers tour Mr and Mrs Ndlovu’s field

Photo credit: IGugu Trust

Farmers tour Mr and Mrs Ndlovu’s field
This has helped re-fertilise fields that had become less productive due to over-farming and erosion.
Cattle are penned in a boma in the field to add manure to the soil.
Working with the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Igugu Trust is promoting sustainable farming on 292 households in BH8, BH9, BH23, BH24 and BH25.
The objectives of the programme is to refertilise fields, encourage planting of small grains and multiply them through sharing seeds, encouraging youth participation, improving quality of life and foster development and food security for both people and animals.
The programme also encourages business cooperation, cultural development, building a future resource base and ultimately remove dependency on donors.

Photo credit: IGugu Trust

Mr Ndlovu, who is chairperson of all village heads in Ndlovu,  and his wife Ms Josephine Ncube started using the boma concept in November last year and on planting and used intercropping where they put together maize, groundnuts, cow peas and pumpkins which provided live mulching and reduced weeds.
“I feel very happy and uplifted to be the winner. When the programme came through I embraced it which shows that as a leader I am following guidelines given to us by experts.
“We have advocated for the programme to be embraced by everyone so that it works for us all. I once won as a farmer but I stopped serious farming when my field because infertile. When they brought the boma concept I reluctantly took it up and today it has given me results,|” said Mr Ndlovu.
He said he was happy that his subjects will be food secure through the concept.
The winning couple was given mash wire to fence their homestead as part of its prize.

Photo credit: IGugu Trust

Kachechete councilor Givemeagain Moyo shakes hands with one of Dimbangombe directors at a field day organised by Igugu Trust and Agritex
Senior Agritex officer in Hwange West Mr Memory Sibanda said judges focused on use of proper soil fertility management, land preparation plant population, timeliness of operations, weed management, record keeping and using conservation farming.
Igugu Trust founder and lead facilitator Mrs Precious Phiri said the idea was to create communities that are resilient.
“The whole concept is about regeneration where we are saying lets sustainably use our forests so that our cattle get grazing pastures which in turn will give us manure through use of bomas and ultimately we get good yields. Regeneration covers every aspect of life including us having to live in harmony and together in life,” she said.
Kachechete ward 3 councillor Givemeagain Moyo said development comes in a food secure community where everyone’s energy is directed to projects.

The Myth of No-Till: The Future is Regenerative Organic Agriculture

The Rodale Institute’s 40-Year-Report on their Farming Systems Trial should end the myth of the toxic, GMO herbicide, no-till systems. Rodale’s scientific trials clearly show that these degenerative no-till systems are inferior to Regenerative Organic Agriculture on every key criterion. (Rodale 2022)

The Farming Systems Trial showed that the organic manure systems that used standard or limited tillage had higher levels of soil organic matter (soil organic carbon) and higher crop yields than GMO herbicide no-till. The trials produced the highest yields of maize in the tilled organic manure system and the best increases in soil organic carbon where the organic manure system used limited tillage. The limited tillage field was tilled every second year. Very significantly, 40 years of research show that organic maize yields have been 31 percent higher than conventional/industrial farming systems in drought years.

Photo credit: Unsplash

No-till does not produce higher levels of SOC

This information is consistent with a large body of science that shows that herbicide no-till systems do not produce higher levels of soil organic carbon (SOC) than tillage systems.

An earlier US  study comparing herbicide GMO no-till with an organic agricultural tillage system compared multiple parameters. The organic system found better soil quality, including SOC levels. The results found that systems incorporating high amounts of organic inputs from manure and cover crops can improve soils more than no-tillage systems despite reliance on a minimum level of tillage. (Teasdale, Coffman and Mangum 2007) .

Researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 74 published studies comparing no-till and full-tillage management. They found that no-till can reduce SOC stocks, cause losses in crop yields, and cause a decline in Carbon (C) inputs depending on climate. Yields can also increase with no-till adoption in some instances. C input losses greater than 15% with the adoption of no-till lead to a loss of SOC. (Ogle, Swan and Paustian 2012)

Research from Ohio State University compared carbon levels between no-till and tillage fields and found that, in some cases, carbon storage was more significant in the tillage fields. The key is soil depth. They compared the carbon storage between no-till and plowed fields with the plow depth of 20 cm and found that the carbon storage was generally much more significant in no-till fields than in plowed fields. When they examined 30 cm and deeper, they found more carbon stored in plowed fields than in the no-till ones. The researchers concluded that farmers should not measure soil carbon based on surface depth. They recommended going as much as one meter below the soil surface to get a more accurate assessment of SOC. (Christopher, Lal and Mishra 2009)

A review of 120 papers on SOC sequestration by researchers from universities in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Ohio compared the difference between the no-till and tilled plots.  Their findings did not support SOC sequestration claims of the no-till industry. They found that the no-till subsurface layer often loses more SOC stock over time than is gained in the surface layer. (Olson 2013)

Photo credit: Unsplash

Understanding Soil Organic Matter

The push for no-till is partially the result of the multiple roles of soil organic matter being ignored by agricultural workers. The other driver has been the sale of $billion of toxic herbicides and GMOs.

This lack of research into organic systems has resulted in fundamental errors in understanding how the cycling of soil organic matter works to release nutrients, build soil health and assist with water capture and retention.

Cycling the labile (short-term) organic matter fraction is the key to nutrient availability. Short-term soil disturbances, like animals trampling pasture and the correct tillage systems, oxygenate the soil. This stimulates soil microbes to feed on the soil organic matter, releasing nutrients. There is a massive misunderstanding about the role of microbes that oxidize soil organic matter. A certain level of oxidization is essential to release the nutrients to feed the crops. Without oxidization, many minerals can be locked into the organic matter. The key is to correctly manage the cycles of both the short-term and long-term soil organic matter fractions. We want the labile fraction to actively cycle and continuously release nutrients to feed growing crops. This can be done while increasing the stable soil organic matter fractions. (Leu 2021b)

Labile (Short-Term) Fraction

The labile fraction is composed of decaying organic matter. This is the most crucial part of the two main soil organic matter  (SOM) cycles. This is the stage in which microbes break down the residues of crops, leaves, twigs, branches, root excretions, animal manures, and animal remains and release all of their minerals, sugars, and other compounds into the soil to feed plants and other microorganisms. This complex process is known as the soil food web or the soil microbiome.

The key to this cycle is that it needs to be continuously fed with fresh organic matter—the molecules of life—to ensure that it is active.

Some models in books and scientific papers describe this cycle and then look no deeper into the SOM cycles. These models assume that all the carbon in the organic matter has to be completely decayed into carbon dioxide (CO2) for the minerals to be released as nutrition to plants. In natural ecosystems and under good management, though, some parts of the decaying organic matter form stable soil organic matter fractions.

Stable (Long-Lasting) Fraction

The most stable organic matter fractions are humus, glomalin (from fungi), and charcoal (char). Research shows that humus and char can last for thousands of years in the soil. Other fractions are less stable (labile) and can easily volatilize into CO2.

It is the lignins of plants that form humus, the most stable and important form of SOM. These are found in mature coarse plants. The key to increasing humus and building long-term stable SOM is to allow cover and cash crops to fully mature.

Photo credit: Unsplash

The Correct Tillage Systems

Correct tillage systems stimulate the microbiome to bio-degrade the short-term SOM fractions, releasing nutrients to the cash and cover crops. When this is done properly, a percentage of this organic matter is transformed by the soil microbiome into the stable soil organic matter fraction, increasing long-term SOM levels.

In well-managed systems, there can be a short decline in SOM levels as it is consumed by the soil microbiome to release nutrients to the crop, but SOM levels do increase in the long term. The correct management systems quickly replenish and increase SOM due to the roots of high-quality cover/cash crops excreting the molecules of life into the soil. This is the carbon gift / liquid carbon pathway.

The key to ensuring that the system is increasing and/or maintaining SOM levels is to continuously feed it with fresh organic matter—the molecules of life—so that it is active. This is done by growing plants. Bare soil should be covered with plants as quickly as possible.

Synthetic Nitrogen Fertilizers cause a Decline in SOC

The main reason for the loss of soil carbon in farming systems is not tillage; it is synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. Research shows that there is a direct link between the application of synthetic nitrogenous fertilizers and a decline in soil carbon. (Khan et al. 2007, Mulvaney et al. 2009, Man et al. 2021)

Scientists at the University of Illinois analyzed the results of a fifty-year agricultural trial. They found that applying synthetic nitrogen fertilizer had resulted in all the carbon residues from the crop disappearing, as well as an average loss of around 10,000 Lbs of soil carbon per Acre (10,000 kg of soil carbon per hectare). This is around 36,700 pounds of carbon dioxide per acre (36,700 kg of CO2 per hectare) over and above the many thousands of pounds of crop residues that are converted into carbon dioxide yearly. The researchers found that the higher the application of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer, the greater the amount of soil carbon lost as CO2. This is one of the major reasons there is a decline in soil carbon in industrial agricultural systems and an increase in organic systems. (Khan et al. 2007, Mulvaney et al. 2009)

Regenerative Organic Agriculture is the Future

It is a myth that the toxic degenerative GMO herbicide no-till systems can give higher crop yields and significant increases in soil organic carbon.

The fact is that we have enough high-quality studies now to show that Regenerative Organic Agriculture has the highest yields and the best increases in soil organic carbon.

Scaling up Regenerative Organic Agriculture can reverse climate change, increase biodiversity, improve water capture and retention, stop soil loss, be more profitable for farmers and ranchers, and very significantly nourish the world with high yields of healthy non-toxic food.

References:

           Christopher S. F, Lal R and Mishra, U, 2009. Long-term no-till effects on carbon sequestration in the Midwestern U.S. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 73: 207-216.

            Khan, S.A., R.L. Mulvaney, T.R. Ellsworth, and C.W. Boast. 2007. The myth of nitrogen fertilization for soil carbon sequestration. Journal of Environmental Quality 36:1821-1832. \

            Leu A 2013, Commentary V: Mitigating climate change with soil organic matter in organic production systems. TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT REVIEW, 2013, WAKE UP BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE, Ed. Ulrich Hoffman, UNCTAD/DITC/TED/2012/3 UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATION  ISSN 1810-5432

            Leu A  2014, THE POTENTIAL FOR MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE WITH SOIL ORGANIC MATTER INCREASES IN ORGANIC PRODUCTION SYSTEMS. Acta Horticulturae. 1018, 75-82

            Leu A 2021a, Our Global Regeneration Revolution: Organic 3.0 to Regenerative and Organic Agriculture https://regenerationinternational.org/2021/07/12/our-global-regeneration-revolution-organic-3-0-to-regenerative-and-organic-agriculture/

            Leu A 2021b, GROWING LIFE, REGENERATING FARMING AND RANCHING, Acres USA, Greeley Colorado, USA, December 2021

            Mulvaney, R.L., S.A., Khan, and T.R. Ellsworth. 2009. Synthetic nitrogen fertilizers deplete soil nitrogen: A global dilemma for sustainable cereal production. Journal of Environmental Quality 38:2295-2314.

            Man, M., B. Deen, K.E. Dunfield, C.Wagner-Riddle, and M.J. Simpson. 2021.Altered soil organic matter composition and degradation after a decade of nitrogen fertilization in a temperate agroecosystem. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 310:107305.

            Ogle SM, Swan A and Paustian K. 2012,  No-till management impacts on crop productivity, carbon input and soil carbon sequestration, Agriculture, Ecosystems &Environment,

Volume 149, 1 March 2012, Pages 37-49 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.12.010

            Olson K R 2013, Soil organic carbon sequestration, storage, retention and loss in U.S. croplands: Issues paper for protocol development. Geoderma, 2013; 195-196: 201 DOI: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2012.12.004

            Rodale 2022, Farming Systems Trial 40-YEAR REPORT, Rodale Institute, https://rodaleinstitute.org/science/farming-systems-trial, Accessed December 8, 2022

            Teasdale JR, Coffman CB and Mangum RW (2007). Potential long-term benefits of no-tillage and organic cropping systems for grain production and soil improvement. Agronomy Journal, Sept–Oct, 99 (5): 1297-1305.

En Cataluña investigan como cuidar el suelo a través de agricultura regenerativa

La conservación y recuperación del suelo es uno de los temas más importantes en lo que respecta a buenas prácticas agrícolas actuales. El avance de la agricultura sobre terrenos con poca estructura sumado a los efectos del cambio climático, está generando una gran pérdida de este recurso tan indispensable como limitado.

El propósito de la agricultura regenerativa es recuperar la salud del suelo, ya sea en lo que respecta a estructura física como de biodiversidad y composición química, por medio de procesos ecológicos.

Proyectos para un suelo más saludable

Con la idea de seguir sumando en agricultura regenerativa, han lanzado recientemente desde el IRTA y en conjunto con el Centro de Investigación Ecológica y Aplicaciones Forestales (CREAF) y la Universidad de Lleida (UdL), los proyectos AgriRegenCat y AgriCarboniCat. Ambos proyectos están enfocados en la agricultura de Cataluña y los factores bióticos y abióticos que influyen sobre ella y cuyo objetivo común es identificar las mejores prácticas agrícolas para incrementar los servicios ecosistémicos del suelo.

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What Happened at the UNFCCC COP26 and How RI Could Promote Soil Health and Regenerative Agriculture to Reverse Climate Change at COP27 in Egypt

GLASGOW: In November of last year, Regeneration International sent a delegation to Glasgow, Scotland, to attend the 26th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Nearly 200 countries negotiate emissions reductions and climate change mitigation goals to limit global temperature rise by 1,5C.

Days before attending, the 4 Per 1000 Initiative online platform notified its partners that Soil Heroes, a small foundation based in the Netherlands were calling all carbon farming advocates to sign an open letter addressed to Alok Sharma the CEO of the UNFCCC COP26 to recognize soil health as a major solution to climate mitigation – an initiative we decided to support and share with the world.

While the letter received many positive feedbacks and support from prominent organizations and activists in the food and agriculture space, we didn’t hear from the very people to whom it was addressed (COP26 President and CEO). However, it is important to understand that countries are required to set themselves Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) which are non-binding national plans highlighting climate action, climate-related targets for greenhouse gas reductions, policies and measures governments aim to implement in response to climate change and contribute to achieving the global targets set out in the Paris Agreement. 

The great news is that to this day 28 countries have chosen to highlight soil organic carbon into their NDCs. Though this shows the momentum soil health is gaining, we urgently need more countries to follow this course.

Therefore, we are actively working to make an updated open letter addressed to world COP27 in Egypt next year. Here we will shine a light on the NDCs of countries towards soil health, calling on other world leaders to follow them, and pressing parties to lobby for investments towards scaling up regenerative agricultural practices worldwide.

The outcomes from COP26 on agriculture and food: 

According to UN Climate Change News « Significant progress has been made at COP26 in both reducing the impact of climate change on the agriculture sector and lowering the sector’s contribution to global warming. »

Governments found agreement on three of the six topics included in the ‘Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture’ (KJWA). This process was scheduled to finish at COP26, but as the sessions wrapped up at the end of the conference, the text remained heavily bracketed, indicating many areas of disagreement. Governments agreed on the need to continue working on Agriculture under the UNFCCC process with a view to adopting a decision at COP27 in Egypt in 2022… 

Governments acknowledged that soil and nutrient management practices and the optimal use of nutrients lie at the core of climate-resilient, sustainable food production systems and can contribute to global food security.

The World Bank will commit to spending $25 billion in climate finance annually to 2025 through its Climate Action Plan, including a focus on agriculture and food systems. 

Global Methane Pledge: an US and EU-led initiative involving more than 100 countries responsible for about 50% of global methane emissions, committing to reduce their methane emissions by 30%from 2020 levels by 2030. 

Policy Action Agenda for a Just Transition to Sustainable Food and Agriculture: an effort led by the COP26 Presidency, the World Bank and Just Rural Transition. Supported by 16 countries representing 11% of global emissions from agriculture. Some of the proposed actions include repurposing subsidies that incentivize harmful agricultural practices, investment in R&D for agricultural innovation, and designing inclusive processed for consulting and communication with stakeholders.  

45 governments pledged urgent action and investment to protect nature and shift to more sustainable ways of farming. All continents were represented, with countries including India, Colombia, Vietnam, Germany, Ghana, and Australia. Examples of national commitments include:

  • Germany’s plans to lower emissions from land use by 25m tons by 2030
  • The UK’s aim to engage 75% of farmers in low carbon practices by 2030
  • Australia’s net-zero strategy which includes improved management of ¼ of its cropland and reducing emissions from agriculture by 36% from 2005 levels by 2030, through “storing carbon in vegetation and soils” and “voluntary land-based offsets”

However….

Still no reference to “regenerative agriculture” or any other close term. One of the major sticking points in the Koronivia work was the proposed inclusion of a reference to “agroecology”. The Africa group, the Least-Developed Countries and the EU were “strong champions” in pushing for the text to mention agroecology. The US and India were among the countries opposed to its inclusion. The term remains in still unresolved brackets, which will be discussed again at COP27… 

The funding commitments were still very much focused on halting deforestation.

All of the announcements rely on voluntary commitments, with no enforcement mechanisms. 

Some say that the Global Methane Pledge focuses too much on reducing emissions from fossil fuels and not enough on livestock and other agricultural emissions. Fossil fuel supply chains account for 35% of human-driven methane emissions while 40% are coming from agriculture. 

AIM4C has been criticized for its over-reliance on technology like genetically modified crops, climate-smart agriculture, and R&D, rather than sustainable farming methods such as regenerative agriculture. 

Marrakesh Partnership and the Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture (KJWA)
How regenerative movement organizations accredited to the UNFCCC have their say at the next COP27 negotiations.

Writing an open letter to world leaders such as the one by Soil Heroes we promoted is a good step for the regenerative movement. But, as a civil society representing grassroots realities, how can we make our voices heard to the very people involved in climate negotiations and working to implement NDCs? 

  1. Through the Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture, the UNFCCC takes into account submissions from parties and observers (such as RI) to recommend and advocate key strategies for stakeholders to reach the Paris Agreement targets through agriculture. 

Consequently, regenerative movement organizations accredited to the UNFCCC should be mobilized to share a large number of statements to the KJWA ahead of COP27 to incentivize on the cores of action and of our partners, allies, and countries already engaged towards regenerative transitions in agriculture. 

 Note: countries such as Bhutan whose national food and nutrition security strategy is improving agricultural practices, switching from synthetic to organic fertilizers, and increasing biomass through greater perennial crop and fodder production. 

  1. The Land-use group of the UNFCCC Marrakesh partnership is open to all non-state actors (NGOs, cities, businesses, scientists, farmer organizations…) engaged on land-based climate action towards achieving the Paris Agreements. KWJA statements and recommendations can be discussed within this group, and we encourage all of our networks that are heading to COP27 in Egypt in November of this year to join the Marrakesh Partnership and contribute. 

 Please read our joint declaration with the Marrakesh Partnership released on 11.11.21 

 In 2022, RI’s participation at the UNFCCC COP27 will be significant with a renewed collaboration between Soil Heroes and our network of partners to highlight soil health, regenerative agriculture, and tangible actions made by parties through side events, online media, and collaborative contribution to both Marrakesh Partnership and KJWA platforms.

 Article written jointly with Soil Heroes.
Oliver Gardiner is Regeneration International’s Eurasia representative and creative media director.

Sin arados, ni químicos, un granjero sudafricano revoluciona sus métodos

Es primavera en Sudáfrica, pero los arados de Danie Bester se oxidan en un rincón de su granja. A su alrededor, kilómetros de campos de sus vecinos con la tierra recién removida. “Yo sigo jugando al golf”, bromea.

Parece la fábula de Esopo, en la que la cigarra holgazanea todo el verano mientras las hormigas hacen acopio de comida para el invierno. Pero en realidad, este hombre de 37 años ha decidido revolucionar sus métodos de cultivo, con técnicas mejores para el suelo y para el clima.

“Mis semilleros ya están creciendo y mi control de la maleza está en marcha”, dice. “Así que no tengo que hacer esa gran, gran preparación como los otros están haciendo”, añade.

Es agricultura regenerativa, un estilo de nombre sofisticado, pero basado en una idea bien simple.

En vez de usar pesticidas, sistemas de irrigación y pesada maquinaria para el arado, Bester utiliza cultivos de cobertura durante todo el año para mantener la humedad y los nutrientes del suelo. Eso controla la maleza.

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