Event Debrief: Cultivating a Greener Future with Regenerative Agriculture Policies

As a doctor who studies gastrointestinal pathology, Dr. Ashlie Burkart has long recognized the important connection between food systems and health. Food systems are also increasingly recognized as having a direct impact on the health of the planet. Estimates of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions originating from agriculture and associated land use range from one-quarter to one-third of total global emissions. As climate change becomes an increasingly pressing issue, more and more people are recognizing that their diet comes with a carbon cost.

Regenerative agriculture (RA) is a growing movement centered around restoring soil through different, more sustainable farming techniques. It has shown potential for generating socioeconomic, environmental, health, and worker and animal welfare benefits by partially counteracting the climate, water, and biodiversity issues caused by modern industrial farming practices. 

“Regenerative agriculture is not a fringe movement,” said Dr. Burkart told a Harvard Kennedy School audience at an Energy Policy Seminar on February 5, 2024. “It’s becoming more and more mainstream.” 63 percent of leading agrifood companies (which account for roughly one-third of the entire sector) mention RA initiatives in their company disclosures. To many, RA represents either a pathway to reduce Scope 3 emissions and meet net-zero commitments or a significant financial opportunity, or both. 

Regenerative agriculture was recently in the spotlight at COP28 in the UAE, where parties agreed on a goal of transitioning 160 million hectares of farmland to regenerative practices by 2030 and engaging 3.6 million farmers worldwide. $2 billion has already been committed to the initiative, with an additional $2.2 billion in anticipated future investment. U.S. funding for agricultural conservation is also on the rise, with the government committing $20 billion towards U.S. Department of Agriculture conservation programs under the Inflation Reduction Act over the next five years, with an additional $4 billion for drought mitigation in the American West. This constitutes the largest investment aimed at helping farmers adopt climate-resilient land management practices since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. 

Regenerative agricultural practices represent a paradigm shift from conventional farming techniques, which focus on maximizing farm productivity through the use of synthetic fertilizers and other chemicals. However, productivity gains from the current agricultural system have slowed. Crop production, after more than doubling with the use of fertilizer, has since plateaued despite an 800-fold increase in the use of synthetic fertilizers. This singular focus on productivity has contributed to environmental change and the reduced resiliency of our food system, said Dr. Burkart.

Examples of regenerative agricultural practices include minimizing soil disturbance by reducing tilling and the use of synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides, increasing on-farm biodiversity, utilizing soil cover crops, and maximizing continuous living root plants. These practices have shown significant potential benefits (Figure 1), such as increased carbon sequestration, enhanced soil water retention, increased biodiversity, more nutrient-rich food, and improved wellbeing of workers and animals, among others.