Platform for African – European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development

Thursday, April 25, 2024

Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Soil Health

25 April 2024
, 3:00 pm CET. Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Soil Health

Please Click HERE for the Webinar Recording, Presentations, Transcripts, and Questions from Chat.
  • Lulseged Tamene Desta, a Principal Scientist at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, will discuss the development and impact of the NextGen agro advisory system, which significantly enhances soil health and crop yields through targeted fertilizer recommendations. 
  • Anirudh Keny from Boomitra will showcase how AI is a game-changer in optimizing soil carbon sequestration, enabling even the smallest farms to contribute to the carbon market and fostering a healthier planet. 
  • Alesha Miller, Chief Strategy Officer, Digital Green
  • Katie Kennedy Freeman, Senior Agriculture Economist in the Agriculture and Food Global Practice in the West and Central Africa region at the World Bank.

Boomitra


Boomitra uses satellite and AI technology to measure, report, and verify soil carbon credits across the globe. Alongside an ecosystem of international partners, Boomitra equips every farmer and rancher to increase their soil carbon and yields, while securing additional income through carbon credits. Recarbonizing soils through improved land management practices is one of the most affordable ways to sequester carbon and has the potential to remove 10% of humanity’s annual emissions. Farmers, ranchers, and landowners worldwide can store carbon in the soil while benefiting climate, communities, and biodiversity.
  • Boomitra partners with local organizations that work with these farmers to adopt improved agricultural practices, including reduced tilling, mulching with crop residues, organic manure application, water management, and agroforestry activities. These practices are proven to increase soil organic carbon and enable farmers to improve their productivity. CUs may be issued for the greenhouse gas emission reductions and removals associated with the production of cereals, grains, pulses, sugars, fibers, and other crops in this region.
  • Due to its proven impact in the climate space, Boomitra was recently awarded the third-annual Earthshot Prize in the “Fix Our Climate” category. Boomitra will be awarded GBP 1 million and engage in the year-long Earthshot Fellowship programme, where they will receive dedicated support to continue scaling Boomitra and reaching more farmers worldwide.
Boomitra: A WFP Innovation Accelerator Supported Innovation and a Earthshot Prize winner
Boomitra’s carbon-credit financing can increase farmers’ income by 10-20 per cent each year. Their pilot in Kenya, supported by the Farm to Market Alliance, will reach 1,200 more farmers this year. Read Hannah's story, who is working with Boomitra and the Farm to Market Alliance to take climate action on her farm.


Boomitra Carbon Farming in East Africa through Soil Enrichment

  • Hannah joined Boomitra and the farmer-focused global consortium Farm to Market Alliance (FtMA) for their pilot in Kenya in 2022, which will provide Hannah with further guidance on regenerative agriculture and new income streams through a carbon removal credit system. 
  • The pilot project was launched under the WFP Innovation Accelerator and will reach more than 1,200 farmers in Kenya, who will become eligible to receive carbon financing in the coming year.

Boomitra’s approach to regenerative agriculture is unique in the following ways:

  • Farmer-first training. Farmers and ranchers are the centre of Boomitra’s innovative approach to restoring the planet’s soils. With its network of partners, Boomitra provides participating farmers with free support to introduce regenerative agriculture on their farms. Farmers are empowered to make decisions on their farm that best fits their context, environment, and needs. When implemented practices lead to carbon sequestration, farmers become eligible for carbon financing.
  • AI-powered remote soil monitoringBoomitra’s proprietary AI and remote sensing technology measures soil moisture, nutrients, and carbon more accurately and efficiently than traditional soil monitoring technology. With accurate and timely data, farmers can reduce their water and nutrient usage by 30 percent while enhancing soil fertility. Boomitra’s technology is based on models developed from more than one million accredited soil samples and analyses. By pairing this data with satellite technology, Boomitra can accurately and continuously monitor soil conditions without the need for additional soil sample collections and analyses, which require additional time and resources.
  • Equal access to carbon markets. Boomitra provides supplementary revenue streams for smallholder farmers through carbon credit payments, which compensate farmers for the carbon stored in their soil due to their regenerative practices. Unlike other carbon market systems, Boomitra’s technology makes it possible for agricultural producers of any size, growing any crop anywhere in the world to engage in carbon removal markets, removing barriers to access additional income for smallholder farmers.


Resources:


Published: 22 April 2024. 

Carbon credits, a voluntary market mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, can incentivize climate action. We evaluate the potential and eligibility of Conservation Agriculture (CA) practices for carbon credit generation in India under Verra's VM0042 methodology. 

Using farmer surveys and remote sensing data, it assessed the eligibility based on the following conditions: 
  • Additionality Condition (GHG emission reductions to exceed legal requirements and the weighted mean adoption rate to be < 20% of area in the baseline), 
  • Yield Penalty Condition (no > 5% decrease in crop yields), and 
  • Quantitative Adjustment Condition (reduction in chemical fertilizer use by > 5%). 
The analysis shows that CA has the potential to increase farmers’ carbon credit earnings by USD 18/ha and USD 30/ha in Bihar and Punjab, respectively.


Improving the Speed and Efficiency of Agricultural Extension with AI
Farmer.Chat is designed to deliver tailored assistance to hundreds of thousands of extension workers providing advice to tens of millions of small-scale farmers around the world.
“Using the assistant, I was able to answer farmer questions about climate-smart pest management immediately and confidently.” 
- Female extension agent in Bihar, India

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