Global firms form 'good rice alliance' for Indian farmers

Four big global companies — Bayer, GenZero (a wholly-owned arm of financial major Temasek), Shell and Mitsubishi — have decided to scale up their carbon credit programme in nine states to empower farmers.

The credits are generated through the adoption of smart agriculture practices — Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) and Direct Seeded Rice (DSR).

Since over a year, the project, which was being run on a pilot basis, has positively impacted 10,000 farmers, covering more than 25,000 hectares.

Bayer and Mitsubishi are global leaders in the agriculture space while Shell is big in energy.

Called ‘The Good Rice Alliance,’ the pilots so far have already generated around 100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) methane emission reductions annually from agriculture, according to an official statement.

These will now be traded to enable farmers to get some extra income.

The alliance now plans to expand its programme by adding nearly 8,500 hectares, streamlining the scientific measurement of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rice paddies, and strengthening the farmer handholding and support system.

The programme will explore scale up based on experiences of the first two years of implementation.

Currently, the rice alliance covers major rice-producing states in the country, like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

Paddy rice cultivation is responsible for approximately 11 per cent of global methane emissions, a potent GHG with a global warming potential of over 27 times that of carbon dioxide.

Rice farms occupy 15 per cent of the global farm area, equivalent to more than 150 million hectares.

Voluntary carbon markets (VCM) enable companies and individuals to offset their carbon footprint.

This is achieved by purchasing credits from certified projects that reduce or remove GHGs from the atmosphere.

Nature-based solution removal projects, like reforestation and sustainable agriculture, are playing a vital role now.

In 2022, these projects were the source of 45.8 million of the most carbon-resilient credits.

India is emerging as a frontrunner in the fight against climate change, particularly within the VCM.

Boasting over $1.2 billion in value and over 1,400 projects, India's market fosters innovation through diverse participants — from established corporations to nimble startups and NGOs.

This burgeoning market, fuelled by ambitious net-zero pledges from Indian companies, signifies a commitment to a greener future.