BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The Soil and Water Outcomes (SWOC) Fund, a leading carbon market for agricultural producers, is partnering with the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) in farmer adoption of conservation practices that can enhance farm income through carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas reductions and water quality improvements. The groups recently announced SWOC will extend its reach into Illinois starting with the northern counties of Bureau, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, McHenry and Will, targeting 20,000 acres of new conservation practice adoption.

“We are thrilled to bring the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund to Illinois farmers,” said Adam Kiel, SWOC Fund managing director and vice president of SWOC sponsor AgOutcomes. “We hope farmers in Illinois see value in adding sustainable farming practices to their operations.”

SWOC plans to expand to more than 100,000 acres of cropland across Iowa, Ohio and Illinois in 2021, significantly increasing opportunities for farmers to earn compensation for implementing conservation practices that produce verified environmental outcomes. Various conservation practices implemented by farmers can produce payments ranging from $15 to $40 per acre depending on location and outcomes, Kiel stated in a February 12 ecosystem market webinar hosted by the Illinois Sustainable Agriculture Partnership (ISAP).

“We provide financial benefits to farmers who implement new conservation practices to cost-effectively sequester carbon and improve water quality and other outcomes. What is unique about SWOC is we are bringing a higher-value proposition to farmers for the multiple benefits that are produced from...practices such as cover crops, reduced tillage, input management and those kinds of things,” said Kiel, who grew up on an Iowa crop farm and is past director of conservation for the Iowa Soybean Association.

SWOC sells carbon and water quality “outcomes” to both public and private entities that benefit from them. Market payments for carbon outcomes, quantified as offsets, are generated via outcomes verified at the field level by independent third parties. Carbon offsets are typically measured in metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. The EPA defines a water quality credit as a unit of pollutant reduction usually measured in pounds equivalent, according to information provided by the ISAP.

SWOC has no minimum or maximum acreage enrollment and offers no “look-back” period to producers who had previously established conservation practices, preferring to focus on new enrollees. In addition, SWOC does not allow “stacking” of conservation practices with enrollment in government conservation service programs. 

“When it comes to data, we require two years of historical crop operational data and two years of future crop operational data. If there is a longer crop rotation than two years we require data for the full length of the rotation,” Kiel said, adding that SWOC contracts are offered on an annual basis with a yearly renewal option, and only when an outcome buyer is guaranteed. 

“What we don’t want to get into is promising a farmer a 10 or 20 year contract when we don’t have the buyers lined up to purchase those outcomes. So when we commit to a contract, we already have a buyer secured for the products you are going to produce. We will have a carbon buyer under contract that will purchase everything a farmer produces, as well as a water quality buyer. We are not speculating on the market, but are committed to providing farmers with outcome payments that we have secured under contract,” Kiel explained. 

SWOC payments are made to contracted farmers annually, with 50 percent paid shortly after signing and 50 percent after verification. Verifications are completed via yearly field visits and remote sensing. Enrollment assistance is available through SWOC staff and affiliates, alongside free technical consultation with staff agronomists.

“We really want to build strong relationships with farmers beyond the fields that are enrolled and talk about things that could be done to produce a higher value proposition,” said Kiel. “We don’t have any customer requirements in that you have to be a member of an association to participate, and we don’t try to sell any other products or services to farmers. The only business that we are in is providing farmers with payments for their generation of environmental outcomes, and then selling these outcomes to our beneficiary customers.” 

ISA district 2 director Steve Pitstick said their partnership with the SWOC Fund is part of ISA’s commitment to scale sustainable agriculture practices in a farmer-centric and outcomes-driven manner. 

“In this new partnership with the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund, ISA is helping soybean farmers in these Illinois counties adopt new conservation practices,” he said. “By adopting and better measuring these practices, farmers will effectively reduce their carbon emissions, improve water quality, and receive financial incentives for doing so. ”

The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund is a partnership of AgOutcomes, a subsidiary of the Iowa Soybean Association, and ReHarvest Partners, a subsidiary of Quantified Ventures. 

Farmers interested in learning more should visit www.theoutcomesfund.com.