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Chuck Lippstreu, 612.368.5600 (Media outlets only, please.)Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN Joins Ecosystem Services Market Consortium
ARDEN HILLS, Minn. (Sept. 26, 2019) – Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN is joining the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium (ESMC) as a Founding Circle member, the two organizations announced today. Launched in February, ESMC aims to develop resources to establish a successful ecosystems market, helping incentivize farmers and ranchers to adopt conservation management practices that help improve soil health, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and further efforts to protect and improve water quality.
“We are pleased to welcome Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN to the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium, an industry-leading network of companies and organizations working to develop a successful ecosystems market for agriculture. We look forward to working with one of America’s largest farmer-owned cooperatives to leverage their technology, insights and expertise in support of our work,” said Debbie Reed, executive director of ESMC. “Tools from Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN, paired with its robust network of farmers and ag retailers spanning North America, can play a critical role as the consortium works toward scaling a new ecosystem services approach to stewardship.”
“The Ecosystem Services Market Consortium is leading exciting cross-sector work to support farmers on their stewardship journey, and Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN is proud to contribute the technology, innovation and expertise of our network in support of this effort,” said Matt Carstens, senior vice president of Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN. “Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN is committed to enhancing farmer-led stewardship and helping farmers focus on both environmental outcomes and profit potential. These goals align closely with the important work of the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium.”
An ecosystem services market developed by ESMC seeks to provide farmers with credits linked to environmental improvements such as soil health improvement and GHG emissions reduction, unlocking a potential new income stream as credits are marketed to end users, such as companies working to meet footprint goals. Cost-effectively measuring and monitoring changes in environmental outcomes is a critical step in this process.
With a network reaching more than 300,000 farmers nationwide and approximately half of U.S. harvested acres, Land O’Lakes brings the perspective of a farmer-owned cooperative to the Consortium. In joining the ESMC, Land O’Lakes will leverage its locally-owned ag retailers in both the Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN network and its WinField United business to provide advice and support as the Consortium scales its efforts. Additionally, Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN will help inform the ESMC’s work by offering its ag tech tools that support acre-by-acre stewardship.
To learn more about ESMC, visit ecosystemservicesmarket.org. To learn more about Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN, visit www.landolakessustain.com.
Media Contact:Chuck Lippstreu, 612.368.5600
About Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN
Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN is a leading stewardship solutions provider, advancing and connecting stewardship efforts throughout the food system with scale – from farmers to ag retailers to partners like food companies. Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN positions farmers for success by providing them tools and resources to track progress on every acre they farm. Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN’s network brings together the best in agricultural technology and on-farm business management to drive sustainability across the food system, feeding people, safeguarding the planet and supporting farmer livelihoods. Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN was launched in 2016 by Land O’Lakes, Inc., a member-owned cooperative that spans the spectrum from agricultural production to consumer foods.
About the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium (ESMC)
The Ecosystem Services Market Consortium LLC (www.ecosystemservicesmarket.org) was formed in May 2019 and is a subsidiary of the Soil Health Institute. ESMC’s mission is to advance ecosystem service markets that incentivize farmers and ranchers to improve soil health systems that benefit society. ESMC LLC is a member-based organization launching a national scale ecosystem services market for agriculture to recognize and reward farmers and ranchers for their environmental services to society. ESMC members represent the spectrum of the agricultural sector supply chain with whom we are scaling sustainable agricultural sector outcomes, including increased soil carbon, reduced net greenhouse gases, and improved water quality and water use conservation.
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