We don’t mean to sound the alarms, but as you’ll read below, atmospheric CO2 levels reached 415 ppm this month - the highest ever since humanity began. Have no fear, though. As you’ll also read, this
month a new report came out confirming once again that Holistic Management can reverse these risings CO2 levels.
There's hope out there. Read all about it...
NETWORK
NEWS
GEORGIA USA HUB White Oak Pastures Beef Creates Carbon Sink
A lifecycle analysis was recently conducted at White Oak Pastures, confirming that their holistically-managed beef is storing more carbon than is emitted. See the Digging In section below for more. Read Now »
AUSTRALIA HUB [video] Making Money While Restoring the Land
Savory Australia Hub was featured in this ABC News documentary highlighting their financial and ecological success with Holistic Management. Watch »
SAVORY NEWS Regenerative Reaches Uruguay
Daniela Ibarra-Howell, Savory Institute CEO, recaps her productive and inspiring trip to Uruguay to work with local leaders and bring Holistic Management into Uruguayan agriculture. Read More »
WHAT WE'RE READING
ABC NEWS 1st Regenerative Ag School Curriculum First regenerative agriculture curriculum for students launched in Australia in partnership with Kiss the Ground. Read »
WASHINGTON POST CO2 hits 415ppm - highest level in human history 18 of the 19 warmest years on record for the planet have occurred since 2000. Read
»
AGRICULTURE, ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRON. Improved Ecosystem Function w/ Holistic Planned Grazing New peer-reviewed study details outcomes of South Dakota bison ranch using Holistic Planned Grazing. Read »
DIGGING IN
A MONTHLY TOPIC IN GREATER DETAIL
Lifecycle Analysis - White Oak Pastures
Savory Hub White Oak Pastures (Bluffton, GA, USA) recently
released a lifecycle analysis (LCA), conducted third-party, analyzing the carbon footprint of their on-farm activities. The results, as anyone who follows the work of the Savory Global Network would expect, found that White Oak Pastures’ (WOP) beef creates a net carbon sink.
In other words, their beef sequesters more carbon out of the atmosphere and into the soil than is released through enteric emissions (belching), manure emissions, transport, processing, and all other farm activities combined.
Compared to conventional beef, their holistically-managed beef had a 111% lower carbon footprint (33 vs. -3.5 kg CO2-equivalent / kg product). The LCA went a step further and compared other protein sources such as the plant-based Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat. These faux-meats were both found to be net carbon emitters (3.5 and 4 kg CO2-equivalent / kg product, respectively), so despite the significant attention they have been receiving as of late, they are
ultimately processed foods whose production adds to our atmospheric carbon load.
We’re excited to see the superior outcomes of Holistic Management demonstrated over both conventional and plant-based proteins, but the fact remains that LCA’s are a costly and resource-intensive endeavor for a farmer or rancher to undertake, so don’t hold your breath waiting to see similar reports from other holistic managers. Thankfully, the Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV)
protocol that has been developed as part of Savory’s Land to Market (L2M) program is beginning to roll out globally, and this will allow many more producers to access robust and affordable insights as it pertains to their land regeneration.
With EOV, a farmer can engage with their local Savory Hub to have their landbase setup for baseline data collection and periodic monitoring of ecosystem
function. And since there’s more to a properly-functioning ecosystem than just carbon, EOV measures not just soil organic carbon, but also percentage of bare ground, plant species diversity, water infiltration rate, soil microbiology, and a host of other indicators measured short-term (annually) and long-term (every 5 years). Through the L2M program, lands with a verified positive trend line can carry the EOV seal on product and connect their supply in with brands needing regenerative supply.
In a world full of reductionist solutions and sensational marketing claims, a focus on outcomes will help differentiate the signal from the noise. Congrats to White Oak Pastures for their incredible LCA outcomes, and stay tuned for EOV outcomes in the
near future.
EVENTS
SPAIN / JUNE 11-21 Allan Savory 10-day Spain Tour Savory Spain Hub Alejab invites you to join a 10-day tour of the Iberian Peninsula with Allan Savory. Click here for full details, and to see a short video click here (en español). Learn More »
CALIFORNIA, USA / JULY Holistic Land Planning Course Learn Holistic decision-making and the methods, tools and techniques of Holistic Land Planning and Biological Monitoring. Learn more »
SCOTLAND / AUGUST Holistic Management Training Immerse yourself in either a 9-day Comprehensive course or a 3-day Fundamentals course at the Savory Hub in Scotland. Learn more » COLORADO, USA / OCTOBER Regenerative Earth Summit Savory is co-sponsoring this summit to formulate strategies across the food, fashion, and beauty industries to make a restorative impact on soil, water, and climate. Learn more »
Savory Institute, 885 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder, Colorado 80302, United States
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