ALPRO'S REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE JOURNEY
Supporting almond farmers in a regenerative transition.
Last updated on March 24th, 2023
Why does it matter?
Biodiversity loss, drinking water extraction, and soil degradation are some of the key challenges faced in almond production, contributing to the overall footprint of today’s agriculture systems. Current agricultural practices require a shift from a linear model, which degrades resources, to a circular model, which regenerates them. Alpro recognised the need for a change in approach, and started working with the SBTN (Science Based Target Network) to set nature targets (soil, biodiversity, water, etc.) for Alpro. This project was a key step to move from theoretical targets to finding solutions and improvements for Alpro’s almond supply chains in Spain.
How did we solve this?
Following the SBTN target setting phase, Alpro and their key sourcing partner Unió – a cooperative based in Reus, Catalonia – initiated the Regenerative Agriculture Journey Project with several farmers in their almond sourcing region in Spain.
The first phase of the project involved research on potential regenerative agriculture practices and their impacts. A set of holistic farming practices for almond farms were identified that could improve soil health, water retention and management, nutrient flows, land use, and biodiversity of farms. These practices included: reduced tillage, landscape management and integrated pest management, etc. To quantify the impact of the practices, they were scored according to potential impact on ecosystem services (ES). The results indicated that each practice had a positive impact on one or more ES Finally, Alpro looked at business cases, identifying commercial opportunities that could make implementing these practices attractive, such as carbon farming, sheep rotational grazing, and intercropping of aromatics, cereals or legumes. Therefore, besides improving productivity and ecological capacity, implementing these practices could allow farmers to diversify revenue streams and increase their economic resilience.
For the second phase of the project a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework for measuring regenerative agriculture impacts and outcomes was developed with five Unió almond farmers. The farms were also assessed using Danone’s Regenerative Agriculture Scorecard. This created a clear picture of where farmers currently were on their regenerative agriculture journey, and provided key discussion points for a subsequent farmer workshop. In this workshop, the farmers and other stakeholders (including Alpro, Unió, Metabolic and local agronomic support organisations) discussed the practices, potential pilot projects, and community engagement opportunities. The learnings and feedback from the workshop identified opportunities and challenges with implementing the regenerative practices, as well as a set of practices, which stakeholders agreed had the highest opportunity for success. These set of practices are listed by practice area below:
• Cover crop and intercropping: (1) Natural vegetation and mulch, (2) Oats, oat-vetch, and faba bean, (3) Aromatics
• Crop fertilization: (4) Manure, (5) Organic compost, (6) Compost tea
• Tillage management: (7) No tillage with rolling vegetation
• Management of landscape elements: (8) Swales, (9) Sediment traps
• Livestock integration: (10) Grazing animals
• Integrated management: (11) Natural habitats
For the third and last phase of the project, recommendations were made with regards to scaling up Alpro’s model for a regenerative agriculture transition. Key elements were highlighted as essential to make the transition possible, including (1) specialised agronomic support, (2) M&E framework, (3) community building programs, (4) funding opportunities, and (5) market opportunities.
Opportunities for other farms?
The findings of this project will be relevant for any almond farmer interested in transitioning to regenerative agriculture. As the project identifies a diverse set of practices and associated M&E, its findings can be relevant to almond farmers of different situations and contexts. Alpro’s Regenerative Agriculture Program (“supporting farmers program”) can also be scaled across landscapes and plant commodities, as it provides a clear pathway from targets, to concrete measures, and a way forward.
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