NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nature
Conservancy and General Mills today unveiled the Soil Health
Roadmap at the annual BSR Conference. Developed by an
interdisciplinary team of Conservancy scientists, economists and
agriculture experts and made possible through support from General
Mills, the Roadmap makes the business case for investing in
sustainable soil health practices to achieve unprecedented economic
benefits for U.S. farmers and businesses, as well as significant
conservation outcomes for generations to come.
"Healthy soils are the cornerstone of life on Earth, yet they
are increasingly rare with less than 10 percent of U.S. soils
managed optimally today," said Michael
Doane, Director of Transforming Working Lands for The Nature
Conservancy. "With increasing demands on our lands to produce more
food, fuel and fiber, now is the time to rethink soils and invest
in the science, new business models and policy signals that can
restore the long-term health and sustainability of our soils."
The Soil Health Roadmap outlines 10 key steps spanning science,
economy and policy priorities to achieve widespread adoption of
adaptive soil health systems on more than 50 percent of U.S.
cropland by 2025. (See accompanying infographic)
"As a global food company, it's imperative to protect the
natural resources and communities upon which our business depends.
In our case, the foundation is soil health," said Jerry Lynch, Chief Sustainability Officer at
General Mills. "The goal is to provide a thoughtful strategy, raise
awareness about the critical role that soil health plays in
environmental sustainability and to encourage transformation in
agricultural supply chains. We cannot do this alone. But, together,
we can get on a path to healthier soil and more sustainable
agriculture systems."
At full adoption, Conservancy scientists estimate nearly
$50 billion in societal benefits
could be realized annually. At 50 percent adoption, improved soil
health would provide $1.2 billion in
annual net economic gains for farmers, and $7.4 billion in water and climate benefits. These
benefits include:
- Mitigating 25 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions
-- the equivalent to taking 5 million passenger cars off the road
for one year
- Reducing 344 million pounds of nutrient loss to the
environment
- Eliminating 116 million metric tons of soil erosion
- Creating 3.6 million acre-feet of available water capacity in
cropland soils
"We know how to build healthier soils, and the benefits are
real. It is simply a better way to farm," said Tim Smith, an Iowa farmer implementing soil health practices
with technical assistance from the Conservancy. "I am protecting my
soil from erosion, greatly reducing my impact on water quality by
reducing nitrate and phosphorus loss, and improving soil health
that will provide for the long term sustainability of the
land."
Soil Health: A Global Priority for Conservation and
Business
As our global population grows, soil health must be both a
conservation and a business priority as growers struggle to produce
more food. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations estimates a 60 percent increase in food production is
required by 2050.
Increased investment and coordination in the priorities called
for in the Soil Health Roadmap can create a transformative shift in
the way America's croplands are managed, paving the way for
tangible economic and environmental gains for future
generations.
By elevating the role of soil health in U.S. cropland management
systems and measuring both the economic and environmental benefits,
we can advance a scalable, sustainable model for farming systems
around the world.
General Mills and The Nature Conservancy are hosting a panel
discussion called The Real Dirt: A Roadmap for Soil Health
on the opening afternoon of the BSR conference. The event is
Tuesday, November 1 from 2:00 p.m. – 3:30
p.m. in the Empire State Ballroom V at the Grand Hyatt in
New York. To register for this
event, visit
bsr16.org/register/roadmap-to-soil-health.
Learn more about the Soil Health Roadmap at
www.nature.org/soil.
About The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization
working around the world to protect the lands and waters on which
all life depends. Together with its more than 1 million members and
600 scientists, the Conservancy has protected 120 million acres of
land and 5,000 miles of rivers worldwide, and operates more than
100 marine conservation projects globally. The Conservancy works on
the ground in 69 countries and all 50 U.S. states. To learn more,
visit www.nature.org.
About General Mills
General Mills is a leading global food company that serves the
world by making food people love. Its brands include Cheerios,
Annie's, Yoplait, Nature Valley, Fiber One, Haagen-Dazs,
Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Old El
Paso, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki and
more. Headquartered in Minneapolis,
Minnesota, USA, General Mills had fiscal 2016 worldwide
sales of US $17.6 billion, including
the company's US $1.0 billion
proportionate share of joint-venture net sales.
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SOURCE General Mills