Measure the organic carbon in soil
CarbonCares determines the carbon stock (tC/ha) in the top 30 cm of your soil in a fast, reliable and affordable way, powered by the peer-reviewed SoilCASTOR methodology.
What is CarbonCares?
Increasing organic carbon in agricultural soils is key in mitigating climate change and a marker for regenerative agricultural practices. Yet measuring the carbon content in soils has been a challenge. Not anymore: the AgroCares CarbonCares solution is powered by SoilCASTOR. Our peer-reviewed SoilCASTOR methodology generates optimal sampling locations for rapid soil scanning and calculates carbon stocks in t/ha.
CarbonCares is a robust, affordable and rapidly scalable solution which determines the carbon stock (tC/ha) in the top 30 cm. Have access to your data 24/7 via the AgroCares online Digital Platform to get carbon stocks, clay content and density values. CarbonCares has been designed to align with the most common global carbon certification protocols.
How does it work?
Upload
Upload your field in the AgroCares Portal.
Stratification
A GPS-based sampling plan based on satellite data, unique to your farm.
Scan
Scan the soil samples following the app.
Convert
Our models convert the spectral image into carbon stock, clay content and density.
View
View your report and data in the Portal, or import them via the API.
Ground-truthing with the AgroCares Scanner solution
The AgroCares Scanner solution is a rapid and cost-effective soil test for ground-truthing our global carbon model. It is trained on a dataset of approximately 18,000 lab-measured samples and can be used both for determining carbon content and for other soil nutrients.
Carbon farming or reporting on science-based targets
The AgroCares Carbon Monitor solution is powered by SoilCASTOR: a peer-reviewed scientific approach that aligns with carbon credit certification protocols and won Bayer’s 2022 Grants4Tech CarbonStock Challenge for its combination of cost-effectiveness, accuracy and speed. With the AgroCares Carbon Monitor you can quantify and report your annual carbon removals, both for compensation and insetting purposes.
Roadmap to carbon credits
From project scope to certified carbon credits in five steps.
Project scope development
Delineate participating farms and assert additionality.
Initial carbon stock assessment
SoilCASTOR cycle 1: the baseline.
Assessment of stock increase
SoilCASTOR cycle 2, three to five years later.
Attain carbon credits
Certification with an international certifier.
Carbon credits
Trade the credits on the voluntary market.
How do you demonstrate that carbon is sequestered on your farm?
According to the GHG Protocol Land Sector and Removals Guidance and the carbon standards, a monitoring framework is required. Measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) are the cornerstones of a sound monitoring framework. They allow tracking of the farm’s progress in carbon sequestration, either for insetting or compensation (carbon credits) purposes.
Measurement and data collection using the Scanner
Farmers who adopt regenerative land management practices increase carbon sequestration (removals) in the soil. Accounting for these removals requires measurement, typically before regenerative practices are implemented (baseline) and at periodic intervals (monitoring). The AgroCares Carbon Monitor app provides a GPS-based sampling plan unique to your farm that minimises the number of soil samples you need to take with the handheld scanner. Baseline data on your farm’s emissions do not need to be measured but can be calculated using, for example, the Cool Farm Tool.
Reporting
Key data on your farms must be compiled annually in the form of inventories, such as the amount of fertiliser applied, crop yields and other data related to practice changes. Our interactive web-based portal stores all your soil sampling data, such as SOC content at specific locations and carbon stock in CO2 equivalent per hectare. This data can be imported into your farm management software via an API.
Verification
All farm data related to practice changes should be evaluated by an independent auditor. Different guidelines have been set by different carbon standards, with Verra currently verifying the highest standards. The AgroCares Scanner is a near-infrared technology approved for use under the Verra methodology VM0042 for Improved Agricultural Land Management. Only when the reported farming data is verified can the carbon stored in the soil be counted as removals in your supply chain or traded on voluntary carbon markets as carbon credits.
CarbonCares licences
Two roles, one project: the Project Manager licence gives access to the Portal, the Sample Taker licence to the mobile app for soil sampling.
Project Manager licence
- Portal: upload fields and set up projects
- Satellite-data based stratification
- Get report and data, view the sampling map
- Mobile app for soil sampling
- Parameters: organic carbon (g C/kg), clay (%), density (g/cm3), carbon stock (t C/ha)
Sample Taker licence
- Mobile app for soil sampling
- Parameters: organic carbon (g C/kg), clay (%), density (g/cm3), carbon stock (t C/ha)
CarbonCares
Measure and monitor soil organic carbon stocks in tonnes per hectare with the AgroCares scanner. Project Manager and Sample Taker licences.
from €750 per 12 months
One scanner, one app, several licences
The AgroCares Scanner is a portable near-infrared (NIR) sensor connected to the AgroCares databases. Paired with a licence in the AgroCares Scanner Solutions app it determines the chemical composition of your samples on the spot, with the report on your phone within minutes.
Works on the AgroCares Scanner F and Scanner E. Licences can be combined on the same device, so a soil scanner becomes a feed or leaf scanner by adding a licence.
Our clients and partners
AgroCares works with a range of clients and partners on carbon sequestration.
Find out more about other AgroCares solutions
Analyse and monitor nutrients in soil, on the spot.
Fast insight into the nutritional value of your feeds.
Take control of your crops during growth.
Start measuring with AgroCares
Explore the scanners and licences, order directly in the webshop, or talk to our team about the right solution for your organisation.
SoilCares
FeedCares
LeafCares
CarbonCares